How to Revise A-Level Religious Studies

Deepen your A-Level Religious Studies with practice on philosophy of religion, ethics, and the study of religious traditions.

Revision Strategy

Revising Religious Studies requires you to balance factual recall with analytical skills. You need to remember specific dates, events, facts, and examples, but the marks are awarded for how you use this knowledge to construct arguments and evaluate evidence. Avoid the trap of spending all your time memorising facts without practising how to deploy them in essays and structured answers.

Source analysis and essay writing are central to Religious Studies exams, so practise these skills regularly. For sources, develop a consistent approach: consider who created it, when, why, and what perspective it represents. For essays, plan your argument before you start writing and make sure every paragraph has a clear point supported by specific evidence.

Case studies and specific examples are what separate strong answers from weak ones in Religious Studies. Learn three or four precise details for each major topic — specific names, dates, statistics, or places — and practise weaving them into your answers. Vague generalisations will not earn top marks, but precise, well-deployed evidence demonstrates genuine understanding.

Study Tips for A-Level Religious Studies

✓ Learn the positions and arguments of key scholars (e.g. Aquinas, Hume, Kant, Situation Ethics from Fletcher, Natural Law from Aquinas) with enough precision to quote or closely paraphrase their arguments. Named scholarly references are essential for top grades.
✓ For every argument you learn, immediately learn at least two counter-arguments. Religious Studies is fundamentally about the evaluation of competing claims, and the strongest answers demonstrate a genuine dialogue between different positions.
✓ Practise writing evaluative conclusions that go beyond on the other hand. A strong conclusion weighs the strength of the arguments presented and explains why you find one position more convincing than another, based on the reasoning you have outlined.
✓ Create concept maps linking topics across the specification. For example, connect the teleological argument (philosophy of religion) with Natural Law (ethics) and religious responses to science (religious thought). Synoptic thinking demonstrates sophisticated understanding.

Exam Tips for A-Level Religious Studies

✓ Structure your essays clearly: define key terms in your introduction, present arguments and counter-arguments in developed paragraphs, and write a substantive conclusion that answers the specific question. Avoid narrating the history of a debate without taking a clear analytical position.
✓ Use scholarly language and reference specific thinkers by name. Saying some people think God exists is vague; saying Aquinas argued from contingency that a necessary being must exist demonstrates the academic precision examiners reward.
✓ Do not write personally biased answers. Even if you have strong personal beliefs, you must engage fairly and analytically with all perspectives. The marks are for the quality of your reasoning, not for which conclusion you reach.

Topics to Cover

8 topics in A-Level Religious Studies

Philosophy of Religion

Ethics

Christianity

Islam

Buddhism

Dialogues

Arguments for God

Applied Ethics

Available Exam Boards

A-Level Religious Studies specification guides for each exam board

AQA Edexcel OCR WJEC

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need to be religious to study A-Level Religious Studies? +

Absolutely not. A-Level Religious Studies is an academic subject that examines philosophical arguments, ethical theories, and religious thought critically. Students of all backgrounds — religious, agnostic, and atheist — study it successfully. What matters is your ability to think analytically, not your personal beliefs.

Is A-Level Religious Studies respected by universities? +

Yes, it is respected as an academically rigorous subject that develops critical thinking and essay-writing skills. It is particularly valued for philosophy, theology, law, and humanities courses. It is accepted by all universities, though you should check specific requirements for very competitive STEM courses.

How many exams are there in A-Level Religious Studies? +

Most exam boards have two or three written papers, typically around two hours each. These cover philosophy of religion, ethics, and the study of a specific religion or religious texts. There is usually no coursework component, though some boards may include a synoptic element.

What careers does A-Level Religious Studies lead to? +

Religious Studies leads to careers in law, teaching, journalism, chaplaincy, social work, charity management, diplomacy, politics, mediation, ethics consultancy, and community relations. The critical reasoning skills are highly transferable.

Start Revising Religious Studies Free

Join the waitlist and be among the first to access UpGrades when we launch

Join the Waitlist