Which WACE Physics past paper do students score lowest on?

The 2025 Exam, averaging 29.8% across 75 marked attempts on AusGrader. The 2020 Exam is the highest on 47.4%.

Which WACE Physics dot points give the best return on revision time?

3.3.2.1 (3.1 marks at risk per 100), 3.3.1.3 (2.9 marks at risk per 100) and 4.3.2.1 (2.5 marks at risk per 100). Marks at risk combines a dot point's share of paper marks with the marks students drop on it, so it ranks by recoverable marks and not by score alone.

How many attempts is each WACE Physics figure based on?

23,406 marked attempts overall, with the per-row count shown in every table. Any cut below 50 attempts is withheld instead of published.

Do these averages show how the SCSA cohort performed?

No. They are AusGrader users' marked attempts, a self-selected group practising when they chose to and often without exam timing. They corroborate what SCSA publishes about this subject and do not replace it.

WACE Physics hardest topics

Across 23,406 marked attempts on AusGrader, WACE Physics students average 61.4% on questions taken from board external papers. Calculate is both the lowest scoring command verb on 47.9% and the costliest, because it carries 44.5% of the paper on its own. These are self-selected users practising when they chose to, not the SCSA cohort under exam conditions.

How to read these numbers

The figures are AusGrader users' marked attempts, not SCSA results. They corroborate what the board publishes about this subject and do not stand in for it.
Any cut with fewer than 50 attempts is withheld, which on this page is 2 subtopics, 27 dot points and 19 verbs. Every figure shown carries its attempt count.
Scores cover questions mapped to the WACE Physics syllabus from any board's external papers, which is why the sample is larger than the 6 SCSA papers alone. The paper table below is the exception and uses SCSA papers only.
Internal assessment and school-uploaded exams are excluded throughout, so these averages differ from the ones on WACE Physics performance stats, which count every attempt.

Score by past paper

Year	Exam	Average	Attempts
2025	Exam	29.8%	75
2024	Exam	37.8%	67
2023	Exam	39.6%	81
2022	Exam	37.6%	124
2021	Exam	35.0%	55
2020	Exam	47.4%	85

The lowest average belongs to the 2025 Exam on 29.8% from 75 attempts, and the highest to the 2020 Exam on 47.4% from 85 attempts. A paper's average reflects both how hard it was and who chose to sit it, so treat the spread as a guide to which papers make demanding practice.

Score by question type

Question type	Average	Attempts
Short answer	51.8%	1,970
Multiple choice	64.2%	21,436

Score by unit

Unit	Average	Attempts
Unit 3: Gravity and relativity	59.8%	9,127
Unit 4: Electromagnetism and modern physics	62.5%	14,577

An attempt counts once per unit, so a question assessed across two units appears in both rows and the column adds to slightly more than 23,406.

The priority list: heavy topics with low scores

Topic	Share of marks	Average	Attempts	Marks at risk
Science Understanding (Unit 4)	48.2%	62.6%	13,941	18.0
Science Understanding (Unit 3)	32.4%	59.6%	7,197	13.1
Science Inquiry Skills (Unit 4)	13.2%	60.1%	1,387	5.3
Science Inquiry Skills (Unit 3)	4.4%	60.6%	3,157	1.7
Science as a Human Endeavour (Unit 4)	1.5%	68.5%	441	0.5
Science as a Human Endeavour (Unit 3)	0.4%	55.3%	73	0.2

Science Understanding (Unit 4) tops the list on 18.0 marks at risk per 100 paper marks, 4.9 ahead of Science Understanding (Unit 3).

