Which topic carries the most marks in the QCE Engineering external exam?

Machines, mechanisms and control carries 66.6% of the marks across the 5 QCAA papers from 2020 to 2024, ahead of Materials on 26.8%.

How are marks split between question types in the QCE Engineering exam?

Short answer carries 87.6% of the marks, multiple choice carries 11.9% of the marks and extended response carries 0.5% of the marks, measured across 5 papers and 419 marks from 2020 to 2024.

Has the topic balance changed in recent QCE Engineering papers?

Yes. Machines, mechanisms and control moved up 7.0 percentage points, Materials moved down 4.0 percentage points and Machines in society moved down 3.0 percentage points between the 2020 to 2021 and 2023 to 2024 papers.

How many past papers is this QCE Engineering analysis based on?

5 QCAA external papers from 2020 to 2024, covering 111 questions and 419 marks. 2.1% of those marks carry no dot-point mapping and sit outside the percentages.

QCE Engineering most tested topics

Across the five QCAA Engineering external papers from 2020 to 2024, Machines, mechanisms and control carries 66.6% of the marks against 6.6% for Machines in society, so the paper rewards Machines, mechanisms and control more than any other topic. At dot-point level 4.2.10 carries 10.8% of paper marks, and six of the 30 dot points that the board assesses externally have not appeared in one of these papers. Every percentage below covers the 97.9% of marks that map to a syllabus dot point.

Computed from 5 QCAA Engineering external papers, 2020 to 2024: 111 questions, 126 question parts and 419 marks.

Unit, topic and dot-point shares below are of the 410 marks that map to a dot point, so each of those tables adds to 100%. 49 of the 126 parts are assessed against more than one dot point, and their 206 marks are divided evenly between the dot points they cover.

What these papers are

Year	Exam	Questions	Marks
2024	Exam	22	79
2023	Exam	21	85
2022	Exam	22	85
2021	Exam	23	85
2020	Exam	23	85

Marks by unit

Unit	Share of marks
Unit 4: Machines and mechanisms	100.0%

Marks by topic

Topic	Share of marks	Papers it appears in	Years
Machines, mechanisms and control	66.6%	5 of 5	5 of 5
Materials	26.8%	5 of 5	5 of 5
Machines in society	6.6%	4 of 5	4 of 5

Marks by dot point

Dot-point numbers and wording are QCAA's own. Where a dot point is written as a list, its items run together here separated by semicolons.

