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Cambridge International AS Level

Biology 9700

Cells, molecules, transport, gas exchange and immunity (AS content).

Syllabus version: 2025–2027 syllabusChecked against the Cambridge syllabusExam year 2027 is covered by the 2025–2027 syllabus.
Subject review complete (19 Oct 2026). All 28 AS Level Biology questions were re-solved and checked against the syllabus and Cambridge mark-scheme conventions, and their auto-marking was tested with correct and incorrect answers.
Paper 1 Multiple Choice: 31%Paper 2 AS Level Structured Questions: 46%Paper 3 Advanced Practical Skills: 23%Weighting3 papers
  • Paper 1 Multiple Choice31%
  • Paper 2 AS Level Structured Questions46%
  • Paper 3 Advanced Practical Skills23%
Original questions28
Topics covered12/12
Papers3
Mock papers5

What is assessed

3 components. Question formats: multiple choice, structured, practical.

Paper 1 Multiple ChoiceAS
1 h 15 min40 marks31% of AS

Forty four-option multiple-choice questions on AS Level content, testing AO1 and AO2.

What the paper looks like

40 one-mark four-option questions in 1 h 15 min (under 2 minutes each). Many use combination formats (e.g. “1, 2 and 3 / 1 and 2 only”), data tables, micrographs, graphs and short calculations (magnification, base percentages, water potential). Read every statement; distractors often reflect common misconceptions.

Multiple choiceCalculator permitted
Checked against the Cambridge syllabus
Paper 2 AS Level Structured QuestionsAS
1 h 15 min60 marks46% of AS

Structured questions on AS Level content, testing AO1 and AO2.

What the paper looks like

About 5–7 structured questions totalling 60 marks, each built around a diagram, micrograph, table or graph. Parts are usually 1–4 marks with command words such as state, describe, explain, compare and suggest; short calculations (actual size, percentage change, rates) need working and correct units.

StructuredCalculator permitted
Checked against the Cambridge syllabus
Paper 3 Advanced Practical SkillsAS
2 h40 marks23% of AS

Two or three laboratory-based questions (an investigation plus light-microscope work) assessing AO3 practical skills.

What the paper looks like

Two or three practical questions (40 marks, 2 h): one hands-on investigation (dilutions, timing colour changes, recording in a ruled table, plotting a graph, conclusions and improvements) and one microscope task (drawing plan diagrams or cells, calibrating a graticule, calculating sizes). Marks reward precise recording, correct headings with units and sensible decimal places.

PracticalStructuredLaboratory apparatus and light microscope provided
Checked against the Cambridge syllabus