The same cut at subtopic level

Subtopic	Share of marks	Average	Attempts	Marks at risk
Electromagnetism	18.7%	60.2%	7,576	7.4
Particle accelerators	11.7%	53.8%	858	5.4
Wave particle duality and the quantum theory (Science Understanding, Unit 4)	15.1%	67.4%	5,531	4.9
Gravity	11.5%	58.2%	4,254	4.8
Static equilibrium and centre of mass	8.4%	48.6%	344	4.3
Circular motion in horizontal and vertical plane	7.6%	55.5%	1,618	3.4
Relativity	4.8%	69.0%	1,718	1.5
Wave particle duality and the quantum theory (Science as a Human Endeavour, Unit 4)	1.1%	68.4%	441	0.3
Gravity and motion	0.4%	55.3%	73	0.2

The same cut at dot-point level

Dot point	Content	Share of marks	Average	Attempts	Marks at risk
3.3.2.1	when an object experiences a net force perpendicular to its velocity, it will undergo circular motion, including uniform circular motion on a horizontal plane; circular motion involving ‘banking’, e.g. objects moving around a banked track, aeroplanes and birds turning in flight; vertical circular motion, both uniform and non-uniform; apparent weight of objects undergoing circular motion This includes applying the relationships $v = \frac{2\pi r}{T}$ $a_c = \frac{v^2}{r}$ $F_c = ma_c = \frac{mv^2}{r}$	7.0%	56.2%	1,612	3.1
3.3.1.3	for a rigid body to be in equilibrium, the sum of the forces and the sum of the moments must be zero, including applying the relationships $\sum F = 0$ $\tau = rF\sin\theta$ $\sum \tau = 0$	5.8%	49.7%	320	2.9
4.3.2.1	electric and magnetic fields are used in high-energy particle accelerators to control the motion of charged particles, including applying the relationships $E = \frac{F}{q} = \frac{\Delta V}{d}$ $\Delta V = \frac{W}{q}$ $\frac{mv^2}{r} = qvB$ $a = \frac{\Delta v}{\Delta t} = \frac{v_f - v_i}{t_f - t_i}$ $v_f = v_i + a\Delta t$ $s = v_i\Delta t + \frac{1}{2}a\Delta t^2$ $v_f^2 = v_i^2 + 2as$ $p = mv$	5.6%	54.5%	272	2.5
3.3.3.7	projectile motion can be analysed quantitatively by treating the horizontal and vertical components of the motion independently, including applying the relationships $a = \frac{\Delta v}{\Delta t} = \frac{v_f - v_i}{t_f - t_i}$ $v_f = v_i + a\Delta t$ $s = v_i\Delta t + \frac{1}{2}a\Delta t^2$ $v_f^2 = v_i^2 + 2as$ $E_k = \frac{1}{2}mv^2$	5.2%	58.1%	1,410	2.2
4.3.3.8	on the atomic level, electromagnetic radiation is emitted or absorbed in discrete packets called photons. The energy of a photon $E$ is proportional to its frequency $f$ and momentum $p$ , including applying the relationships $c = f\lambda$ $E = hf = \frac{hc}{\lambda}$ $E = pc$	4.9%	59.1%	1,517	2.0
3.3.3.8	Newton’s law of universal gravitation is used to explain Kepler’s third law of planetary motion and to describe the motion of planets and other satellites, which is modelled as uniform circular motion, including deriving and applying the relationship $\frac{T^2}{r^3} = \frac{4\pi^2}{GM}$	2.9%	51.5%	911	1.4
3.3.4.4	motion can only be measured relative to an observer. Length and time are relative quantities that depend on the observer’s frame of reference, including applying the relationships $\ell' = \ell\sqrt{\left(1-\frac{v^2}{c^2}\right)}$ $\Delta t' = \frac{\Delta t}{\sqrt{\left(1-\frac{v^2}{c^2}\right)}}$ $u = \frac{u' + v}{1 + \frac{u'v}{c^2}}$ $u' = \frac{u - v}{1 - \frac{uv}{c^2}}$	4.0%	71.1%	1,186	1.2
4.1.0.13	select, use and interpret appropriate mathematical representations, including linear and non-linear graphs and algebraic relationships representing physical systems, to solve problems and make predictions	2.4%	53.9%	904	1.1
4.3.1.10	magnets, magnetic materials, moving charges and current-carrying wires experience a force in a magnetic field when they cut flux lines; this force is utilised in DC electric motors and particle accelerators, including applying the relationships $F = qvB\sin\theta$ where $\theta$ = angle between the field $B$ and the velocity $v$ and $F = I\ell B\sin\theta$ where $\theta$ = angle between the field $B$ and the conductor length $\ell$	3.2%	65.8%	1,558	1.1
