QCE Specialist Maths Paper 1

Paper 1 is the technology-free paper: short response and multiple choice questions on Units 3 and 4, with 5 minutes of perusal and 90 minutes of working time. No notes, calculators or other technology are allowed, and the QCAA formula book is provided. It is worth 25%.

External assessment	One examination worth 50%, set and marked by the QCAA
Paper 1	Technology-free, 25%: short response and multiple choice
Paper 2	Technology-active, 25%: short response and multiple choice
Time	5 minutes perusal and 90 minutes working time for each paper; the formula book is provided
Internal assessment	Set by your school: a modelling task 20%, two short response examinations 15% each

Exact values, by hand

Give exact answers unless the question asks otherwise: surds, multiples of pi, ln values and complex numbers in exact polar or Cartesian form.
Write proofs in full: an induction needs its initial statement, assumption, inductive step and conclusion.
Practise the hand methods a calculator would otherwise do: row reduction of a small system, a cross product, partial fractions and integration by parts.

Multiple choice without a calculator

Work the question out before you read the options. The wrong options are the answers that common slips give, such as an argument in the wrong quadrant, a sign error in a cross product or a missing factor after a substitution.

Our timed paper

Our timed Paper 1 is 10 multiple choice questions and about 50 marks of short response in 90 minutes. That is our own practice structure, not the QCAA's: the syllabus does not give the paper's marks or number of questions.

Try 3 questions

Paper 1 · Multiple choice · 1 mark · Further complex numbers
In polar form with the principal argument, $(\sqrt{3} + i)^{4}$ is
Answer it, every step marked
Paper 1 · Short response · 7 marks · Further complex numbers
Let $z = a + b i$ , where $a$ and $b$ are real and not both zero.
Answer it, every step marked
Paper 1 · Multiple choice · 1 mark · Further complex numbers
Let $z_{1} = 2\,\mathrm{cis}\left(-\dfrac{2 \pi}{3}\right)$ and $z_{2} = 4\,\mathrm{cis}\left(\dfrac{5 \pi}{6}\right)$ . In polar form with the principal argument, $\dfrac{z_{1}}{z_{2}}$ is
Answer it, every step marked

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Questions people ask

Can I use a calculator in Paper 1?

No. Paper 1 is technology-free: no notes, calculators or other technology. The QCAA formula book is provided.

How long is Paper 1?

5 minutes of perusal time and 90 minutes of working time. It is worth 25%.

How many marks is Paper 1?

The syllabus does not say. It sets the paper's time, weight and question types, not its marks.