Dot point	Content	Topic	Share of marks	Papers
4.2.10	Calculate to solve problems involving the equations of uniformly accelerated motion along a straight line, in one dimension (including vertical or horizontal movement), using the formulas $v = u + at$ ; $v^2 = u^2 + 2as$ ; $s = ut + \frac{1}{2}at^2$	Machines, mechanisms and control	10.8%	5 of 5
4.3.4	Comprehend that the chemical composition of plain-carbon steels contributes to their physical and mechanical properties and therefore to usability in industrial/mechanical applications for low-carbon steel; 0.07% to 0.30% carbon: automobile body parts, wire products, structural plates and sections, seamless tubes and boiler plate; medium-carbon steel; 0.30% to 0.60% carbon: automotive components, including shafts, axles, gears and crankshafts, stampings and forgings, train rails, wheels and axles; high-carbon steel; 0.60% to 2.0% carbon: high-strength spring materials and wires, cutting tools, punches, dies and industrial knives	Materials	8.3%	5 of 5
4.2.7	Calculate to solve problems involving mechanical engineering concepts and principles, including work (done) using the formula; $W = force \times displacement\ (distance\ moved\ in\ direction\ of\ force) = Fs$ ; power (rate of doing work) using the formula; $P = \frac{work\ done}{time\ taken} = \frac{W}{t}$	Machines, mechanisms and control	6.8%	5 of 5
4.3.6	Comprehend the mechanical properties of and current uses for engineering plastics, including acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS); high heat resistance, good low-temperature resistance, high impact resistance, high chemical resistance, excellent electrical insulation, good dimensional stability; automobile parts, personal protective equipment (e.g. face shields, hard hats, helmets), electrical equipment (e.g. power tools housings, printers, vacuum cleaners) and high strength applications in the construction industry; polycarbonate (PC); high transparency, good toughness, high impact strength, good chemical resistance, high heat resistance, good electrical properties, high dimensional stability; lenses and shields (e.g. automotive headlamps, security windows, motorcycle face shields and windscreens, prescription lenses, safety glasses, machinery guards, skylights, and streetlamps) and electrical and electronic device housings; polyamide (PA6/nylon 6); high strength, high abrasion resistance, good thermal resistance, good chemical resistance, good electrical properties, good fatigue resistance; machine parts (e.g. gears, rollers, guides, bearings, wear pads and wheels), medical implants, electrical connectors and fishing line	Materials	6.3%	5 of 5
4.2.8	Calculate for energy sources and conversions (i.e. total mechanical energy is the sum of kinetic energy and potential energy), using the formulas $KE = \frac{1}{2}mv^2$ ; $PE = mgh$	Machines, mechanisms and control	5.9%	5 of 5
4.2.16	Create logic gate circuits diagrams and corresponding truth tables based on specified conditions, e.g. traffic light function; boom gates at a railway crossing; thermostatically controlled incubator or cooking system or barbecue; sun-tracking systems for solar panels; solar-powered devices, e.g. battery chargers, model vehicles, lighting systems	Machines, mechanisms and control	5.9%	5 of 5
4.2.14	Calculate to solve problems involving one-body systems in motion on an inclined plane, including uniform velocity and uniform acceleration	Machines, mechanisms and control	5.7%	5 of 5
4.2.13	Distinguish between and solve integrated linear motion problems involving static and kinetic friction, using the formulas $F_f = \mu_s F_N$ ; $F_f = \mu_k F_N$	Machines, mechanisms and control	5.6%	4 of 5
4.2.15	Apply logic control, including logic gates; AND/OR/NOT/NAND/NOR/XOR; standard symbols, including; truth tables — logical true, logical false, logical identity and logical negation	Machines, mechanisms and control	5.6%	5 of 5
4.2.12	Calculate to solve problems using coefficient of friction, normal force and angle of repose, using the formulas $\mu_s = \tan \theta$ ; $F_f = \mu F_N$	Machines, mechanisms and control	5.0%	5 of 5
4.3.1	Explain key features, components and phases of a lead-tin thermal-equilibrium phase diagram, including the eutectic reaction, including composition and temperature; single- and two-phase regions at different temperatures and compositions; chemical composition of the phases; hypoeutectic and hypereutectic compositions	Materials	4.8%	4 of 5
4.1.3	Analyse community problems involving machines as solutions to comprehend how engineers use their expertise and knowledge of technology, mechanics, materials science and control technologies to benefit communities	Machines in society	4.4%	3 of 5

These 12 dot points carry 75.1% of the paper marks between them. Another 12 assessed dot points share the rest, and 6 of the 30 externally assessable dot points have not been assessed in any of these 5 papers. Content that has not appeared is still examinable.

What has moved between papers

Comparing the 2020 to 2021 papers with the 2023 to 2024 papers, three topics have moved by more than 3.0 percentage points.

Topic	2020 to 2021 share	2023 to 2024 share	Movement
Machines, mechanisms and control	63.4%	70.4%	up 7.0 points
Materials	26.8%	22.8%	down 4.0 points
Machines in society	9.8%	6.8%	down 3.0 points

How the papers are built

Short answer carries 87.6% of the marks across these 5 papers.

Question type	Share of marks	Marks	Parts
Short answer	87.6%	367	75
Multiple choice	11.9%	50	50
Extended response	0.5%	2	1

Verb	Share of marks	Marks	Parts
determine	38.7%	162	30
explain	21.7%	91	19
annotate	8.4%	35	7
calculate	8.4%	35	12
identify	6.4%	27	4
state	5.0%	21	4
describe	4.1%	17	3
create	3.8%	16	2

What these percentages do not tell you

Where to practise

Every topic above links to its own page of real QCAA questions with marking criteria and average scores attached: Machines, mechanisms and control, Materials and Machines in society. For the full question bank start at QCE Engineering.

Syllabus and assessment material referenced in this guide is © State of Queensland (Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority), licensed under CC BY 4.0. See our QCAA licensing notice. AusGrader is an independent study tool and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or operated by the QCAA.