Cambridge International AS and A Level Business 9609 (2026 to 2028 exams) is assessed by four written papers. Exam preparation works better when it is built around what each paper actually asks for, so this guide starts with the papers as the syllabus describes them and then sets out what to do in class in the months before the exam. The topics and paper weightings themselves are set out in the 9609 syllabus guide for 2026 to 2028.
The four papers
| Paper | Time and marks | What it contains | Content |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paper 1 Business Concepts 1 | 1 hour 15 minutes, 40 marks | Section A: four compulsory five-mark questions. Section B: two 20-mark essay questions, answer one. Second parts of the essays must show evaluation | AS topics 1.1 to 5.5 |
| Paper 2 Business Concepts 2 | 1 hour 30 minutes, 60 marks | Two compulsory 30-mark questions, each with a data text, six parts each. The last part must show evaluation | AS topics 1.1 to 5.5 |
| Paper 3 Business Decision-Making | 1 hour 45 minutes, 60 marks | Five compulsory questions on a case study insert: two of 8 marks, two of 16 marks, one of 12 marks. Evaluation is required in the last parts of questions 3 and 4 and in question 5 | A Level topics 6.1 to 10.4, AS content assumed |
| Paper 4 Business Strategy | 1 hour 15 minutes, 40 marks | Two compulsory 20-mark essays on a case study. Both must show evaluation | A Level topics 6.1 to 10.4, AS content assumed |
The weightings by paper matter: Paper 4 carries 40 percent analysis and 35 percent evaluation with only 15 percent knowledge, and Paper 3 carries 30 percent evaluation. Our guide to the assessment objectives has the full table. There are no multiple-choice questions on any 9609 paper.
1. Teach the paper before the revision
Students should know the structure of each paper by name before the revision period starts: how many questions, how many marks, how long, and where evaluation is required. Put the table above on the wall. A student who knows that Paper 1 Section B is one essay from a choice of two, and that the second part is where the evaluation marks sit, revises differently from one who does not.
2. Use the case study, every time
Papers 2, 3 and 4 all provide data, and the syllabus states that candidates need to answer using relevant information from the stimulus text. The habit to build is that no paragraph goes without a reference to the business in the question. In lessons, that means every discussion question and exit ticket is answered about a named business, not in the abstract. The 9609 lessons are built that way: each one carries a video case study about a real business with discussion questions that follow it.
3. Separate the AS year from the A Level year in revision
AS content is assumed knowledge for Papers 3 and 4 but is not the direct focus of their questions. So the A Level revision programme should spend its time on topics 6 to 10 and only return to the AS topics where a case study needs them, since each A Level topic builds on its AS counterpart. Students retaking or carrying forward AS should revise Papers 1 and 2 separately.
4. Make the calculations routine
The syllabus names the calculations it expects: at AS, break-even output, contribution and margin of safety, cash flow forecast balances, costing and budget variances; at A Level, elasticity, the four period centred moving average, ratio analysis, payback, ARR and NPV, and critical path analysis. Each should be practised until it is automatic, because in the exam the marks for the method are quick and the time saved goes to the written answer.
5. Practise evaluation as a skill on its own
Every paper requires evaluation somewhere. It is a skill students can practise separately: take a conclusion, ask what it depends on (the size of the business, the market, the time frame, the reliability of the data) and write two sentences that say so. Unit 6 of the A Level course, with its strategy tools (SWOT, PEST, Porter’s five forces, the Ansoff matrix, decision trees, force field analysis), gives students a set of frameworks to structure that judgement.
6. Time the practice papers
Use the Cambridge specimen papers and past papers under timed conditions in the last term, one paper a week, marked against the published mark schemes. Students should learn to divide the time by the marks: on Paper 1 that is roughly a mark a minute after reading time; on Paper 4 it is about 37 minutes per essay.
7. Use the command words
Students lose marks by answering a different question from the one set. Reading the command word first, and matching the length of the answer to the marks available, is the simplest fix and costs no extra teaching time.
Resources
The complete courses are on TES: AS Level 9609, 19 lessons and A Level 9609, 18 lessons. Each lesson is an editable PowerPoint with a video case study, discussion questions and an exit ticket. Full lesson lists: AS Level and A Level.
Related
AS Level 9609 scheme of work and pacing guide. A Level 9609 scheme of work and pacing guide. Lesson lists: AS Level and A Level.