OCR A Level English Literature (H472)
Exam structure at a glance for OCR A Level English Literature: every paper with its time, marks and weighting, plus the facts and links you need.
- Board
- OCR
- Specification code
- H472
- Level
- A level
- First teaching
- 2015
- First exams
- 2017
- Exam papers
- 2 · 5 h in total
- Last checked
- 2026-10-20
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Papers and weightings
| Paper | Time | Marks | Weight | What it is (our summary) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Component 01: Drama and poetry pre-1900 | 2 h 30 min | 60 | 40% | Shakespeare plus pre-1900 drama and poetry; closed text. |
| Component 02: Comparative and contextual study | 2 h 30 min | 60 | 40% | Comparative and contextual study; closed text. |
| Component 03: Literature post-1900 Non-exam assessment | not stated | 40 | 20% | Two tasks on three post-1900 texts (prose, poetry, drama; one from 2000 on), about 3,000 words in all. |
Times are exam lengths; weightings are shares of the whole qualification. Summaries are in our own words.
Good to know
- Non-exam assessment: Literature post-1900: Task 1 (15 marks, one text) and Task 2 comparative essay (25 marks, two texts), about 3,000 words in total.
- Set texts: closed book: students may not take the texts into the exam
- Dates: New set texts for component 01: first teaching 2027, first assessment 2029.
- AS level: H072 (AS marks do not count towards the A level)
Not yet confirmed by us: Spec summary returned by the fetcher named the AS as H418; the OCR qualification pages show H072 (used).. Check the official documents.
Key dates
Summer 2027 exam series
- First exam (GCSE and A level): Mon, 10 May 2027
- Contingency day: Wed, 23 June 2027
- Special consideration deadline: Wed, 30 June 2027
A levels are linear: all exams are sat at the end of the two-year course. Source: JCQ key dates June 2027. Check each board's final timetable for paper dates and results day.
Specification, past papers and grade boundaries
- OCR: Specification at a glance (board website)
- OCR: Specification (PDF, board website)
- OCR: Past papers and mark schemes (board website)
- OCR: Grade boundaries (board website)
Facts checked against: ocr.org.uk, ocr.org.uk.
More packs
Exam facts (paper names, times, marks, weightings, codes) are taken from each awarding body's own specification and summarised in our own words; no specification text, papers, mark schemes or booklets are reproduced. Exam details checked against the board's specification on 2026-10-20. Always check the current specification on the board's website.
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0 (Ofqual and DfE pages on GOV.UK). Classfern is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Department for Education, Ofqual, JCQ, AQA, Pearson Edexcel, OCR or WJEC Eduqas.
Questions teachers ask
How long are the OCR A Level English Literature exams?
Component 01: 2 h 30 min; Component 02: 2 h 30 min.