Most A Levels can be sat privately without any great difficulty. What stops people is almost never the written papers — it is coursework, and whether a centre is willing to supervise it.

If your subject is examined entirely by written papers, you are in the easiest position a private candidate can be in. You need a centre with a seat, an invigilator and an entry, and that is genuinely all. This post is about working out whether you are in that group, because the answer decides how hard the rest of your year will be.

Key Takeaways

• The written papers are rarely the problem. Non-exam assessment (NEA) is.

• A centre must only accept a private candidate entry if it is willing to handle every part of the qualification, coursework included.

• Some NEA is marked by the exam board rather than the centre, which makes those subjects far easier to sit privately than people assume.

• Resitting a science? A previous practical endorsement can usually be carried forward, which turns it into a theory-only entry.

• You can check your own subject in about two minutes. There is a method below.

Why coursework is the real obstacle

AQA's guidance for private candidates puts the responsibility plainly. It is your job to find a centre, and that centre must accept responsibility for all aspects of the qualification. Where there is non-exam assessment, the centre has to supervise the work, authenticate it as yours, mark it, meet the administrative requirements in the specification, make the entry and provide the room for the exams.

And a centre may only accept your entry if it is willing to do all of that. It cannot take you for the written papers and leave the coursework unresolved.

This is why the same centre will cheerfully enter you for one subject and refuse another. Marking and authenticating an individual's coursework is real staff time from a subject specialist. Seating you for a written paper is not. Nothing about it is personal, and it is not a judgement about you as a candidate.

The three groups your subject falls into

1. Written papers only

No coursework, no practical component, nothing to supervise beyond the exams themselves. Any centre that accepts private candidates can take you, and this is the straightforward case.

If you are here, your only real decisions are where to sit and how to prepare. Sort the centre early anyway — places, not eligibility, are what run out.

2. Non-exam assessment that the board marks itself

This group surprises people. For certain components AQA marks the work itself rather than asking the centre to, and that removes the hardest part of the problem.

On AQA's specifications this currently includes the speaking tests in French, German and Spanish at both GCSE and A Level, and at A Level the performance and choreography component in Dance and the performance and composition components in Music. Several GCSE modern language speaking tests are handled the same way.

If you have been told a language A Level is impossible privately because of the speaking exam, that is worth checking rather than accepting.

3. Centre-marked coursework

This is the hard group. AQA A Level History, for example, has a historical investigation as its third component, marked by the centre. Several essay subjects and the humanities carry something similar, and the sciences carry the practical endorsement.

It is not impossible — it needs a centre that will genuinely take it on, which means asking early and specifically. Many will not.

How to check your own subject in two minutes

Do not rely on a forum, on us, or on a list you found. Specifications change, and the answer differs between boards for the same subject. Check the actual document:

• Find your exam board's page for your subject and the specification code — for example AQA A Level History 7042.

• Open the specification and look at the list of components or papers.

• Look for any component labelled non-exam assessment, or described as coursework, an investigation, fieldwork, a performance or a practical endorsement.

• No such component means group one. If there is one, check whether the board marks it or the centre does.

Then ring the centre and ask about that specific component by name. A centre that hesitates on the question is telling you the answer.

The science resit shortcut

If you are re-taking A Level Biology, Chemistry, Geology or Physics and you already passed the practical endorsement, AQA allows you to request that the previous result be carried forward — even if a different exam board awarded it.

That matters more than it sounds. It converts a science resit into a theory-only entry, so you no longer need a centre with laboratory facilities, and your options widen to any centre that takes private candidates. Request it when the entry is made, not afterwards.

If you have never sat the subject, or you were not classified, this does not apply and you will need a centre that can deliver the endorsement. We can, which is unusual, but check whether you need it before assuming you do.

Timing

A Levels are summer only — the autumn series introduced during the pandemic no longer exists — so exams run in May and June, with the board entry deadline in February.

The board deadline is not the one that will stop you. Centre places are taken through the previous autumn, and a theory-only entry is easy to place only while seats remain. Securing the centre is a short conversation; leaving it until January and finding nothing within an hour's drive is a much longer one.

Sitting your A Level with us

We are a tuition centre on Lodge Road in West Bromwich. We enter private candidates with AQA and OCR, and you can be taught and examined in the same building rather than coordinating between a tutor and a separate venue.

A Level entries are £350 per subject. Tuition, if you want it, is separate and priced openly on our fees page.

Tell us the subject, the board and whether you have sat it before, and we will tell you what the entry involves — including, if it is simpler for you elsewhere, that it is simpler elsewhere.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I sit an A Level without doing coursework?

Only if your specification has no coursework component. You cannot skip an NEA component that exists — an incomplete entry is not a grade. What you can sometimes do is choose a board or specification that is assessed by written papers alone, if you are early enough to make that choice.

Which A Levels are easiest to sit privately?

The ones examined entirely by written papers, because no supervision or marking is needed beyond the exams. Check your specification's component list rather than relying on a general answer, as the position varies by board and changes between specifications.

Can I sit a language A Level privately if there is a speaking test?

Often yes. AQA marks the speaking components in French, German and Spanish itself rather than requiring the centre to, which removes the usual obstacle. Confirm it for your board and specification before entering.

Do I have to use the same exam board as my school?

No, but it is usually sensible. Boards set different papers on different content, so switching means preparing for a specification you were not taught. We enter candidates with AQA and OCR.

Can I carry forward coursework from a previous attempt?

For some components, yes — including the A Level science practical endorsement and the GCSE English Language spoken language endorsement, even across boards. Ask your centre to request it at the point of entry.

When should I contact a centre?

For a summer sitting, in the preceding autumn. Places are limited and the subjects needing supervision fill first.

Getting started

If you are in West Bromwich, Sandwell, Birmingham or the wider Black Country, send us the subject, the exam board and whether you have sat it before, and we will tell you what is involved and what it costs.

Our companion post on resitting A Levels in 2027 covers dates, deadlines and how entry works in more detail.

Sources

• AQA, Private candidates: non-exam assessment, retrieved 2026-09-11, https://www.aqa.org.uk/student-and-parent-support/private-candidates/non-exam-assessment

• AQA, A-level History 7042 specification, retrieved 2026-09-11, https://www.aqa.org.uk/subjects/history/a-level/history-7042/specification

• Joint Council for Qualifications, Private candidates, retrieved 2026-09-11, https://www.jcq.org.uk/private-candidates/