Assessment overview

From the 2025–2027 syllabus. Checked against the Cambridge syllabus

AS Level
Paper 1Paper 2Paper 3
Assessment objectiveAS Level weighting
AO1 Knowledge and understanding40%
AO2 Handling, applying and evaluating information40%
AO3 Experimental skills and investigations20%
Changes in this syllabus version
  • An item was added to the list of materials for Paper 3.
  • A command word was added to the command-word table.
  • Content and assessment structure otherwise unchanged from the syllabus first examined in 2022.
Command words used in Biology papers (17)
Assess
Make a judgement based on evidence or information
Calculate
Work out a value from the facts, figures or data given
Comment
Give a reasoned, informed opinion
Compare
Identify or discuss similarities and/or differences
Contrast
Identify or discuss differences only
Define
Give the precise meaning of a term
Describe
Give the main features or characteristics; state the points
Determine
Reach an answer using the information provided
Discuss
Write about an issue or topic in depth, in a structured way
Explain
Give reasons or purposes, showing how and/or why, supported by evidence
Give
Provide an answer from a source or from memory
Identify
Name, select or recognise
Outline
Set out the main points only
Predict
Suggest a likely outcome from the information available
Sketch
Make a simple drawing showing the key features
State
Express clearly and briefly
Suggest
Apply knowledge to an unfamiliar situation where several valid answers are possible
Examiner guidance from recent reports (14)
Cell structure. Write units carefully and legibly: a careless µ can look like m and lose the mark. Convert all lengths to the same unit before dividing, and give magnifications without units (e.g. ×800).
Biological molecules. Answer at the level asked. If a question is about one cellulose molecule, describe β-glucose, alternate inverted monomers and 1,4 glycosidic bonds, not microfibrils in the cell wall.
Enzymes. A lower Km means higher affinity. When describing inhibition, link the inhibitor to fewer enzyme–substrate complexes forming, and say whether Vmax is reached with more substrate.
Cell membranes and transport. Always use water potential language: water moves from higher (less negative) to lower (more negative) water potential. Avoid “water concentration” or “weaker solution”.
Nucleic acids and protein synthesis. Keep template and non-transcribed strands distinct and do not call an inhibitor a “stop codon”. Name bases in full (thymine, uracil) when comparing DNA and RNA.
Transport in mammals. When comparing vessels, every statement must be comparative (thicker wall than, wider lumen than). Capillary walls are made of one layer of endothelial cells; they have no cell walls.
Immunity. Do not mix enzyme and antibody vocabulary: antibodies have antigen-binding sites that bind antigens, not active sites and substrates. Distinguish how a vaccine gives immunity from how a vaccination programme limits spread.
Infectious diseases. Tailor control measures to the actual transmission route. For HIV, mention condoms, screening blood, needle exchange and antiretrovirals — not quarantine or a vaccine that does not exist.
Energy and respiration. In “what happens if…” questions, explain what stops or slows (e.g. NAD not regenerated, less substrate-linked ATP) rather than describing the normal pathway.
Homeostasis. Refer to the water potential of the blood, not of “the body”. Name the exact membrane involved (e.g. luminal or cell surface membrane) and use full names before abbreviations.
Inheritance. Use gene, allele, genotype and phenotype precisely. In chi-squared conclusions, compare with the critical value at p = 0.05 only and relate the decision to chance.
Selection and evolution. For t-tests, state degrees of freedom (n₁ + n₂ − 2), compare t with the critical value and phrase the conclusion as a significant or non-significant difference between means.
Classification, biodiversity and conservation. Show full working for Simpson’s index and Lincoln index; method marks are available even with an arithmetic slip. Say what a value of D close to 1 means about diversity.
Genetic technology. Give the temperature and purpose of each PCR step and explain why Taq polymerase is used (heat stable). Avoid vague words such as “amount” — use concentration, volume or mass.

Topic map

Practice types

Free sample questions

A drawing of a guard cell is 36 mm long. The magnification of the drawing is ×1500. What is the actual length…
A drawing of a guard cell is 36 mm long. The magnification of the drawing is ×1500.
What is the actual length of the guard cell?
  1. 0.024 µm
  2. 2.4 µm
  3. 24 µm
  4. 240 µm

Answer: C. 24 µm

Actual size = image size ÷ magnification. Convert 36 mm to 36 000 µm, then 36 000 ÷ 1500 = 24 µm. The other options come from conversion errors by factors of 10.

Which structure is present in both a typical bacterium and a human liver cell?
Which structure is present in both a typical bacterium and a human liver cell?
  1. 70S ribosomes
  2. a cell wall containing peptidoglycan
  3. a nuclear envelope
  4. a Golgi body

Answer: A. 70S ribosomes

Bacteria have 70S ribosomes in their cytoplasm; liver cells contain 70S ribosomes inside their mitochondria. Peptidoglycan walls are only in bacteria, while the nuclear envelope and Golgi body are only in eukaryotic cells.

FAQs

Are these official 9700 past-paper questions?

No. They are original questions written to match the Biology syllabus topics. Official past papers are available to schools through Cambridge.

Why choose an exam year?

Cambridge updates syllabuses periodically. Your exam year selects the matching configuration so topics and components follow the right version.

How do AS and A Level differ here?

Both pathways share code 9700. AS pages include AS topics and components only; A Level pages add the A Level content and papers.

Is a calculator allowed?

In this configuration a scientific calculator is permitted for the listed papers. Check your syllabus for the exact rule.