Combined Science Edexcel 2027
Preparing for Pearson Edexcel GCSE Combined Science 2027? This course rewards students who learn the core ideas, then use them like tools, especially when questions combine science with maths, data, and real experiments. If you practise explaining your reasoning clearly and keep your calculations tidy, you can gain marks very quickly. On this page you’ll find the topic overview, how the six papers are organised, and smart exam strategies that work especially well for Edexcel.
Exam content
Pearson Edexcel GCSE Combined Science 1SC0 for 2027 is assessed through six written papers:
Biology 1 covers Topics 1–5: Key concepts in biology, Cells and control, Genetics, Natural selection and genetic modification, and Health, disease and the development of medicines. You’ll study cells, microscopy, enzymes and transport, followed by mitosis, growth and the nervous system. Genetics includes DNA, genes, meiosis, inheritance, variation and the Human Genome Project.
The second half of the paper covers natural selection, antibiotic resistance, evidence for human evolution, selective breeding and genetic engineering. You’ll also study communicable and non-communicable disease, pathogens, the immune response, vaccination, antibiotics and how new medicines are developed and tested.
Practical and mathematical skills are assessed throughout. Be prepared to work with microscope images, enzyme and osmosis data, genetic diagrams, probabilities, graphs and information from unfamiliar experiments. Topic 1 provides core biological ideas that are used throughout the rest of the Biology course.
Higher Tier only
- Carry out calculations involving numbers written in standard form where required.
- Describe the detailed stages of genetic engineering, including restriction enzymes, ligase, sticky ends and vectors.
Chemistry 1 covers Topics 1–4: Key concepts in chemistry, States of matter and mixtures, Chemical changes, and Extracting metals and equilibria. Key concepts includes atomic structure, the periodic table, bonding, structure and properties, chemical formulae, equations and quantitative chemistry.
You’ll also study the particle model, pure substances and mixtures, separation techniques and chromatography. Chemical changes covers acids, alkalis, salts, precipitation and electrolysis, while Topic 4 includes the reactivity series, metal extraction, recycling, life-cycle assessments, reversible reactions, dynamic equilibrium and the Haber process.
Chemistry questions often combine calculations with explanations, so show your working clearly and use ideas about particles, ions and electrons accurately. Practical understanding is also important, including chromatography, pH investigations, salt preparation and electrolysis.
Higher Tier only
- Use the mole and Avogadro constant in calculations.
- Calculate masses, numbers of particles and amounts in moles.
- Identify limiting reactants and deduce reaction stoichiometry from masses.
- Explain strong and weak acids in terms of their degree of dissociation.
- Relate hydrogen ion concentration to pH.
- Write half-equations and explain oxidation and reduction in terms of electron transfer.
- Predict how changes in temperature, pressure and concentration affect the position of a dynamic equilibrium.
Physics 1 covers Topics 1–6: Key concepts of physics, Motion and forces, Conservation of energy, Waves, Light and the electromagnetic spectrum, and Radioactivity. You need to be confident using units, significant figures, standard form and equations throughout the paper.
Motion and forces includes speed, velocity, acceleration, forces, Newton’s laws, weight and momentum. Energy covers energy stores and transfers, kinetic and gravitational potential energy, efficiency and energy resources. Waves includes wavelength, frequency, wave speed and refraction, while the electromagnetic spectrum covers its different regions, uses and hazards.
Radioactivity includes atomic structure, isotopes, alpha, beta and gamma radiation, background radiation, half-life, contamination and irradiation. Physics questions regularly combine calculations, graphs and explanations, so write down the equation you are using and keep units visible throughout your working.
Higher Tier only
- Use the relationship between force and rate of change of momentum.
- Explain why an object moving in a circular orbit at constant speed still has a changing velocity.
- Apply the more demanding Higher Tier wave and refraction relationships where specified.
Biology 2 covers Topic 1 again, followed by Topics 6–9: Plant structures and their functions, Animal coordination, control and homeostasis, Exchange and transport in animals, and Ecosystems and material cycles.
Plants includes photosynthesis, limiting factors, xylem, phloem, transpiration and translocation. Animal coordination covers hormones, the menstrual cycle, contraception, homeostasis, blood glucose control and diabetes. Exchange and transport includes gas exchange, blood, the circulatory system, respiration and calculations involving heart rate, stroke volume and cardiac output.
Ecosystems covers populations and communities, abiotic and biotic factors, interdependence, food chains, biodiversity, fieldwork and the cycling of materials. Make sure you can interpret biological data and explain relationships rather than simply describing trends.
