Edexcel IGCSE Business Exams Information

There are a range of question types, including multiple-choice questions, short-answer questions (1-, 2- and 3-marks), open response questions (6-marks) and extended writing questions (9- and 12-marks).

In the IGCSE Business exam, you are assessed on four main skills, called Assessment Objectives (AOs).

Many students fail the IGCSE Business exam because they don’t follow the assessment objectives (AOs) properly. Each question is designed to test a specific skill, and if you don’t answer in the right way, you can lose marks even if you know the content.

Exams aren’t just about what you know, but how you answer. That’s why following the AOs is key to getting top marks.

AO1 - Knowledge

AO1 is about recalling, selecting, and clearly explaining business terms, ideas, and facts.

You’ll use AO1 in the following question types:

Multiple choice questions (MCQs)
Define questions
Explain questions
Part of the evaluate question

To get AO1 marks, you must:

Use correct business terms (e.g. revenue, profit, stakeholder)
State facts or definitions clearly
Show you understand the concept

🔍 Tip: AO1 is about what you know, not what you think. Just be clear, correct, and to the point.

AO2 - Application

AO2 is all about showing that you can apply your business knowledge to a specific business situation.

You must use information from the case study to answer the question. If you write a generic answer without linking it to the business in the case study, you will lose AO2 marks.

When you look closely at the exam questions, it becomes clear that the case study is written specifically to help you answer them. Every question has at least one key detail from the case study that you can apply directly. That means AO2 marks are there for the taking—as long as you read the case study properly and use what it tells you.

You’ll use AO2 in the following question types:

State
Complete the table
Calculate
Outline
Part of Analyse
Part of Justify
Part of Evaluate

AO2 Tips for Success

Highlight all forms of application in the case study (e.g. business name, products, numbers, employee info). Use these in your answer.
If the business name is in the question, it’s almost always an AO2 question – you must link your answer directly to that business.
- Mentioning the business name alone does not count as AO2 – YOU MUST APPLY SPECIFIC DETAILS FROM THE CASE STUDY.

Example:

NEXT is a well-known clothing retailer that operates in 70 countries and employs over 43,000 employees. Since NEXT commenced trading it has introduced many other products to its range such as home interiors, flowers and a wedding list service.

In 1999 NEXT launched its own online shopping platform, enabling customers to purchase its products where ever they live. It continues to improve its customer service by introducing new initiatives such as next day delivery.

NEXT mainly uses its own factories for production. However, it does purchase some clothes such as ladies dresses from Turkish factories.

Analyse why NEXT would want to remove any communication barriers within its organisation.

Paper 1 vs Paper 2 Case Studies

There is only one case study per paper, and it is used throughout the entire exam.
In Paper 1, the case study will always focus on a small business.
In Paper 2, it will be based on a large business.

This means everything you need to apply is already in front of you. If you don’t use the case study, you’re leaving marks behind. Learn to spot details like the business name, product type, number of staff, or customer behaviour—these are all things you can use for AO2.

Why are ‘Complete the Table’ and ‘Calculate’ AO2?

Because you are using data or context from the case study (e.g. costs, revenue, profit) to carry out a calculation or fill in a table.

types of organisations