The Paper 3 Pre-Release (Edexcel A Level Business)

Revision Note

Lisa Eades

Written by: Lisa Eades

Reviewed by: Steve Vorster

The Paper 3 Pre-Release

Introduction

  • The pre-released context document for Paper 3 focuses on a broad context, such as an industry or market in which businesses operate

  • Its purpose is to enable you to conduct independent learning and research, and an opportunity for you to become familiar with current business issues and trends

    • You are not permitted to take your preparation with you into the Paper 3 examination

  • Recent contexts have included

    • The 2022 Commonwealth Games

    • The UK car market

    • The UK's fast food, take-away and restaurant industry

    • The UK entertainment market

    • The market for holidays in the UK and abroad

  • The pre-release context is available from November of the year prior to the exam

The Structure of the Pre-Release Context

Investigating business in online learning markets. Research UK consumer trends, online influences, major businesses, and competition. EXAMPLE label present.
  • First of all, you are given a broad market context

    • In the example above, the broad market context is the market for online learning in the UK

  • You are then given a series of bullet-pointed areas for research, covering:

    • Market trends

    • Market influences

    • Businesses within the market

    • The competitive environment

  • These bullet-points tend to be similarly-phrased each year, though specific aspects such as leadership or innovation may also be included

How to Prepare

  • Although there is no single way to prepare, the following activities are likely to be useful in preparing for your exam:

Review past papers and prior pre-release materials

  • Consider how the questions asked have been related to the research topic

  • Review the origin, nature and range of new sources introduced in the exam

  • Try re-phrasing questions to apply to the current research topic - you may want to ask your teacher for support with this

Compare the bullet points to the specification

  • Do they suggest topic areas that may be covered in exam questions?

  • E.g. The example pre-release relates to online learning, which suggests that technology aspects of PESTLE Analysis may be relevant

  • Consider aspects such as market size, market growth and market share of key businesses

  • Identify key recent developments that have appeared in the news

  • Look at relevant sources used in previous exam papers

  • Find opinion pieces on the reasons, implications and benefits/drawbacks of market changes

  • Look for industry data from organisations that represent workers, businesses or investors in the industry

  • Identify legal aspects that relate to the industry

Visit company websites to find out about businesses operating in the market

  • Consider market leaders as well as new entrants to the market

    • What are their aims and objectives?

    • Access financial statements to weigh up performance

    • What have their recent announcements involved?

    • How do they market their products?

  • Look at customer reviews or ratings from relevant organisations such as Trustpilot, Amazon, Tripadvisor or Which?

  • Find out about HR and operations strategies

    • Lots can be discovered from the recruitment section of company websites, including job profiles

Speak to friends/family who have experience of the industry

  • Do they work in the industry? If so, what are their insights into its development?

  • Are they customers of businesses in the industry? If so, find out about needs, wants and preferences, as well as their buying habits and impressions of businesses in the market

Organise your preparation

  • Try to summarise your findings into easy-to-manage notes that you can revise before the exam

    • Organise notes according to the bullet point(s) to which they relate

    • Use highlighting to draw attention to research points you'd like to be able to quote directly in the exam

    • Make use of mind-maps, flash cards or other visual techniques to commit key research items to memory

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Lisa Eades

Author: Lisa Eades

Expertise: Business Content Creator

Lisa has taught A Level, GCSE, BTEC and IBDP Business for over 20 years and is a senior Examiner for Edexcel. Lisa has been a successful Head of Department in Kent and has offered private Business tuition to students across the UK. Lisa loves to create imaginative and accessible resources which engage learners and build their passion for the subject.

Steve Vorster

Author: Steve Vorster

Expertise: Economics & Business Subject Lead

Steve has taught A Level, GCSE, IGCSE Business and Economics - as well as IBDP Economics and Business Management. He is an IBDP Examiner and IGCSE textbook author. His students regularly achieve 90-100% in their final exams. Steve has been the Assistant Head of Sixth Form for a school in Devon, and Head of Economics at the world's largest International school in Singapore. He loves to create resources which speed up student learning and are easily accessible by all.