Our AQA A-Level Business Tutors are fully qualified teachers who know every AQA paper and question type, from Paper 1’s multiple-choice questions to the 24-mark evaluation that ends Paper 3. Lessons are one-to-one and online.
No commitment. Just a conversation about their AQA papers, their mock results and their target grade.
Predictions set by the student’s school, or by us for self-studying students. See every result · Read the reviews
AQA is changing its A-level Business course. Students in Year 13 this year finish the current specification. Students who started Year 12 in September 2026 are the first to take the new one. The two courses are examined very differently, so we plan lessons around the right one from the first session.
7132
The current AQA A-level. Its final exams are in summer 2027.
7138
The new AQA A-level, first taught in September 2026 and first examined in summer 2028.
Not sure which one? The four-digit code is on the front of any AQA mock paper and on your child’s exam entry. As a rule of thumb, students who started Year 12 before September 2026 are on 7132.
Each 7132 paper is two hours long and worth 100 marks, which leaves about 1.2 minutes per mark. The three papers don’t reward the same skills in the same amounts. AQA’s own weightings show knowledge and application count most on Paper 1, while analysis and evaluation count most on Paper 3.
Share of the whole A-level
Watch out: the essays have no case study, so application marks depend on real business examples the student brings with them.
Share of the whole A-level
Watch out: calculations appear throughout. In June 2023 students had to calculate net present value, ROCE and a percentage change.
Share of the whole A-level
Watch out: reading time comes out of the two hours, so students need a fast, reliable way to pull evidence from a long case.
Weightings: AQA 7132 specification, assessment objective weightings by paper (ranges). Question examples: AQA June 2023 mark schemes.
AQA marks longer answers in levels, not by counting points. Students who don’t know what the top level needs for each question type often write too much for small questions and too little for the ones that matter. This is how we teach each type.
| Question type | Marks and where | How it’s marked | What a top answer does |
|---|---|---|---|
| Multiple choice | 1 mark each, 15 in total · Paper 1 | Right or wrong | Relies on precise definitions. Rule out the distractors and use quick calculations on scrap paper. |
| Calculate | 3–4 marks · Papers 1 and 2 | Marks for method and answer | Shows the formula and working, uses the right units, and gets the answer to the precision asked for. |
| Explain / draw | About 4 marks · Papers 1 and 2 | Knowledge and application | One point, clearly developed and tied to the business in the question. No evaluation is needed. |
| Analyse | 9 marks (6 or 12 at times) · all papers | 3 levels for 9 marks | Two well-developed chains of cause and effect, rooted in the case. No judgement is needed, so time goes on depth. |
| Judgement (“To what extent”, “Justify”) | 16 marks · Papers 2 and 3 | 4 levels | Balanced analysis, then a clear, supported decision that depends on evidence in the case. |
| Extended evaluation | 20 and 24 marks · Paper 3 | 5 levels | Draws on the whole course, weighs several factors, and reaches a decisive conclusion that says what it depends on. |
| Essay | 25 marks, one in each of Sections C and D · Paper 1 | 5 levels | Uses real examples from the student’s own knowledge, builds analysis on both sides, and gives a judgement that answers the exact question. |
AQA’s June 2023 Paper 1 mark scheme. Evaluation is worth 10 of the 25 marks.
AQA’s June 2023 Paper 3 mark scheme. Analysis and evaluation make up 15 of the 24 marks.
Every A-level Business board uses the same four assessment objectives, but each board tests them in its own way. On AQA they’re close to evenly weighted, so a student can’t make up for weak evaluation with strong knowledge.
AQA tests this directly through Paper 1’s multiple-choice questions and the calculations on Papers 1 and 2. In longer answers, it’s the accurate use of terms, formulas and models. Loose definitions cost marks in every question type.
More on AO1 Knowledge and UnderstandingOn Papers 2 and 3, application means using the figures and details in the data or case study. Paper 1 essays have no case study, so students need their own real business examples ready to use in any essay.
More on AO2 ApplicationAnalysis carries the highest weighting on the new 7138 and the highest range on 7132. It’s the whole focus of “Analyse” questions: connected chains of reasoning that explain why something leads to a result for the business, without skipping steps.
More on AO3 AnalysisOn 7132, evaluation carries the most marks in the 16, 20, 24 and 25-mark questions. On the new 7138, the 15-mark “Evaluate” question asks students to weigh two possible courses of action, so they need to compare options, not just list pros and cons.
