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

Gravity and motion carries 36.8% of the marks across the 12 QCAA papers from 2020 to 2025, ahead of Electromagnetism on 24.0%.

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

Short answer carries 77.8% of the marks and multiple choice carries 22.2% of the marks, measured across 12 papers and 541 marks from 2020 to 2025.

Has the topic balance changed in recent QCE Physics papers?

Yes. Gravity and motion moved down 4.3 percentage points and Special relativity moved up 4.4 percentage points between the 2020 to 2022 and 2023 to 2025 papers.

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

12 QCAA external papers from 2020 to 2025, covering 214 questions and 541 marks. 0.0% of those marks carry no dot-point mapping and sit outside the percentages.

QCE Physics most tested topics

Across the 12 QCAA Physics external papers from 2020 to 2025, Gravity and motion carries 36.8% of the marks against 7.4% for The Standard Model, so the paper rewards Gravity and motion more than any other topic. At dot-point level 3.1.1.4 carries 5.7% of paper marks, and eight of the 76 dot points that the board assesses externally have not appeared in one of these papers. Every percentage below covers the 100.0% of marks that map to a syllabus dot point.

Computed from 12 QCAA Physics external papers, 2020 to 2025: 214 questions, 249 question parts and 541 marks.

Unit, topic and dot-point shares below are of the 541 marks that map to a dot point, so each of those tables adds to 100%. 48 of the 249 parts are assessed against more than one dot point, and their 167 marks are divided evenly between the dot points they cover.

What these papers are

Year	Paper	Questions	Marks
2025	Paper 1	25	51
2025	Paper 2	9	50
2024	Paper 1	27	50
2024	Paper 2	8	47
2023	Paper 1	28	46
2023	Paper 2	8	44
2022	Paper 1	28	47
2022	Paper 2	9	50
2021	Paper 1	26	43
2021	Paper 2	9	32
2020	Paper 1	28	44
2020	Paper 2	9	37

Marks by unit

Unit	Share of marks
Unit 3: Gravity and electromagnetism	60.8%
Unit 4: Revolutions in modern physics	39.2%

Marks by topic

Topic	Share of marks	Papers it appears in	Years
Gravity and motion	36.8%	12 of 12	6 of 6
Electromagnetism	24.0%	12 of 12	6 of 6
Quantum Theory	22.7%	12 of 12	6 of 6
Special relativity	9.1%	11 of 12	6 of 6
The Standard Model	7.4%	10 of 12	6 of 6

Marks by subtopic

Each topic above breaks into the subtopics below, in the same order.

Subtopic	Share of marks	Papers
Inclined planes and circular motion	16.2%	12 of 12
Orbital mechanics	10.5%	11 of 12
Projectile motion	10.1%	10 of 12
Electrostatics	8.8%	10 of 12
Magnetic fields	8.6%	11 of 12
Electromagnetic induction	6.7%	8 of 12
Quantum theory	22.7%	12 of 12
Special relativity	9.1%	11 of 12
The Standard Model	4.6%	10 of 12
Particle interactions	2.8%	6 of 12

