Computer Science carries the code 0478, and Cambridge lists a 2026 to 2028 syllabus for it. Cambridge also has a separate page for Computer Science 0265. The later course is a different document, so what applies to a later exam year is not a requirement for your year until Cambridge and your centre say so.
This page sits in the exam guide section. It does not state the content of the later course. It shows where to read it and how to keep the two sets of advice apart.
Who is responsible for what?
- Cambridge publishes each syllabus and each advance notice, and states the years covered.
- Your exam centre or school enters you for one exam year and tells you the programming arrangements that apply.
- You and your family label notes by year, so later-year ideas do not slip into current revision.
We are a tuition team, not an exam centre. Your centre handles entry, and the two codes are separate. We teach to the code and year you confirm.
What should you check, step by step?
- Get your exam year from your centre and write it on the front of your file.
- Open the 0478 page and the 2026 to 2028 syllabus if your year falls in that range.
- Open the 0265 page and read its notices and syllabus document for later years.
- Label every note with the year range of the document it came from.
- Read the assessment section of each document, including what it says about how programming is examined.
- Check the Cambridge syllabus changes page for notices.
The syllabus-version comparison viewer is built so that a 2029 change cannot appear as a requirement for an earlier year. It shows each verified change with its source and year.
A short worked example
Wei Jie finds a video saying “the paper now uses only one programming language”. He asks himself two questions. Which exam year does the video mean, and what does my syllabus say?
He opens the syllabus for his year and reads the sections on programming and pseudocode. The video’s claim is either there or it is not, and he notes the page number. If the sources do not match, he labels the video “later year, not for me yet” and keeps practising from his own document.
What are the common mistakes?
Projecting later requirements onto your paper. Label by year, then check the source.
Mixing up Computer Science and ICT. They are separate subjects. See the language route check for the same habit applied to other near-identical code pairs.
Treating a code change as a rename. Read the document, and do not rely on the title.
Where next?
The Computer Science learning guide gives the topic map, and the 0478 code page summarises the code. If you want to trace algorithms and debug repeated mistakes with a teacher, see Computer Science tuition.
If a source does not state its year, do not use it to decide what you must learn. Confirm it against your year’s syllabus first, then decide whether it belongs in your revision.