Singapore-Cambridge GCE Ordinary Level
The Singapore-Cambridge General Certificate of Education Ordinary Level (or GCE O-Level) is jointly conducted by the Ministry of Education (MOE), Singapore Examinations and Assessment Board (SEAB) and the University of Cambridge Local Examinations Syndicate (UCLES).[1] The examination is taken by secondary school students at the end of their fourth year (for Express stream) or fifth year (for Normal (Academic) stream), and is open to private candidates. Recent studies show that approximately 30,000 candidates take the Singapore-Cambridge GCE O-Level exams annually.[2]
History[edit]
The Singapore-Cambridge General Certificate of Education Ordinary Level (GCE O-Level) examination was introduced in 1971. Despite the engagement of an identical examination board as partnering authority, the Singapore-Cambridge GCE Ordinary Level examination has no relation to the British GCSE examinations, having de-linked since 2006 when the Ministry of Education (MOE) took over the management of its national examination. This is owing to the stark differences in the development of the respective education systems in the two countries.[3] Nevertheless, the qualification is recognised internationally as equivalent to the International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE), taken by international candidates including Singaporean students who take the exam as private candidates, as well as the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) examination taken by students in the United Kingdom.[4]
In 2019, MOE announced that the last year of assessment for the Singapore-Cambridge GCE O-Levels will be in 2026. From 2027, all Secondary 4 students will sit for the new Singapore-Cambridge Secondary Education Certificate (SEC), which combines the former O-Levels, N-Levels certificates into a single certificate. This is in alignment with the removal of streaming in secondary schools from 2024, which previously separated O-Level, N-Level candidates into the Express Stream, Normal (Academic) Stream and Normal (Technical) Stream respectively, in efforts to improve social mobility within the country.[5]
Examination subjects[edit]
All Secondary 4 (Express) or Secondary 5 (Normal Academic) students will usually take the following combinations:
| Category | Pure Science (7 – 8 subjects) |
Combined Science (6 – 7 subjects) |
|---|---|---|
| Common |
| |
| Science |
Either 2:
|
Either 1:
|
| Humanities |
Either 1:
| |
| Elective (Up to 2) |
Remaining 1 (Triple Science):
|
N/A |
| ||
Restriction:
- Students taking triple science typically do not take Coursework subjects as elective.
- For Pure Humanities subject, students are not allowed to take the same subject/combination in Combined Humanities (i.e. History and Social Studies / History is not allowed)
The following are the examination format and code published by Singapore Examination and Assessment Board.
| Subject Code | Subject Title |
|---|---|
| 1116 [1] | Higher Chinese |
| 1117 [2] | Higher Malay |
| 1147 [3] | Higher Tamil |
| 1148 [4] | Malay |
| 1151 [5] | Malay B |
| 1152 [6] | Tamil B |
| 1153 [7] | Chinese B |
| 1157 [8] | Tamil |
| 1160 [9] | Chinese |
| 1184 [10] | English Language |
| 2065 [11] | Literature in English |
| 2174 [12] | History |
| 2260 [13] | Humanities (Social Studies, Geography) |
| 2261 [14] | Humanities (Social Studies, History) |
| 2262 [15] | Humanities (Social Studies, Literature in English) |
| 2279 [16] | Geography |
| 4049 [17] | Additional Mathematics |
| 4052 [18] | Mathematics |
| 5086 [19] | Science (Physics, Chemistry) |
| 5087 [20] | Science (Physics, Biology) |
| 5088 [21] | Science (Chemistry, Biology) |
| 6085 [22] | Music |
| 6091 [23] | Physics |
| 6092 [24] | Chemistry |
| 6093 [25] | Biology |
| 6097 [26] | Nutrition and Food Science |
| 6123 [27] | Art |
| 7059 [28] | Design & Technology |
| 7087 [29] | Principles of Accounts |
| 7155 [30] | Computing |
Grading[edit]
| Grade | Marks range |
|---|---|
| A1 | 75 ≤ x ≤ 100 |
| A2 | 70 ≤ x ≤ 74 |
| B3 | 65 ≤ x ≤ 69 |
| B4 | 60 ≤ x ≤ 64 |
| C5 | 55 ≤ x ≤ 59 |
| C6 | 50 ≤ x ≤ 54 |
| D7 | 45 ≤ x ≤ 49 |
| E8 | 40 ≤ x ≤ 44 |
| F9 | 0 ≤ x ≤ 39 |
- ↑ "General Information". Singapore Examinations and Assessment Board. Retrieved 10 December 2017.
- ↑ "Release of the 2016 Singapore-Cambridge General Certificate of Education (Ordinary Level) Examination". Singapore Examinations and Assessment Board. Retrieved 16 October 2017.
- ↑ "Changes to Britain's GCSE and A-level exams won't affect Singapore students". Hermes (The Straits Times, 11 September 2017). Retrieved 10 December 2017.
- ↑ "Ten years of the GCSE". BBC News (26 August 1998). Retrieved 27 December 2006.
- ↑ "GCE O- and N-Level exams to be replaced by new national common exam in 2027". TODAY. Retrieved 1 October 2024.