4.3.2.3	the concept of mass–energy equivalence emerged from the theory of special relativity and explains the source of the energy produced in nuclear reactions. The mass of an object is constant and independent of its motion, including applying the relationship for total energy $E$ $E = \frac{mc^2}{\sqrt{\left(1-\frac{v^2}{c^2}\right)}}$	2.2%	50.3%	297	1.1
4.3.2.4	the total energy $E$ of a moving object is the sum of the energy due to its mass and kinetic energy, including applying the relationships $E_{\text{rest}} = mc^2$ $E_k = E - E_{\text{rest}}$	2.3%	54.9%	244	1.0
4.3.1.14	a changing magnetic flux induces a potential difference; this process of electromagnetic induction is used in DC and AC generators, including applying the relationships induced emf: $\varepsilon = -N\frac{\Delta\Phi}{\Delta t} = \frac{\Delta BA_\perp}{\Delta t}$ where $A_\perp$ = area perpendicular to the field $B$ AC generator $\text{emf}_{\max}$ : $\varepsilon_{\max} = 2N\ell vB = 2\pi NBAf$ ; $\varepsilon_{\text{rms}} = \frac{\varepsilon_{\max}}{\sqrt{2}}$	2.2%	57.9%	2,862	0.9
4.3.1.15	step-up and step-down transformers are used in large scale AC power distribution systems including applying the relationships $\frac{V_p}{V_s} = \frac{N_p}{N_s}$ $P = VI = I^2R = \frac{V^2}{R}$	2.5%	65.4%	1,018	0.9
4.3.2.2	relativistic momentum increases at high speed and prevents an object from reaching the speed of light, including applying the relationship $p = \frac{mv}{\sqrt{\left(1-\frac{v^2}{c^2}\right)}}$	1.7%	54.6%	294	0.8
4.3.3.9	the constant of proportionality, Planck’s constant, can be determined experimentally using the photoelectric effect, including applying the relationship $E_k = hf - \phi$ where $\phi$ = the work function of the surface	2.2%	66.5%	758	0.7
4.3.3.10	atoms of an element emit and absorb specific wavelengths of light that are unique to that element; this is the basis of spectral analysis, including applying the relationships $\Delta E = hf$ $E_2 - E_1 = hf$	1.8%	62.6%	730	0.7
3.3.3.3	a gravitational force on an object is due to the presence of a gravitational field, including applying the relationship $F_{\text{weight}} = mg$	1.7%	60.3%	497	0.7
4.3.3.12	on the atomic level, energy and matter exhibit the characteristics of both waves and particles. Young’s double-slit experiment is explained with a wave model but produces the same interference and diffraction patterns when one photon at a time or one electron at a time are passed through the slits, including applying the relationships $\lambda = \frac{h}{p}$ $E = pc$	2.4%	72.1%	1,318	0.7

Which command verbs cost the most marks

Verb	Share of marks	Average	Attempts	Marks at risk
calculate	44.5%	47.9%	744	23.2
explain	16.2%	57.0%	345	7.0
describe	3.4%	58.7%	114	1.4
show	2.1%	61.9%	64	0.8
determine	1.7%	58.1%	280	0.7

Calculate is both the lowest average at 47.9% and the costliest verb at 23.2 marks per 100, because it carries 44.5% of the paper. Each verb above is practised in the WACE Physics question bank, where the marking criteria show what SCSA expects the answer to do.

What this does not measure

Where to practise

Work the priority list from the top: Science Understanding (Unit 4) and Science Understanding (Unit 3) first, then the dot points above. Each topic page holds real SCSA questions with marking criteria attached. For what the papers actually cover, read WACE Physics most tested topics.

Syllabus and assessment material referenced in this guide is used under licence, © School Curriculum and Standards Authority. See our SCSA licensing notice. The School Curriculum and Standards Authority does not endorse this publication or product.