German A Level

APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS FOR SEPTEMBER 2027 ENTRY

Entry Requirements - Please follow the link and download our Options Guide to view the entry requirements for Sixth Form and individual subjects https://www.queenelizabeths.kent.sch.uk/learning/sixth-form/thinking-about-joining-queen-elizabeths-grammar-school-for-sixth-form/

How to Apply:

Applications will open in November 2026.

Internals - Google Form - Speak to Mr Cowlam or Mrs Gossling

Externals - Through Kent Choices

https://www.queenelizabeths.kent.sch.uk/learning/sixth-form/applying-to-the-sixth-form/

DEADLINE: Gaining a place at our Sixth Form is incredibly competitive. To ensure we can follow the correct processes for making offers and gathering information appropriately, the deadline for all applications, internal and external, will be Friday 26th February 2027 at 15.00.

Following this deadline, external applicants that are considered to have met the requirements for a Conditional Offer will receive a notification via Kent Choices. You will also be invited to an Online Application Meeting in March 2027. This meeting will be a compulsory stage of the application process and will provide details of the next steps and what is required to gain a place in our Sixth Form for September 2027. Any applicants that do not attend the meeting will have their Conditional Offer withdrawn.

External applicants that attend the meeting will retain their Conditional Offer and gain access to the next stage of the application process.

Internal Applicants have an automatic conditional offer. Following the deadline, students will attend a 1-2-1 meeting to discuss your options. You will not be able to make any changes to your subject choices until the Option Blocks have been created around the end of Term 5.

What to include in your application:

You must select a minimum AND maximum of 5 subject choices:

Option A - 3 main subject choices* + an enhancement subject choice** + a reserve subject choice***

Option B - 4 main subject choices + a reserve subject choice

*a main subject choice is a full A Level subject e.g Mathematics/Geography/Physics/German etc

** an enhancement subject choice is either EPQ, Maths in Context or Trinity Acting Exams

***a reserve choice can be either a full A Level or another enhancement option

German

AQA Level 3 Advanced GCE in German. ***This subject will only be provided if the minimum class size is achieved***

• The changing state of the family
• The digital world
• Youth culture: fashion and trends, music, television

• Immigration
• Integration
• Racism

• Festivals and traditions
• Art and architecture
• Cultural life in Berlin, past and present

• German and the European Union
• Politics and youth
• German re-unification and its consequences

Set text - “Der Besuch der alten Dame” by Friedrich Dürrenmatt

Film - "Lola Rennt"

Exam

This qualification is linear. All exams are taken at the end of the course with no access to a dictionary during the assessments.

Paper 1: Listening, Reading and Writing: 2 hours 30 minutes. 100 marks. 50% of A-level

• Aspects of German-speaking society
• Artistic culture in the German-speaking world
• Multiculturalism in German-speaking society
• Aspects of political life in German-speaking society

All questions are in German, to be answered with non-verbal responses or in German (30 marks listening. 70 marks reading)

Translation into English; a passage of minimum 100 words (10 marks). Translation into German; a passage of minimum 100 words (10 marks)

Paper 2: Writing exam: 2 hours. 80 marks. 20% of A-level

2 x 300 word essay. One text and one film from the set list.

Paper 3: Speaking. Oral exam: 16-18 minutes. 60 marks. 30% of A-level

• Individual research project: Presentation (2 minutes) and discussion (9–10 minutes) of individual research project (35 marks)
• Discussion of a sub-theme with the discussion based on a stimulus card (5–6 minutes). The student studies the card for 5 minutes at the start of the test (25 marks).

You must achieve a grade 6 or higher at GCSE in this subject.

What happens when you have finished?

German is widely acknowledged by universities as a highly academic course, particularly by the Russell group of universities and will therefore stand you in good stead if you decide to apply to a university in this group. You can decide to continue studying German at degree level or combine the language with your choice of hundreds of degree courses from a range of disciplines. You may wish to study German with a science, mathematics or engineering degree or in one of the humanities subjects. You may wish to study German with a foreign language which is new to you, such as Russian, Chinese or Arabic. During your degree, it will usually be possible for you to study at a German university or work in Germany as an assistant or within industry for six months to a year, which will greatly increase your fluency in the language.

Future Opportunities

Opportunities are varied, ranging from teaching, translating, European affairs, journalism to work in TV/radio. You could work in the foreign office or international companies. Increasingly a language at A level is seen as useful and in high demand by employers as globalisation increases.