Eduqas A-level Biology (A400QS): papers, options and grade boundaries

Eduqas A-level Biology at a glance

WJEC Eduqas is the exam board that offers WJEC qualifications in England. Its A-level Biology (entry code A400QS) is regulated by Ofqual, taught from 2015 and first awarded in 2017. It is linear, so all the papers are sat at the end of the course in the May and June series, and it can be taken again in a later series.

That is 300 marks. Every paper includes questions on the Core Concepts, which are the fundamentals of biological molecules, cell structure, membranes, enzymes and nucleic acids, so you cannot leave early topics behind.

What each component covers

Component 1: Energy for Life

A range of short and longer structured compulsory questions. The topics are the importance of ATP, photosynthesis, respiration, microbiology, population size and ecosystems, and the human impact on the environment, together with the Core Concepts.

Component 2: Continuity of Life

The same style of structured compulsory questions. The topics are evolutionary history and relatedness, how genetic information is copied and passed on to daughter cells, sexual reproduction in humans and in plants, inheritance (including the Hardy-Weinberg principle), variation and evolution, and the application of reproduction and genetics.

Component 3: Requirements for Life

Section A (80 marks) is made of structured questions on the compulsory content: adaptations for gas exchange, transport and nutrition, homeostasis and the kidney, and the nervous system. Section B (20 marks) is short and longer structured questions on one option that your school chooses from Immunology and Disease, Human Musculoskeletal Anatomy, and Neurobiology and Behaviour.

Practical work, calculators and maths

The practical endorsement is a non-exam assessment of practical competency. It is reported separately and does not contribute to the final grade. Practical skills and mathematical skills are also assessed within the written papers. The specification’s maths appendix lists skills such as using calculators, using a given equation (Simpson’s Diversity Index is the specification’s example), solving equations in a biological context (for example cardiac output = stroke volume × heart rate), and drawing and using graphs.

Worked examples in Eduqas style

Biodiversity: Simpson’s Diversity Index

A quadrat survey finds 10 daisies, 5 buttercups and 5 clover plants, so N = 20 individuals in total. Simpson’s index is:

The closer D is to 1, the greater the diversity. Write the formula, work out each fraction, then sum them. Then say what the result means: a higher value means a more diverse habitat, and a lower one means that a few species dominate.

Physiology: cardiac output

A resting heart has a stroke volume of 72 cm³ and beats 70 times per minute.

Keep the units, and be ready to convert between cm³ and dm³. Practise related ideas in our Human Physiology course.

Genetics: Hardy-Weinberg

The recessive allele frequency in a population is q = 0.30. Then p = 0.70 and the heterozygous frequency is 2pq:

In a population of 500, the expected number of heterozygotes is 0.42 × 500 = 210. Try a related inheritance question in our course:

How Eduqas differs from OCR

Both boards offer a linear A-level in biology with a separate practical endorsement, but they divide the content differently. Eduqas has three equal 2 hour papers of 100 marks, and it builds in a 20 mark option, while OCR Biology A has two 100 mark papers of 2 hours 15 minutes and a 70 mark synoptic paper of 1 hour 30 minutes. Eduqas also states that Core Concepts can appear in any component. Check which board your school uses before you pick past papers, and see our OCR A-level Biology guide for the other course.

Grades and June 2026 grade boundaries

Eduqas adds your component marks into a total out of 300 and compares it with the qualification boundaries. Component boundaries are notional and are a guide to analysis, not official grades. This table is from Eduqas’ GCE A Level Grade Points document for June 2026. Eduqas says its boundaries are determined after awarding and released on results day, so use these as a guide to the size of the target.

Worked through: 62, 60 and 64 give 186 out of 300, which is above the grade B boundary of 175 and below the A boundary of 204. By comparison, OCR Biology A’s overall A* in the same series was 204 of 270, because its papers are weighted differently, so never compare raw boundaries between boards.

Using the daily paper as a short timed mock

Uni-Sine publishes a free daily paper on each A-level biology track, with a new one every day. It is a short timed paper of 8 questions worth 25 to 35 marks, marked instantly with worked answers. It is not an Eduqas paper and it is far shorter than a 2 hour, 100 mark paper, so use it for regular quick practice alongside full Eduqas past papers.

• Biology Advanced 1 covers cell structure, enzymes, gas exchange, DNA, transport in animals and plants, classification, the immune system, biological molecules, mitosis and membranes. That supports the Core Concepts and the adaptations topics of Component 3.
• Biology Advanced 2 covers photosynthesis, inheritance and Hardy-Weinberg, homeostasis and the kidney, respiration, gene expression, populations and ecosystems, evolution and nervous coordination. That supports Components 1 and 2.
• It does not cover the Component 3 options in Immunology, Musculoskeletal Anatomy and Neurobiology in the same way, so use Eduqas past papers for those. For more on mocks, see our A-level mocks guide and the A-level Biology guide.

Exam answers

Uni-Sine does not publish official answers or mark schemes for Eduqas A-level Biology papers. The answers and a worked mark scheme for each question come with today’s paper once you have submitted it and it has been marked, so you can see where every mark was won or lost.

Common mistakes in Eduqas A-level Biology

• Treating the Core Concepts as only the first topics. They can be assessed in any component, in a new context.
• Not showing the formula for a given equation such as Simpson’s Diversity Index.
• Revising the option last. Component 3 Section B is 20 marks, a fifth of the paper.
• Describing instead of explaining in structured questions: finish with the reason.
• Losing units in physiology calculations.

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UK · A-levelEduqas A-level Biology grade boundaries 2026Eduqas's official June 2026 A-level Biology boundaries (A400QS), with each paper's mark and a three-year view of the table.