The assessment route for IGCSE ICT is set by Cambridge in the syllabus for your exam year, and your school or exam centre confirms how it applies to you. This page does not list paper numbers, durations or weightings, because those details belong to the official document and can change between years.
What it gives you is a method for finding every fact you need from the right source, and a checklist to fill in once.
Who is responsible for what?
Knowing the split saves wasted messages.
| Question | Who answers it |
|---|---|
| What does the syllabus cover and how is it assessed? | Cambridge, in the syllabus for your year |
| Which syllabus and exam year am I entered for? | Your school or exam centre |
| Which software and version are used for practical work? | Your school or exam centre |
| Are there access arrangements I may use? | Your exam centre, with Cambridge |
| When are entries, exams and results? | Your exam centre |
| How do I practise the skills and explain the theory? | You, your school teacher and, if you choose, a tuition teacher |
Your exam centre handles entry.
How do I read the assessment section?
Open the Cambridge 0417 page and find the syllabus document for your exam year. The 2026 to 2028 document is linked under sources, so check that your year falls inside it, because the page is the authority and this site is a study aid. The syllabus and exam-year navigator builds a checking list and flags a year you should confirm, instead of guessing a profile.
Read three parts in this order.
- Aims and assessment objectives: what skills are being tested and whether theory and practical work are treated separately.
- Scheme of assessment: the list of components, how each is taken and how marks are shared.
- Content: the topics under each heading, which you can compare with the ICT learning guide.
Worked example: filling in the checklist
Copy the table below into your notes and fill each row from the named source. The right-hand entries here are made-up placeholders to show the format, so replace them with your own facts.
| Item | Where to find it | Example of how to record it |
|---|---|---|
| Entry code | Your exam centre | “0417 (confirmed by centre)” |
| Exam year and series | Your exam centre | “Year: ____ ; series: ____” |
| Components | Cambridge syllabus, assessment section | “Copied exactly from syllabus page ___” |
| Theory versus practical | Cambridge syllabus | “Practical tasks done on a computer: yes or no, quote the page” |
| Software and version | Your ICT teacher | “Word processor: ____ ; spreadsheet: ____ ; database: ____” |
| File rules | Your exam centre | “Naming, formats and saving: ____” |
| Access arrangements | Your exam centre | “Asked on ____ ; answer: ____” |
The “where to find it” column is the lesson. If you cannot fill a row from a named source, the row stays blank and you ask the person in the middle column.
Which mistakes come from skipping this step?
A student revises a database topic for a practical component that their year does not include, or practises on one product when the centre supplies another. Neither is a knowledge failure. Both are scope failures, and ten minutes of checking prevents them.
Another common slip is trusting a forum post about “the paper”. Different years, components and centres can differ. Use the post only as a prompt for a question to your teacher.
How do I turn the route into study?
Match each component with the modules that feed it. The concept modules, from hardware, software and systems to safety, security and effects, support explanation work.
The file, document, data, presentation, spreadsheet and web modules support practical work, and practical workflow and software versions connects them. Then plan your time with the study route guide and keep your gaps visible with the revision guide.
The 0417 code and exam-year guide covers how the code and exam year fit together.
Can a teacher help with assessment questions?
A tuition teacher can explain what a task is asking and how an answer is built, but the rules for your exam come from Cambridge and your centre. Online one-to-one ICT tuition starts with a paid one-hour trial at the assigned teacher’s confirmed rate, from RM80, and lessons can be shaped around the route you have confirmed.