Higher Tier only
- Explain how temperature, light intensity and carbon dioxide concentration interact as limiting factors in photosynthesis.
- Use the inverse-square relationship between light intensity and distance from a light source.
- Explain the effects of adrenaline during the fight-or-flight response.
- Explain thyroxine control using negative feedback.
- Explain the interactions between oestrogen, progesterone, FSH and LH during the menstrual cycle.
- Explain the use of hormones in assisted reproductive technology, including IVF and clomifene therapy.
- Explain how glucagon helps regulate blood glucose concentration.
Chemistry 2 covers Topic 1 again, followed by Topics 6–8: Groups in the periodic table, Rates of reaction and energy changes, and Fuels and Earth science.
Groups in the periodic table covers Groups 1, 7 and 0. You need to understand their properties and trends and explain these using electronic configurations. This includes alkali metals, halogen displacement reactions and the relative lack of reactivity of the noble gases.
Rates of reaction covers collision theory, temperature, concentration, pressure, surface area, catalysts and activation energy. You’ll also study exothermic and endothermic reactions, bond breaking and bond making. Fuels and Earth science includes crude oil, fractional distillation, combustion, pollutants, the atmosphere, greenhouse gases and climate change.
Higher Tier only
- Explain halogen displacement reactions as redox reactions involving electron gain and loss, identifying the substances oxidised and reduced.
- Calculate the overall energy change of a reaction using bond energies.
Physics 2 covers Topic 1 plus Topics 8–10 and 12–15. These are Energy and forces doing work, Forces and their effects, Electricity and circuits, Magnetism and the motor effect, Electromagnetic induction, Particle model, and Forces and matter. Topic 11, Static electricity, is not part of Combined Science.
You’ll study work done, power and energy transfers, forces and resultant forces, circuit diagrams, current, potential difference, resistance and electrical power. Magnetism includes magnetic fields, electromagnets and the force on current-carrying conductors, while electromagnetic induction includes transformers and the National Grid.
The particle model covers density, changes of state, specific heat capacity and specific latent heat. Forces and matter includes elasticity, Hooke’s law and energy stored in stretched springs. This paper contains a lot of equations, so practise selecting the correct equation, rearranging it and converting units before substituting values.
Higher Tier only
- Use vector diagrams to resolve forces and analyse equilibrium where required.
- Explain the force on a current-carrying conductor in a magnetic field.
- Use Fleming’s left-hand rule.
- Explain factors affecting the size and direction of an induced potential difference.
- Explain how an induced magnetic field opposes the change that produced it.
- Explain transformer induction and use the transformer power relationship.
- Use Higher Tier equations involving specific heat capacity, specific latent heat and elastic potential energy where required.
What to expect in the GCSE Combined Science exam 1SC0
Pearson Edexcel GCSE Combined Science is assessed through six written papers: Biology 1, Chemistry 1, Physics 1, Biology 2, Chemistry 2 and Physics 2. Each paper is 1 hour 10 minutes, worth 60 marks and accounts for 16.67% of the qualification. Foundation and Higher tiers are available, and all six papers must be taken at the same tier. Calculators may be used.
For the 2027 exams, you will receive an equation sheet with both Combined Science Physics papers. You do not need to memorise all the listed equations, but you still need to recognise which equation to use, rearrange it where necessary and use the correct units.
Edexcel GCSE Combined Science includes 18 mandatory core practicals across Biology, Chemistry and Physics. Your understanding of their methods, techniques, results and evaluation can be assessed in the written papers.
Edexcel questions often build in stages. You might begin with a short recall item, then move into a graph or table, then finish with an extended response. The best strategy is to treat each part as its own mini task. Bank the early marks quickly, then slow down for the higher-mark explanation and write it as a clear chain using because and therefore.
Expect calculations across Biology, Chemistry and Physics, not only Physics. Build a consistent routine: identify what is given, choose the correct equation, substitute values with units, then check the final unit and rounding. If you keep your method clear, you can still score highly even if you make a small slip at the end.
Edexcel rewards practical understanding through written questions. When you see a method, immediately name the variables and identify at least two control variables. When asked for improvements, choose practical, realistic suggestions: repeats, more precise equipment, controlling temperature, using a wider range, or handling anomalies fairly. Add a reason, for example “repeat and calculate a mean to reduce the impact of anomalies”.
Finally, the best Higher Tier marks are often won by linking ideas across topics. Train yourself to connect concepts, like bonding to properties, forces to energy transfers, or ecosystems to material cycles. Use timed practice, then correct your work using mark schemes. In the exam, keep answers concise but complete, number points when a question asks for more than one, and do not waste time rewriting the question, write what earns marks.
