Syllabus
Cambridge International AS & A Level
Business 9609
Use this syllabus for exams in 2023, 2024 and 2025.
Exams are available in the June and November series.
Exams are also available in the March series in India only.
Version 1
,Why choose Cambridge International?
Cambridge International prepares school students for life, helping them develop an informed curiosity and a lasting
passion for learning. We are part of the University of Cambridge.
Our Cambridge Pathway gives students a clear path for educational success from age 5 to 19. Schools can shape
the curriculum around how they want students to learn – with a wide range of subjects and flexible ways to offer
them. It helps students discover new abilities and a wider world, and gives them the skills they need for life, so they
can achieve at school, university and work.
Our programmes and qualifications set the global standard for international education. They are created by subject
experts, rooted in academic rigour and reflect the latest educational research. They provide a strong platform for
students to progress from one stage to the next, and are well supported by teaching and learning resources.
We review all our syllabuses regularly, so they reflect the latest research evidence and professional teaching
practice – and take account of the different national contexts in which they are taught.
We consult with teachers to help us design each syllabus around the needs of their learners. Consulting with
leading universities has helped us make sure our syllabuses encourage students to master the key concepts in the
subject and develop the skills necessary for success in higher education.
Our mission is to provide educational benefit through provision of international programmes and qualifications for
school education and to be the world leader in this field. Together with schools, we develop Cambridge learners
who are confident, responsible, reflective, innovative and engaged – equipped for success in the modern world.
Every year, nearly a million Cambridge students from 10 000 schools in 160 countries prepare for their future with
the Cambridge Pathway.
‘We think the Cambridge curriculum is superb preparation for university.’
Christoph Guttentag, Dean of Undergraduate Admissions, Duke University, USA
Quality management
Cambridge International is committed to providing exceptional quality. In line with this commitment, our
quality management system for the provision of international qualifications and education programmes for
students aged 5 to 19 is independently certified as meeting the internationally recognised standard,
ISO 9001:2015. Learn more at www.cambridgeinternational.org/ISO9001
Copyright © UCLES September 2020
Cambridge Assessment International Education is part of the Cambridge Assessment Group. Cambridge Assessment is the brand name of
the University of Cambridge Local Examinations Syndicate (UCLES), which itself is a department of the University of Cambridge.
UCLES retains the copyright on all its publications. Registered centres are permitted to copy material from this booklet for their own
internal use. However, we cannot give permission to centres to photocopy any material that is acknowledged to a third party even for
internal use within a centre.
,Contents
1 Why choose this syllabus? ................................................................................................................2
2 Syllabus overview .............................................................................................................................. 6
Aims 6
Content overview 7
Assessment overview 8
Assessment objectives 10
3 Subject content ..................................................................................................................................12
AS Level content 12
A Level content 23
Ratios to support analysis of published accounts 34
4 Details of the assessment .............................................................................................................. 36
Paper 1 – Business Concepts 1 36
Paper 2 – Business Concepts 2 36
Paper 3 – Business Decision-Making 37
Paper 4 – Business Strategy 37
Command words 38
5 What else you need to know ......................................................................................................... 39
Before you start 39
Making entries 40
After the exam 41
How students, teachers and higher education can use the grades 42
Grade descriptions 42
Changes to this syllabus for 2023, 2024 and 2025 43
Important: Changes to this syllabus
For information about changes to this syllabus for 2023, 2024 and 2025, go to page 43.
, Cambridge International AS & A Level Business 9609 syllabus for 2023, 2024 and 2025.
1 Why choose this syllabus?
Key benefits
The best motivation for a student is a real passion for the subject
they’re learning. By offering students a variety of Cambridge
International AS & A Levels, you can give them the greatest chance
of finding the path of education they most want to follow. With
over 50 subjects to choose from, students can select the ones
they love and that they’re best at, which helps motivate them
throughout their studies.
Following a Cambridge International AS & A Level programme
helps students develop abilities which universities value highly,
including:
• a deep understanding of their subjects
• higher order thinking skills – analysis, critical thinking,
problem solving
• presenting ordered and coherent arguments
• independent learning and research.
Cambridge International AS & A Level Business allows students to experience the diverse and dynamic world
within which businesses exist. With a focus on how decisions are made, students will gain the knowledge to
understand how businesses operate within real contexts, analyse alternative courses of action and develop the
ability to make justified recommendations.
These transferable skills are essential for anybody working in a business environment and can facilitate further
study within business related areas.
Our approach in Cambridge International AS & A Level Business encourages learners to be:
confident, using business concepts to solve problems and understand the needs of businesses and their
stakeholders within given contexts
responsible, understanding that businesses and their stakeholders have responsibilities to society and the
environment
reflective, evaluating business decisions that have been made to better inform decisions that still need to be made
innovative, adapting the business skills of analysis and evaluation to dynamic scenarios in both familiar and
unfamiliar contexts
engaged, developing an interest in enterprise and facing challenges as future business leaders.
‘Cambridge students develop a deep understanding of subjects and independent thinking skills.’
