AQA A-Level Coursework (NEA) Guide
Split into 5 parts (Sec ons A – E) this piece of work is worth 50% of your grade and is crucial
to ge ng a good grade in Design & Technology.
General Advice for AQA DT Coursework (NEA)
Keep the mark scheme open at all mes → The NEA is assessed against specific
criteria. If you don’t have the mark scheme in front of you, it’s easy to miss marks.
Constantly check: “Have I shown evidence for this?”. Start by looking at the top-band
descrip on and think: “Have I covered all of these points?”
Don’t fall behind deadlines → Catching up is much harder than staying on track.
Break the NEA into smaller milestones and s ck to them. Li le and o en is be er
than last-minute panics.
Back up your work → Keep a copy on cloud storage (Google Drive, OneDrive,
Dropbox, etc.). Never rely only on a USB or school computer. A regular backup could
save your grade.
Work in PowerPoint (A3 page size) → PowerPoint is easy to use for layout, images,
and text boxes. Set the slide size to A3 (420mm × 297mm) from the start so pages
export neatly for prin ng.
Advice - Sec on A: Iden fy and inves gate design possibili es (20
marks)
Back up your design contexts with numbers (quan ta ve data), not just words
Instead of saying: “Lots of elderly people struggle with arthri s.”, say:
“Arthri s affects over 10 million people in the UK (Arthri s Research UK, 2023). This
highlights the need to design kitchen utensils with larger, ergonomic grips to support those
with reduced dexterity.”
Triangulate your research (use mul ple methods)
Combine primary research (surveys, interviews, user tes ng, measuring exis ng
products) with secondary research (market trends, sustainability reports, government
standards).
Do real tes ng & disassembly
Take apart an old product, test joints, measure wall thickness, weigh components.
This gives you prac cal data that’s gold dust compared to generic internet research.
Link research back to user & constraints
A er each research point, write one line: “This means my product must…”.
E.g. “Survey data shows 65% prefer eco-friendly materials → my design must priori se
recyclable or biodegradable op ons.”
Example Page Checklist:
Ini al design contexts (3 different ones usually set by teacher)
Mind maps (use LucidSpark so ware)
Ini al client interview
Survey (10 ques ons asked)
Anthropometrics and Ergonomics research
Site Inves ga on & Measurements
Exis ng products (inves gate 4 minimum usually)
Disassembly (try find real life products)
Product specific research
Concept ideas (10 ini al sketches / ideas / concepts)
Advice - Sec on B: Producing a design brief and specifica on (10 marks)
Design brief is o en lacking
Design briefs should be technical, try to cover the following when crea ng one:
- Overview (what is your project / what is the scope)
- Objec ves (why is this project important / what are you trying to achieve)
- Target audience (who is this for? Be specific with age range)
- Budget (don’t say cheap, based on research set a target budget)
- Deliverables (what are you crea ng -> final prototype, technical drawings etc)
- Timeline (project management technique should go here)
Specifica on points must be measurable
e.g. “The product should be lightweight.” (what does lightweight mean? 1kg? 10kg?). Be
specific!
Example Page Checklist:
Design brief
Project management (Gannt chart / CPA or similar)
Specifica on (usually 1.5 pages)
*Top p – code your specifica on so you can easily refer to it in further sec ons (e.g. Form
point 1 is FM1)
Advice - Sec on C: Development of design proposals (25 marks)
Crea vity is o en lacking
• Students play it safe with boxy, basic designs. To score top marks, show risk-taking and
originality:
- Explore radically different concepts before refining.
- Use inspira on (biomimicry, architecture, other products) to push crea vity.
- Try features like moving parts, folding, adjustability, modularity.
- Document even failed risky ideas → shows experimenta on.
Annota ons o en lack reference to specifica on
• Students annotate sketches/models but don’t explain why design decisions were made
in rela on to their spec:
- Always link every annota on to the design brief or specifica on.
- Example: “I’ve increased the handle diameter to 35mm to match ergonomic data in
spec point 3, making it easier for users with reduced grip strength.”
- Explain material, size, mechanism, or form choices in context of measurable
spec points.
- This jus fies design thinking and scores higher marks for reasoning.
- Use spec coding if you have it when annota ng
Example Page Checklist:
Design idea pages (5 design ideas out of ini al 10 in Sec on A)
Design idea developments
Modelling pages (3 minimum)
Final design idea in isometric
Orthographic and exploded drawings
Manufacturing specifica on with QC checks
Project management page (including a Gan Chart or CPA)
Advice - Sec on D: Development of design prototypes (25 marks)
This is the fun sec on – the making.
For this sec on, all I recommend is to record the following with images:
- Record of modifica ons made following user tes ng, third-party feedback, or
evalua on.
- Record evidence of Quality Control (QC) checks applied throughout the
process.
- Record evidence of Health & Safety (H&S) precau ons being considered and
used.
Example Page Checklist:
10 – 20 making pages with clear chronological shown (as well as images / QC Checks
/ H&S considera ons)
Advice - Sec on E: Analysing and evalua ng (20 marks)
Evalua ons o en lack depth and reference to specifica on/brief
• Students some mes describe their prototype instead of analysing it:
- Always link evalua ons back to the design brief and specifica on points.
- Example: “Prototype weighs 6.2 kg which is above spec point 4 (<5 kg), meaning it
fails the portability requirement. A lighter frame material such as aluminium should
be considered.”
- Be cri cal — it’s prototype 1, mistakes and limita ons are expected.
- Jus fy what works well, what doesn’t, and how it could be improved.
- Discuss how the prototype could be developed for batch/industrial
manufacture.
Lack of tes ng or weak tes ng evidence
• Tes ng must be planned, focused and measurable:
- Example: “Stress test showed the hinge failed a er 250 cycles. Spec point 7
requires 500 cycles → redesign hinge using stainless steel pin.”
- Use user trials and third-party feedback, not just personal opinion.
- Document how test results changed your design.
Not being cri cal enough of mistakes
• Students o en write evalua ons that are too posi ve:
- Admit flaws honestly and suggest realis c modifica ons.
- Example: “The joints misaligned during manufacture due to inaccurate jig setup.
Next itera on should use CNC-cut jig for higher precision.”
- Cri cal reflec on shows maturity and scores higher.
Example Page Checklist:
Cri cal analysis of final prototype and client feedback
Tes ng against specifica on (minimum 2 pages)
Modifica ons to be made
Produc on method details (“full considera on provided for how the prototype could
be developed for different produc on methods”)
Finally, if you are stuck or need advice, please reach out to us
(designtechbase@[Link]). We will be happy to help!