Ancient History OCR AS level

Applications Open: 3rd November 2025

Applications Close: 23rd March 2026

Entry Requirements: an overall GCSE points score of at least 50 (including grade 4 or higher in both Mathematics and English Language) is required to enrol. You also need to qualify for each of the subjects (minimum 3) you wish to take - a GCSE grade 6 or higher (7 or higher for Mathematics and Music) is required. See our prospectus for full details.

How to Apply: - Please apply via KentChoices

The opportunity to study the history of ancient Greece and Rome to AS level, over two years.

This course is for anyone who has a passion for learning about the past and an interest in the ancient world in particular. While you will gain an additional qualification from this course, it should be passion not qualification-hunting that inspires you to take it.

It is available as an additional option alongside three full A levels, and is equally suitable for the specialist historian who is also taking A level History, or for a student who wishes to complement a broader selection of subjects.

No prior knowledge is required, so it doesn't matter if you have already studied GCSE Ancient History or Classics, or not.

The course has two equally-weighted elements. Each is examined via a 90-minute written exam. There is no coursework.

· Roman History 31BC – AD68. This covers the establishment of the Roman Empire by Augustus, and the reigns of his first four successors: Tiberius, Caligula, Claudius, and Nero – among the most colourful, if not infamous, rulers in history. Central themes are the military, political, and social achievements of the emperors, and how they are presented in the ancient source material, including the works of Suetonius and Tacitus

· Greek History 492-404BC. This period is the cultural 'golden age' of classical Greece, but the focus of this paper is on the political history of the Greek city-states and their relationships with each other, and with the Persian empire. The paper begins with the great war between the Greek states and Persia, and traces the growth of an Athenian empire and its rivalry with Sparta, culminating in the long and terrible Peloponnesian War. Key ancient texts are Herodotus and Thucydides.

Grade 6 or higher in either History or Ancient History, or alternatively in English Language if History has not been studied.

Please note that applicants must also meet our overall entry requirements of scoring at least a total of 50 points (simply add up all your GCSE grades) and achieving a Grade 4 or higher in both English Language and Mathematics.