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
3.1.1.4	Solve problems involving projectile motion in the absence of drag effects using $v_y = u_y + gt$ , $s_y = u_y t + \frac{1}{2}gt^2$ , $v_y^2 = u_y^2 + 2gs_y$ , $v_x = u_x$ and $s_x = u_x t$	Gravity and motion	5.7%	8 of 12
4.2.1.6	Solve problems involving blackbody radiation and the photoelectric effect using $\lambda_{max} = \frac{b}{T}$ , $E = hf = \frac{hc}{\lambda}$ , $E_k = hf - W$ , $W = hf_0$	Quantum Theory	5.5%	11 of 12
3.1.2.9	Solve problems involving forces acting on objects in uniform circular motion using $F_c = F_{net} = \frac{mv^2}{r}$	Gravity and motion	5.0%	9 of 12
4.2.1.9	Solve problems involving the line spectra of simple atoms using atomic energy states or atomic energy level diagrams using $n\lambda = 2\pi r$ , $mvr = \frac{nh}{2\pi}$ , $\frac{1}{\lambda} = R(\frac{1}{n_f^2} - \frac{1}{n_i^2})$ and $\lambda = \frac{h}{p}$	Quantum Theory	4.6%	7 of 12
3.1.3.2	Solve problems involving the magnitude of the gravitational force between two masses using $F = \frac{GMm}{r^2}$	Gravity and motion	4.3%	7 of 12
3.2.2.6	Solve problems involving the magnetic force on an electric current-carrying wire and moving charge in a magnetic field using $F = BIl\sin\theta$ and $F = qvB\sin\theta$	Electromagnetism	3.6%	9 of 12
3.2.1.2	Solve problems using $F = \frac{1}{4\pi\epsilon_0} \frac{Qq}{r^2} = \frac{kQq}{r^2}$	Electromagnetism	3.6%	6 of 12
3.1.2.4	Determine the net force acting on an object on an inclined plane using vector analysis	Gravity and motion	3.2%	8 of 12
3.1.3.7	Solve problems involving the third law of planetary motion using $\frac{T_a^2}{r_a^3} = \frac{T_b^2}{r_b^3} = \frac{4\pi^2}{GM}$	Gravity and motion	3.1%	6 of 12
4.2.1.4	Describe the photoelectric effect in terms of the photon	Quantum Theory	2.9%	7 of 12
3.2.2.4	Solve problems involving the magnitude and direction of magnetic fields around a straight electric current-carrying wire and inside a solenoid using $B = \frac{\mu_0 I}{2\pi r}$ and $B = \mu_0 nI$	Electromagnetism	2.9%	5 of 12
3.1.2.7	Solve problems involving objects undergoing uniform circular motion at a constant speed using $v = \frac{2\pi r}{T}$ and $a_c = \frac{v^2}{r}$	Gravity and motion	2.5%	4 of 12
4.1.1.10	Solve problems involving time dilations, length contraction and relativistic momentum using $t = \frac{t_0}{\sqrt{(1-\frac{v^2}{c^2})}}$ , $L = L_0\sqrt{(1-\frac{v^2}{c^2})}$ , $p_v = \frac{m_0v}{\sqrt{(1-\frac{v^2}{c^2})}}$ and $\Delta E = \Delta mc^2$	Special relativity	2.5%	6 of 12
3.2.3.6	Solve problems involving electromagnetic induction using $emf = -\frac{N\Delta(BA_\perp)}{\Delta t}$ , $emf = -N\frac{\Delta\phi}{\Delta t}$ , $I_p V_p = I_s V_s$ and $\frac{V_p}{V_s} = \frac{N_p}{N_s}$	Electromagnetism	2.3%	7 of 12
3.1.2.1	Solve problems involving force due to gravity (weight) and mass using $F_g = mg$	Gravity and motion	2.2%	5 of 12
3.1.3.4	Solve problems involving the gravitational field strength at a distance from an object using $g = \frac{F}{m} = \frac{GM}{r^2}$	Gravity and motion	2.2%	4 of 12
3.2.1.5	Solve problems involving the work done when an electric charge is moved in an electric field using $V = \frac{\Delta U}{q}$	Electromagnetism	2.2%	4 of 12
4.2.1.11	Interpret data related to the photoelectric effect	Quantum Theory	2.1%	5 of 12

These 18 dot points carry 60.4% of the paper marks between them. Another 50 assessed dot points share the rest, and 8 of the 76 externally assessable dot points have not been assessed in any of these 12 papers. Content that has not appeared is still examinable.

What has moved between papers

Comparing the 2020 to 2022 papers with the 2023 to 2025 papers, two topics have moved by more than 3.0 percentage points.

Topic	2020 to 2022 share	2023 to 2025 share	Movement
Gravity and motion	39.1%	34.8%	down 4.3 points
Special relativity	6.7%	11.1%	up 4.4 points

How the papers are built

Short answer carries 77.8% of the marks across these 12 papers.

Question type	Share of marks	Marks	Parts
Short answer	77.8%	421	129
Multiple choice	22.2%	120	120

Verb	Share of marks	Marks	Parts
determine	30.9%	167	40
calculate	23.1%	125	37
explain	10.0%	54	18
describe	6.7%	36	12
identify	2.8%	15	9
predict	1.5%	8	2
contrast	1.1%	6	3
draw	1.1%	6	3

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: Gravity and motion, Electromagnetism, Quantum Theory, Special relativity and The Standard Model. For how students actually score on this content, read QCE Physics hardest topics, and for the full question bank start at QCE Physics.

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.