More on AO4 EvaluationWeightings: AQA 7132 and 7138 specifications, assessment objective weightings for the full A-level.
Here’s how a tutor might break down a 9-mark question in a lesson. The practice question is our own, written in the AQA style.
A family-run bakery chain with six shops is launching a loyalty app. Analyse two benefits to the business of the app.
A 9-mark AQA “Analyse” question is marked in three levels. The top level needs good knowledge, application to this business and developed analysis. No conclusion is needed.
Name the benefit precisely: the app improves customer retention by rewarding repeat purchases. Uses the correct term, not “more customers”.
Anchor it in the case: a bakery sells low-price items that people buy often, so small rewards can change where they buy their morning coffee and pastry. This point wouldn’t fit a car dealer.
Build the chain: more repeat visits → higher sales per customer → fixed shop costs spread over more sales → better profit margins across all six shops. Each step is linked with “which means”.
Second benefit, the same way: the app collects purchase data → the chain sees which products sell in which shop → it cuts waste on items that don’t sell → lower costs. Two developed chains, not four thin ones.
The new AQA A-level removes multiple choice and essays. Every question is now built on a case study, so every answer has to be applied to a real business context.
| Command word | Marks | What it asks for |
|---|---|---|
| Define | 2 | Knowledge and understanding only (AO1). |
| Explain | 4 | Knowledge applied to the case study (AO1, AO2). |
| Analyse | 6 | Analysis of an issue in the context of the case (AO1–AO3). |
| Assess | 9 | Weigh up the arguments and reach a judgement (AO1–AO4). |
| Evaluate | 15 | Identify and evaluate two possible courses of action to solve a problem (AO1–AO4). |
Source: AQA AS and A-level Business (7137, 7138) specification. Each paper: 2 hours, 90 marks, two case studies with five compulsory questions worth 45 marks each.
We go through recent mocks question type by question type, so we know whether marks are slipping on calculations, on analysis or on judgement.
Students learn exactly what AQA’s top level needs for each question type, then practise short, focused answers until the structure is automatic.
Closer to the exams, students write under timed conditions. Tutors mark with AQA’s levels of response and explain what would have moved the answer up a level.
Lessons are one-to-one on Google Meet, usually once a week, with no contract.
Book a free 15-minute introAQA students come to our A-Level Business Tutors at every stage of the course, from a first shaky mock to the final push for an A*. Choose the situation closest to yours.
Timing each AQA paper, reading the case and structuring every command word.
Exam techniqueThe analysis and judgement that separate a B from an A*.
Aiming for a higher gradeMissed lessons, a change of teacher, or a topic that never clicked.
Catching up on missed lessonsA resit plan built on exactly where marks slipped last time.
Resitting examsThe full A-level specification, taught from scratch one-to-one.
Self-studying studentsTell us what’s happening at school or college and we’ll suggest a plan.
Book a free 15-minute introEvery tutor is a trained Business teacher who knows how AQA’s levels of response work, so feedback on practice answers matches how the real paper will be marked.
Students describe, in their own words, what changed after one-to-one lessons.
Watch the videosCheck the four-digit code on the front of an AQA mock paper or on their exam entry. Students who started Year 12 before September 2026 are normally on 7132, which is examined for the last time in summer 2027. Students who started in September 2026 are on the new 7138, first examined in 2028.
No. On the current 7132 specification, Paper 3 is an unseen case study that students read for the first time in the exam. We practise reading long cases quickly and pulling out the evidence each question needs.
The 25-mark essays have no case study, so students need a bank of real business examples they can adapt to different questions. We build that bank with them and practise planning an essay in a few minutes.
Yes. On 7132, calculations appear in Paper 1’s short-answer section and throughout Paper 2, for example net present value, return on capital employed and percentage change. On the new 7138, at least 10% of marks test quantitative skills.
Yes. We tutor AQA, Edexcel and OCR at A-level and GCSE, as well as BTEC Business at Levels 2 and 3. Each board tests the same skills in different ways, so lessons always follow your child’s specification.
Most students have one 60-minute lesson a week. Early in Year 12, once a fortnight can work. After February half-term in Year 13, two or three a week is common for the final push.
Book a free 15-minute introductory meeting. Tell a tutor which AQA specification your son or daughter is on, how their last mock went and the grade they’re aiming for. There’s no commitment.
We also tutor Edexcel and OCR A-level Business, and GCSE and BTEC Business.
