Key term
AQA AS Computer Science, memorised in year one.
Everything the AS examines and nothing from the second year. Drill the 9 topics the 7516 specification actually examines.
- AS of 7517
- 9 topics
- 56 subtopics
AQA AS-Level Computer Science 7517
Fundamentals of Programming
Topic overviewData typesProgramming concepts and program structureArithmetic operationsRelational Operations, Constants and VariablesBoolean operationsString-handling operationsRandom numbers and exception handlingSubroutines, parameters and return valuesVariable scope and stack framesProgramming paradigms and the procedural approach
Fundamentals of Data Structures
Theory of Computation
Topic overviewLogic Problems and Algorithm ConstructsPseudo-Code, Hand-Tracing and Program CorrectnessRepresentational Abstraction, Generalisation and Information HidingProcedural and Functional AbstractionData Abstraction and Problem ReductionDecomposition and CompositionAutomation and Finite State Machines
Fundamentals of Data Representation
Topic overviewNumber systems and the sets of numbersNumber bases: decimal, binary and hexadecimalBits, bytes and units of informationUnsigned binary and binary arithmeticSigned binary using two's complementFixed point and floating point representationCharacter coding systemsError checking and correctionBit patterns, analogue and digitalBitmapped graphicsDigital representation of soundMIDI and Data CompressionEncryption
Fundamentals of Computer Systems
Fundamentals of Computer Organisation and Architecture
Topic overviewInternal components, buses and von Neumann and Harvard architecturesThe Stored Program Concept and the ProcessorThe Fetch-Execute cycleThe processor instruction setAddressing modesMachine-Code OperationsShifts, Halting and Assembly Language ProgramsFactors affecting processor performanceInput and output devicesSecondary storage devices
Fundamentals of Communication and Networking
Consequences of Uses of Computing
Systematic Approach to Problem Solving
What AQA AS Computer Science covers, and what it leaves out
AQA AS Computer Science is specification 7516, the standalone first-year qualification alongside the 7517 A level. This page holds only what the AS examines: 9 topics across 56 subtopics, 758 active recall questions, starting with Fundamentals of Programming, Fundamentals of Data Structures and Theory of Computation. The 4 topics kept back for the second year are not shown, so nothing here is content you have not been taught yet.
Starting the second year? The full AQA A-Level Computer Science page adds the A2 topics on top of everything here.
AQA AS and A-level Computer Science, specification 7517. Read the AQA specification at a glance ↗
The full specification
9 topics, 56 subtopics. Open any topic to see what is inside it.
01Fundamentals of Programming10 subtopicsOpen topic
- Data types
- Programming concepts and program structure
- Arithmetic operations
- Relational Operations, Constants and Variables
- Boolean operations
- String-handling operations
- Random numbers and exception handling
- Subroutines, parameters and return values
- Variable scope and stack frames
- Programming paradigms and the procedural approach
02Fundamentals of Data Structures1 subtopicsOpen topic
03Theory of Computation7 subtopicsOpen topic
04Fundamentals of Data Representation13 subtopicsOpen topic
- Number systems and the sets of numbers
- Number bases: decimal, binary and hexadecimal
- Bits, bytes and units of information
- Unsigned binary and binary arithmetic
- Signed binary using two's complement
- Fixed point and floating point representation
- Character coding systems
- Error checking and correction
- Bit patterns, analogue and digital
- Bitmapped graphics
- Digital representation of sound
- MIDI and Data Compression
- Encryption
05Fundamentals of Computer Systems7 subtopicsOpen topic
06Fundamentals of Computer Organisation and Architecture10 subtopicsOpen topic
- Internal components, buses and von Neumann and Harvard architectures
- The Stored Program Concept and the Processor
- The Fetch-Execute cycle
- The processor instruction set
- Addressing modes
- Machine-Code Operations
- Shifts, Halting and Assembly Language Programs
- Factors affecting processor performance
- Input and output devices
- Secondary storage devices
07Fundamentals of Communication and Networking4 subtopicsOpen topic
08Consequences of Uses of Computing2 subtopicsOpen topic
09Systematic Approach to Problem Solving2 subtopicsOpen topic
How you work through it
Pick the mode that fits the time you have.
Try three questions
No account needed. Answer from memory first.
Your recallNot started
Evaluation
Describe the Boolean data type.
Key term
What is a user-defined data type?
Spaced Repetition Schedule
How reviews are timed
Levo will automatically distribute all of your progress into a spaced repetition calendar. Once you’ve answered, it’s scheduled for you on the next day in the spaced repetition schedule. Over time, the gaps between your recall get bigger, from a day to three years, reinforcing memorisation over a long period of time.
Interval sequence
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- 1 year
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What is inside Levo
Six ways to work the same material
Computer Science revision questions
Common questions about revising AQA AS-Level Computer Science. Tap any to open it.
What is on AQA AS Computer Science?
9 topics across 56 subtopics, examined as its own qualification, specification 7516. They are all listed on this page, and each one opens to the subtopics inside it. The full topic list is Fundamentals of Programming, Fundamentals of Data Structures, Theory of Computation, Fundamentals of Data Representation, Fundamentals of Computer Systems, Fundamentals of Computer Organisation and Architecture and more.
Does AS Computer Science count towards the full A level?
No. AS was decoupled in England in 2015, so AQA AS Computer Science (7516) is a separate qualification and none of its marks carry into the 7517 A level. It is still the same content though, which is why revising it well sets up the second year.
What is the difference between AS and A level Computer Science?
AS is the first-year units only. The A level adds 4 further topics, among them Fundamentals of Algorithms, Fundamentals of Databases, Big Data, and expects you to connect them back to the AS material. Work the AS content here, then move up to the full A level page when you start the second year.
When do you sit AQA AS Computer Science?
Normally at the end of Year 12, in the summer series. That gives you one year to memorise 758 questions' worth of material, which is roughly 4 questions a day across an academic year if you start in September.
How should you revise for AS Computer Science?
By retrieval, not rereading. Cover the answer, pull it from memory, then check. Levo runs that loop across all 9 AS topics and brings each question back on a spaced schedule, so what you learn in September is still there in June.
Is it worth revising AS content again for the A level?
Yes, and it is the mistake most students make. The A-level papers examine this content again from scratch, and because the AS marks do not carry over, the only thing your first year leaves you with is what you still remember. Keeping it on a spaced schedule through Year 13 costs far less than relearning it.
How many questions are there for AQA AS Computer Science?
758, written from the 7517 subject content and grouped into 56 subtopics so you can work one small area at a time rather than a whole topic at once.
Can you use Levo for just the AS year?
Yes. Pick your subject, choose the AS topics on the topic screen, and every mode — the 3-step method, Cram, Blank Blitz, Build It and Test It — works only that material. Add the second-year topics when you get to them.
Every question in Computer Science, on a schedule.
Attempt a question from memory, write the correct version, then attempt it again. Levo records the jump between your first attempt and your last, and brings each question back on the day you are due to forget it.
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