Principal, Rockledge High School, USA
2 www.cambridgeinternational.org/alevel Back to contents page
Cambridge International AS & A Level
Business 9609
Use this syllabus for exams in 2023, 2024 and 2025.
Exams are available in the June and November series.
Exams are also available in the March series in India only.
Version 1
,Why choose Cambridge International?
Cambridge International prepares school students for life, helping them develop an informed curiosity and a lasting
passion for learning. We are part of the University of Cambridge.
Our Cambridge Pathway gives students a clear path for educational success from age 5 to 19. Schools can shape
the curriculum around how they want students to learn – with a wide range of subjects and flexible ways to offer
them. It helps students discover new abilities and a wider world, and gives them the skills they need for life, so they
can achieve at school, university and work.
Our programmes and qualifications set the global standard for international education. They are created by subject
experts, rooted in academic rigour and reflect the latest educational research. They provide a strong platform for
students to progress from one stage to the next, and are well supported by teaching and learning resources.
We review all our syllabuses regularly, so they reflect the latest research evidence and professional teaching
practice – and take account of the different national contexts in which they are taught.
We consult with teachers to help us design each syllabus around the needs of their learners. Consulting with
leading universities has helped us make sure our syllabuses encourage students to master the key concepts in the
subject and develop the skills necessary for success in higher education.
Our mission is to provide educational benefit through provision of international programmes and qualifications for
school education and to be the world leader in this field. Together with schools, we develop Cambridge learners
who are confident, responsible, reflective, innovative and engaged – equipped for success in the modern world.
Every year, nearly a million Cambridge students from 10 000 schools in 160 countries prepare for their future with
the Cambridge Pathway.
‘We think the Cambridge curriculum is superb preparation for university.’
Christoph Guttentag, Dean of Undergraduate Admissions, Duke University, USA
Quality management
Cambridge International is committed to providing exceptional quality. In line with this commitment, our
quality management system for the provision of international qualifications and education programmes for
students aged 5 to 19 is independently certified as meeting the internationally recognised standard,
ISO 9001:2015. Learn more at www.cambridgeinternational.org/ISO9001
Copyright © UCLES September 2020
Cambridge Assessment International Education is part of the Cambridge Assessment Group. Cambridge Assessment is the brand name of
the University of Cambridge Local Examinations Syndicate (UCLES), which itself is a department of the University of Cambridge.
UCLES retains the copyright on all its publications. Registered centres are permitted to copy material from this booklet for their own
internal use. However, we cannot give permission to centres to photocopy any material that is acknowledged to a third party even for
internal use within a centre.
,Contents
1 Why choose this syllabus? ................................................................................................................2
2 Syllabus overview .............................................................................................................................. 6
Aims 6
Content overview 7
Assessment overview 8
Assessment objectives 10
3 Subject content ..................................................................................................................................12
AS Level content 12
A Level content 23
Ratios to support analysis of published accounts 34
4 Details of the assessment .............................................................................................................. 36
Paper 1 – Business Concepts 1 36
Paper 2 – Business Concepts 2 36
Paper 3 – Business Decision-Making 37
Paper 4 – Business Strategy 37
Command words 38
5 What else you need to know ......................................................................................................... 39
Before you start 39
Making entries 40
After the exam 41
How students, teachers and higher education can use the grades 42
Grade descriptions 42
Changes to this syllabus for 2023, 2024 and 2025 43
Important: Changes to this syllabus
For information about changes to this syllabus for 2023, 2024 and 2025, go to page 43.
, Cambridge International AS & A Level Business 9609 syllabus for 2023, 2024 and 2025.
1 Why choose this syllabus?
Key benefits
The best motivation for a student is a real passion for the subject
they’re learning. By offering students a variety of Cambridge
International AS & A Levels, you can give them the greatest chance
of finding the path of education they most want to follow. With
over 50 subjects to choose from, students can select the ones
they love and that they’re best at, which helps motivate them
throughout their studies.
Following a Cambridge International AS & A Level programme
helps students develop abilities which universities value highly,
including:
• a deep understanding of their subjects
• higher order thinking skills – analysis, critical thinking,
problem solving
• presenting ordered and coherent arguments
• independent learning and research.
Cambridge International AS & A Level Business allows students to experience the diverse and dynamic world
within which businesses exist. With a focus on how decisions are made, students will gain the knowledge to
understand how businesses operate within real contexts, analyse alternative courses of action and develop the
ability to make justified recommendations.
These transferable skills are essential for anybody working in a business environment and can facilitate further
study within business related areas.
Our approach in Cambridge International AS & A Level Business encourages learners to be:
confident, using business concepts to solve problems and understand the needs of businesses and their
stakeholders within given contexts
responsible, understanding that businesses and their stakeholders have responsibilities to society and the
environment
reflective, evaluating business decisions that have been made to better inform decisions that still need to be made
innovative, adapting the business skills of analysis and evaluation to dynamic scenarios in both familiar and
unfamiliar contexts
engaged, developing an interest in enterprise and facing challenges as future business leaders.
‘Cambridge students develop a deep understanding of subjects and independent thinking skills.’
Principal, Rockledge High School, USA
2 www.cambridgeinternational.org/alevel Back to contents page
