9693_s26_qp_23 — 2026 May-June Marine Science 9693 Question Paper 2 Variant 3 · Cambridge CAIE AS & A Level

Using the vague word 'amount' instead of mass, volume, number or concentration

“The use of the word 'amount' should be discouraged. Instead, candidates should consider what the 'amount' is – mass, volume, temperature, pressure, density, salinity, or concentration.”— 9693 Paper 1, May/June 2025

How to fix: Before writing any quantity, ask: is it a mass (g/kg), a volume (cm³/dm³), a number (count of organisms), a concentration (g per dm³, mol per dm³), a salinity, or a temperature? Replace every instance of 'amount' in your draft. Replace 'weight' with 'mass'. Examples: 'amount of pipefish' → 'number of pipefish'; 'amount of seagrass' → 'mass of seagrass' or 'number of seagrass plants'.

Giving own definitions instead of the precise specification definitions

“There are a few definitions within the specification that candidates are expected to know and be able to precisely state what the terms mean. Salinity is one of those, defined as 'the concentration of dissolved salts in sea water'. However, few candidates were able to give the specification definition, often just stating 'the amount of salt' rather than using any scientific terminology in their definition.”— 9693 Paper 1, May/June 2025

How to fix: Build a flashcard set of every term the syllabus marks as a definition: salinity, productivity, ion, tidal range, ecosystem, biodiversity, mutualism, parasitism, bioaccumulation, biomagnification, stenohaline, euryhaline, osmoconformer, osmoregulator. Memorise the EXACT specification wording — not your own paraphrase. 'Salinity = the concentration of dissolved salts in sea water', not 'the amount of salt'.

Imprecise data quotes — using 'roughly', 'about', 'spiking' or omitting axis values/units

“Most of those that attempted to, gave vague answers using numbers with descriptions of 'roughly/almost/about' or just quoted data from the graph without any calculations. Some candidates used non-scientific language, for example the terms 'spiking' and 'skyrocketing', when describing the trends in the data.”— 9693 Paper 2, May/June 2025

How to fix: When describing data: state the trend in scientific language ('increased then decreased' not 'spiked'), then quote BOTH coordinates with units for at least two named points, then use those numbers to calculate a difference, percentage change or rate. Banned words: 'roughly', 'almost', 'about', 'spiking', 'skyrocketing', 'huge'. Required: numbers + units + axis label.