Getting Ready for Year 2 of A-Level Business Studies

“Summertime and the livin' is easy!”– that’s what the classic song says. Endless days to look forward to - catching up with friends, partying, travelling or simply doing nothing at all.  

Let’s face it, you’ve earned a bit of downtime after all those months of hard work, settling into new classes, adapting to new timetables and teachers and getting to grips with new theories and concepts.

But hang on a minute, before you pack your notes away in your school bag and bury it at the back of your wardrobe, dare to think the unthinkable!

Maybe you could commit just a bit of your free time over the next few weeks to preparing yourself for what will be coming up in the autumn.  

“What?” I hear you cry, “no way!” Nevertheless, let’s stop and reflect on the wisdom of this for a couple of seconds. No matter how hard you’ve worked and what you’ve achieved in the first year of A level Business, doing nothing for the next six weeks is likely to result in quite a bit of that hard-earned knowledge being forgotten.  

Even if you have only just finished your term and September is merely a small dot on a faraway horizon, now is the time to act to see the best results. 

The Benefits of Investing a Little of Your Summertime

No one is suggesting that you lock yourself away pouring over Business concepts and theories while your friends are off enjoying themselves. However, a little effort spread over the coming weeks will leave you better prepared and more motivated when you return to your studies in September and allow you to hit the ground running!

The switch from modular to linear assessment a few years ago, means that you are required to stay on top of what you have learned for a lot longer. Many of the questions in the summer 2025 exams will require you to recall topics studied back in the autumn of 2023. 

Refreshing your memory now and identifying any gaps in knowledge will also leave you with more time to revise more actively in the months ahead, developing your exam skills by trying out past paper questions and taking on board any feedback from teachers.

Another reason for consolidating your understanding is that many topics studied in Year 1 of your Business A level will link to future topics introduced in Year 2. 

It’s much easier to grasp the meaning and significance of these new topics if you have a good grounding in the basics and are clear about how they might connect to other areas. For example, an ability to recognize the terminology used to discuss interest rates will make getting to grips with future topics such as international trade and globalisation more straightforward.

Organise Your Holiday Time

So, how do you get started? Begin by identifying your goals or objectives – was there a particular piece of content that you didn’t fully understand? Do you still understand the difference between cashflow and profit well enough to write clear definitions in a couple of minutes? On the other hand, did teacher feedback suggest any skills such as application or analysis that need to be worked on? 

Once you are clear about what needs addressing, decide how you are going to do it. For example, textbooks and online resources can provide explanations to help clarify your understanding of terms but be careful that the resources that you use are up-to-date and relevant to your A level Business specification. 

You might be able to persuade other business students to set up a study group that can meet either in person or online to discuss issues and even share examples of good practice. And remember that Sherpa tutors are always available to provide helpful input if you need it.

Most teachers would recommend doing a short amount of work frequently and regularly, rather than trying to get everything done at once. 

You know what works best for you but remember to set yourself goals and a time limit for each session – that way you’ll hopefully stay focused on the task at hand. And, if you’re planning on working for a morning or afternoon, build in some break times – maybe 5 minutes every hour, depending on how you work.

Organise Your Year 1 Notes

Even if you’re confident about what you’ve learned over the last year, it’s still worth investing a little time organising your files.

It’s easy to stuff notes and handouts into the nearest file when you’re packing up or dashing between one class and the next. However, in a few months’ time, not being able to put your fingers on the information you need can be frustrating, especially if you need it for a piece of homework or exam revision. 

Get hold of some extra files and organise your notes, preferably into sections that follow your exam board specification, creating a list of contents for each section (maybe with key words) in order to make it easier and less time-consuming to find what you’re looking for when you need it.

Investigate the Wider World

Doing well in your Business A level requires more than theoretical knowledge – you need to have an awareness of what is happening in the real world.

All the major UK exam boards are designed to encourage you to develop an understanding of businesses in a range of contexts, and the wider this understanding is, the better. 

Clearly some of your time in class will be devoted to investigating different business organisations, the sectors in which they operate and the wider economic environment. However, why not use some less pressured time during the summer break to expand your knowledge even further? 

The business world is subject to change, which can often be rapid and unpredictable, so staying up to date is vital. 

Some of the events in the table below have already been in the headlines this summer, and could provide you with useful case studies to analyse and evaluate:

Table 1: What’s going on!

Use these (and other) articles to consider the implications for the various stakeholders involved – who might benefit and who might lose out!

And Finally!

Don’t let your enthusiasm carry you away and make you lose sight of the benefits of going back to your studies in September feeling relaxed and refreshed. Resist the temptation to panic and feel overwhelmed that you haven’t done enough – every little helps, as a leading UK supermarket likes to tell us! 

It’s never too late to start and remember that you still have several months of learning and preparation ahead, but a little summer organisation and consolidation will help to boost your confidence and make you prepared to meet a new term!

Good luck!