A-Level Politics Tutors for Sixth Form

Sixth form students looking for A-Level politics tutors usually want one-to-one help with essay technique, the institutions and ideas behind the course, and the comparison between UK and US politics. AQA's A-level Politics, specification code 7152, is the qualification many families meet, and its papers reward argument built on evidence. A tutor can start from the student's own marked essays to show where marks are being lost.

Whichever board a school has chosen, the choice is narrower than many parents expect, since OCR and WJEC Eduqas do not list an A-level in the subject and the options sit mainly with AQA and Pearson's Edexcel. Sessions can be pitched to the relevant specification and mark scheme, which keeps the work tied to what the papers actually ask for.

Which exam boards offer A-Level politics?

AQA and Pearson Edexcel both offer the qualification, whereas OCR and WJEC Eduqas do not. AQA's course is listed on its Politics subject page, and Pearson publishes Edexcel AS and A level Politics with a specification, sample assessments, a qualification guide and a getting started guide. OCR's AS and A Level list and the WJEC Eduqas qualifications list show no Politics entry.

The Department for Education's A level politics subject content says specifications must cover government in the UK, political participation in the UK, the European Union and political ideas, which gives every board a common core. Checking the school's board first lets a tutor teach to that specification.

How is AQA's politics course assessed?

AQA's scheme of assessment refers to Paper 1, Paper 2 and Paper 3, and the qualification is linear, so all assessment is taken at the end of the course. The course has no coursework, which means no non-exam assessment component, and the question types are structured analytical questions, extract-based questions and essays.

Because everything is examined at the end, topics met early in Year 12 have to stay secure until the final papers in Year 13. Sessions can build regular retrieval of earlier material into each lesson, so that nothing has to be relearned from scratch in the last term.

What content does the AQA course cover?

AQA's subject content has three areas: Government and politics of the UK, Government and politics of the USA and comparative politics, and Political ideas. The UK strand covers the British Constitution, Parliament, the Prime Minister and cabinet, the judiciary and devolution, together with democracy and participation, elections and referendums, political parties, pressure groups and the European Union.

The USA strand covers the constitutional framework, Congress, the President, the judiciary, the electoral process and direct democracy, parties, pressure groups and civil rights. A tutor can map each strand against the student's notes and class tests to locate the gaps.

How do the political ideas topics work?

AQA's Political ideas area requires all three core ideologies, Liberalism, Conservatism and Socialism, and students also study one further ideology chosen from nationalism, feminism, multiculturalism, anarchism and ecologism. Answers on this area tend to reward precise use of concepts and an awareness of disagreement within each tradition.

Students often hold the broad outline of each ideology yet blur the lines between thinkers and strands. One-to-one sessions can use short written answers to test whether the student separates positions cleanly, with feedback on any definition that stays vague.

How does comparative politics differ from studying the UK and USA separately?

Comparative politics asks the student to set the two systems side by side. AQA's topic compares the UK and USA on constitutions, executives, judiciaries, electoral and party systems, pressure groups and civil rights, and the specification asks students to identify parallels, connections, similarities and differences.

Comparative essays require explicit comparison, which AQA links to Component 2, Section C in its scheme of assessment. Essays often drift into two separate accounts, so a tutor can practise comparison grids and paragraph structures that place both systems in the same argument, then give feedback on a timed attempt.

What do the assessment objectives reward?

AQA's three assessment objectives are AO1 knowledge and understanding, AO2 analysis of political information including parallels and differences, and AO3 evaluation, argument and substantiated judgement. The exams test recall, drawing together information from different areas of the specification, and applying knowledge in practical and theoretical contexts.

Structured analytical questions ask students to explain and analyse, building at least three substantiated points, while essays ask for analysis and evaluation of a statement. A tutor can diagnose from marked work which objective is holding the grade back, then set targeted practice on that objective.

How are extract questions and essays practised?

Extract-based questions ask students to interpret an argument in political material such as government documents, newspaper extracts, manifestos, visual material and data. Essays ask the student to analyse and evaluate a statement, and they may draw on different parts of the specification.

In sessions, extract practice can begin with untimed annotation of a source and move to timed answers marked against the board's mark scheme. AQA says the course builds research, written communication, debate and confidence, with emphasis on current affairs in the UK and US, as described on its A-level Politics page, so a running file of fresh examples helps.

When should preparation start, and what about university applications?

Preparation follows the linear course: Year 12 for first teaching of the UK, USA and ideas strands, then Year 13 for connecting topics and timed papers. Many families begin in the autumn of Year 12 or after a disappointing mock, and a tutor can move from content to timed practice as the papers approach.

Students aiming at politics, PPE or related degrees can read the Oxford PPE application guide, while the TARA tutors and admissions test tutors pages cover the tests some courses set, and university application tutoring covers personal statements.

Arranging politics tuition for Year 12 and Year 13

Families receive progress reports after sessions and a dedicated point of contact, and tutors who work with children hold an enhanced DBS check, with most registered on the DBS Update Service. Each placement opens with an introductory session with the matched tutor, and Taylor Tuition arranges a re-match at no extra cost if the fit proves wrong.

Sessions run online for families across the UK and internationally, and in person in central London, with fees starting from £50 per 50-minute session and varying with tutor level and subject; the tuition fees and pricing page gives current arrangements. To book, families can send the student's year group, exam board and target grade through the enquiry form, and Taylor Tuition replies with tutor recommendations.

Related guides

Related reading: Oxford PPE application guide.

Related reading: how to choose A-Level subjects.

To discuss a match, find an A-Level politics tutor and include the student’s exam board and target grade.