CIE IGCSE Geography (0460) (Cambridge International IGCSE Geography)

Cambridge (CIE) IGCSE Geography (0460)

Your complete guide to what you will study, how you will be assessed and the coursework option. This revision note covers the syllabus for first exams in June 2027.

All candidates take three components: Paper 1, Paper 2 and either Component 3 (Coursework) or Paper 4 (Geographical Investigations).

NOTE: Your school chooses either Component 3 or Paper 4 — you do not sit both.

Paper 1: Physical Geography

• You will study five topics:

  • Changing river environments
  • Changing coastal environments
  • Changing ecosystems
  • Tectonic hazards
  • Climate change

What to expect in the exam

• The paper is split into two sections

  • Section A is one compulsory question worth 25 marks
  • Section B offers a choice of three structured questions, of which you answer two, each worth 25 marks (50 marks total)

• Structured questions with a mix of short-answer and extended-response items

• Some questions are resource-based (photographs, map extracts, satellite images, drawings, diagrams, graphs, text extracts and tables of statistics)

• You will need to refer to detailed specific examples for named rivers, coastlines, ecosystems, tectonic events and climate change responses

  • Your teacher chooses these examples, but you need to be able to name them and use them in your answers

• All resources are designed so you do not need prior knowledge of the place shown

  • Everything you need is in the resource

Paper 2: Human Geography

• You will study five topics:

  • Changing populations
  • Changing towns and cities
  • Development
  • Changing economies
  • Resource provision

What to expect in the exam

• The paper is split into two sections:

  • Section A is one compulsory question worth 25 marks
  • Section B offers a choice of three structured questions, of which you answer two, each worth 25 marks (50 marks total)

• Same question style as Paper 1: structured short-answer and extended-response items, some based on resources

• Cambridge uses the terms low-income countries (LICs), middle-income countries (MICs) and high-income countries (HICs) to give context to examples in the question paper

• You will need detailed specific examples for each topic

Component 3: Coursework (school choice)

• A centre-based fieldwork assignment of 1800–2200 words, set by your teacher
• Marked by your school against the Cambridge coursework criteria, then externally moderated by Cambridge
• Based on fieldwork you have carried out yourself, following the route to geographical enquiry:

1. Formulating aims and hypotheses
2. Collecting data
3. Processing and presenting data
4. Analysing data and drawing conclusions
5. Evaluating the enquiry

Paper 4: Geographical Investigations (school option)

• A 1 hour 30 minute written paper with two compulsory questions, each made up of short-answer and extended-response items
• Some items are based on source material
• Tests the same fieldwork enquiry skills as Component 3, but using data Cambridge provides — so you do not have to carry out your own fieldwork

Question types

• Across Papers 1, 2 and 4, you will answer:

  • Short-answer questions — define, identify, state, give, calculate, plot
  • Resource interpretation questions — describe, compare, suggest
  • Extended-response questions — explain, discuss, evaluate, "to what extent…?", "how far do you agree…?"

• The sub-marks for each part-question are printed on the paper

  • Use them as a guide to how much to write and how to manage your time

Geographical skills

• Geographical skills are tested across all three components. You will need to be confident in:

  • Cartographic skills
  • Graphical skills
  • GIS and image skills
  • Mathematical skills
  • Fieldwork skills

• All resources and exam papers use metres and kilometres for height and distance, degrees Celsius for temperature, and millimetres for rainfall

  • Questions may also include references to latitude or longitude.

• Equipment you must have in the exam (Papers 1, 2 and 4): a pencil, eraser, ruler, protractor and calculator, plus a sheet of plain paper for measuring distance or assisting with cross-sections.

Assessment objectives

• The exams cover three assessment objectives (AOs)

Assessment objective weighting across the papers

Key terminology

• In each section of the Cambridge (CIE) IGCSE Geography revision notes, you will find a list of the key terms and definitions for the topic

• There are also a few terms that come up across the whole course, which are worth memorising now:

  • LIC — Low-Income Country
  • MIC — Middle-Income Country
  • HIC — High-Income Country
  • HDI — Human Development Index, a composite measure combining income, life expectancy and education
  • GNP, GDP and GNI — different measures of a country's economic output, used as economic indicators of development
  • TNC — Transnational Corporation
  • DTM — Demographic Transition Model

• Cambridge recognises that classifying countries is not always meaningful

  • The same country can fall into different categories depending on whether you're using economic measures, the HDI, or another composite index
  • You should be ready to recognise the limitations of any single development indicator

Command words

Cambridge IGCSE Geography uses a defined set of command words. Knowing exactly what each one is asking for is one of the easiest ways to pick up marks.

Assess — Make an informed judgement.

Calculate — Work out from given facts, figures or information.

Compare — Identify or comment on similarities and/or differences.

Define — Give the precise meaning.

Describe — State the points of a topic. Give the characteristics and main features.

Devise — Create a questionnaire or another way of collecting information to meet specific requirements.

Discuss — Write about an issue or topic in depth in a structured way.

Estimate — Use judgement to give a unit value to a distance or area.

Evaluate — Judge or calculate the quality, importance, amount or value of something.

Explain — Set out the purposes or reasons. Show why or how something happens, supported by evidence.

Give — Produce an answer from a given source or from memory.

Identify — Name, select or recognise.

Justify — Support your case with evidence or argument.

Locate — Indicate the position of a place, feature or entity from or in a resource.

Plan — Create a method to obtain or present information (such as a questionnaire) to meet specific requirements.

Plot — Mark point(s) on a graph, diagram or map.

Predict — Suggest what may happen based on the available information.

Sketch — Make a simple freehand drawing showing the key features, taking care over proportions.

State — Express in clear terms.

Suggest — Apply your knowledge and understanding to situations where there is a range of valid answers, in order to put forward proposals or considerations.

You may also see longer command phrases such as "How far do you agree…?" and "To what extent…?" — these expect you to weigh up evidence on both sides and reach a clear judgement.