A-level Chemistry , Top grades & stretch
Chemistry for Oxford, Cambridge and Medicine applicants
For students who want to go further in Chemistry.
I teach A-level Chemistry to the top grade, with stretch and challenge beyond the specification for high achievers. I’m a GCSE and A-level examiner, and was Head of Chemistry for over ten years.
- For
- Sixth-formers aiming for Oxford, Cambridge, Medicine and other competitive science courses
- Lessons
- A-level Chemistry, taught to the top grade
- Stretch
- Problems beyond the specification, and wider reading
- Format
- One-to-one, at your home in London or online
- Fees
- £85 per hour at home · £75 per hour online
The approach
Top grades, and real depth.
Oxford, Cambridge and Medicine ask a great deal of A-level Chemistry. I teach it to the top grade and, for students who are ready, well beyond the specification.
I know the specification in detail, from more than ten years as Head of Chemistry and from my work as a GCSE and A-level examiner. That knowledge is what makes it possible to go beyond the specification with purpose.
My MSc in Pharmaceutical Analysis and Quality Control, from King’s College London, connects school chemistry to the pharmaceutical science behind modern medicine.
I teach the chemistry itself; I do not provide coaching for admissions tests, interviews or personal statements.
The lessons
What the lessons include.
Each lesson is planned around the student’s course, exam board and goals.
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Top-grade A-level Chemistry
Secure understanding first, then the precise answers that mark schemes reward, for every exam board.
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Stretch and challenge
Problems beyond the specification for high achievers: unfamiliar questions that draw on several topics at once.
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Examiner-level feedback
Practice papers marked with an examiner’s eye, so that the last marks are not lost to imprecision.
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Wider reading
Recommended reading to extend understanding, so that ideas from the course can be followed further.
Why chemistry matters
A required subject, at the top grade.
Chemistry is a required A-level for Medicine at both Oxford and Cambridge, and for several other science courses. I mark GCSE and A-level papers, and teach students to answer exactly as the mark scheme rewards.
Oxford also expects a pass in the A-level practical endorsement alongside top grades, so practical skills matter as well as exam technique.
Where A-level Chemistry is required
- Medicine
- Oxford and CambridgeCambridge Colleges usually ask for an A*
- Veterinary Medicine
- Cambridge
- Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology
- Cambridge
- Chemistry, Biochemistry
- Oxford
Requirements change from year to year: always check each university’s course pages.
Stretch and challenge
Well beyond the specification.
Stretch work asks more than the A-level course does: problems that draw on several topics at once and have to be reasoned through, step by step, rather than recalled.
It is for high achievers who are already secure in the course and ready for more. Alongside the problems comes wider reading: ideas from the course followed further, with recommended reading to extend understanding. It gives students genuine chemistry to think with.
Stretch, in practice
- Problems
- Unfamiliar, drawing on several topics
- Method
- Reasoned step by step, not recalled
- Reading
- Recommended, to extend understanding
Timing
When to begin.
For Oxford, Cambridge and Medicine, the key moments come early in Year 13, so lessons with stretch are best started in Year 12.
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Year 12
Build depth
Secure A-level foundations, then stretch beyond the specification and wider reading, well before the application year.
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Autumn of Year 13
Applications
Oxford, Cambridge and most Medicine courses have an early UCAS deadline in mid-October, about three months before most other courses.
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Through Year 13
The final grades
Offers depend on grades too, so lessons stay anchored in the precise answers examiners reward, through to the final exams.
Dates change from year to year, and every course sets its own requirements: always check each university’s admissions pages.
Reviews
Stretched, and supported.
“Daiane is a brilliant teacher who always tries to excel you in your knowledge of science. She is also always there for you if you have any questions and she answers by explaining it in a way they are understandable for you.”
A selection, quoted verbatim from First Tutors, where my name appears as Daiane.
Outcomes and fees
An honest word on outcomes.
No tutor can guarantee a place at Oxford, Cambridge or medical school, and I do not promise one. What I offer is rigorous teaching: deeper understanding, sharper reasoning and the composure that comes from practice.
I am an independent tutor, not affiliated with or endorsed by the University of Oxford or the University of Cambridge.
Fees
There is no separate fee: these are one-to-one lessons at my standard rates.
- At your home in London £85 per hour, one-to-one
- Online £75 per hour, one-to-one
No charge with six or more hours’ notice. With less than six hours’ notice, the full session fee applies.
Fees and termsQuestions
Your questions.
Anything else? Ask it in your enquiry, and I’ll reply.
Is this only for Oxford and Cambridge applicants?
No. It suits sixth-formers aiming for Chemistry, Natural Sciences, Medicine and other competitive science courses, and younger students already working at the top grades who want stretch beyond GCSE.
When should lessons start?
Ideally in Year 12, which leaves time to build depth before the application year: applications to Oxford, Cambridge and most Medicine courses close in mid-October of Year 13. If the student is further on, say where they are in the course when you enquire.
Is there a separate fee?
No. These are one-to-one A-level Chemistry lessons at my standard fees: £85 per hour at your home in London or £75 per hour online. See fees and terms.
Which exam boards do you teach?
Every A-level Chemistry board, including AQA, OCR A, OCR B (Salters), Pearson Edexcel and Eduqas, taught to the exact specification each student is entered for: see A-level Chemistry tuition. Students who go on to read chemistry can continue with university chemistry tuition.
Begin with an enquiry.
Tell me which course and universities the student is considering, and where they are in A-level Chemistry, and I’ll be in touch to discuss how I can help.