Geography Paper 2 is today. Some students have been drilling Nigeria data for two weeks. Others sat down this morning and realised their Bristol case study consists of two sentences, neither of which contains a number. Different situations, same paper.

This post covers what Paper 2 actually tests on each board, where the Level 3 marks are, and what a sensible final-day review looks like. The geography revision that works in the last few hours is targeted, not broad.

What Paper 2 tests, by board

Paper 2 is the human geography paper across all three major boards. The core themes are similar: cities, development, and resources. But the case studies, section structure, and mark allocation differ enough that it is worth checking your exact specification before you start revising.

AQA Geography Paper 2 (8035/2)

1h 30m, 88 marks. Three sections, all compulsory. Section A: Urban Issues and Challenges. Section B: The Changing Economic World. Section C: The Challenge of Resource Management (global overview, then one in-depth topic of food, water or energy).

Case studies are heavily examined. AQA expects named UK city (Bristol), named NEE (Nigeria) and named LIC or HIC for comparison. Answers without named data cap at Level 1 on 6-mark and 9-mark questions.

Urban issues: what Bristol questions actually ask

Every AQA Paper 2 urban section has a question about a named UK city. Bristol is the most commonly used case study in schools, though some use Manchester or Birmingham. Whatever city you studied, the question structure is the same: what is the urban challenge, what has been done about it, and does it work for everyone?

The Temple Quarter regeneration project in Bristol is the kind of specific detail that separates Level 2 from Level 3 answers. Temple Quarter is a former industrial and rail area near Bristol Temple Meads station. The regeneration plan involves 10,000 new homes and a new university campus. Students who write that know the project. Students who also write that average house prices in Bristol rose 69% between 2012 and 2022 (according to Land Registry data) demonstrate the tension that makes the question interesting.

Case studies with named data score Level 3. Case studies without named data cap at Level 1.

Worked example

Evaluate the success of urban regeneration in a UK city you have studied. [9 marks]

1Name the project clearly: Temple Quarter regeneration, Bristol. Target: former industrial land near Temple Meads station, earmarked for 10,000 new homes and a university campus.
2State what it achieved: new employment, improved transport links, derelict land brought back into use. Quantify where possible: planning approved for 10,000 homes, new university quarter to attract 10,000+ students.
3Introduce the counterpoint: gentrification. Average Bristol house prices rose 69% between 2012 and 2022. Original residents on lower incomes are often priced out of the regenerated area before it is complete.
4Judgement for the final paragraph: regeneration succeeds at physical renewal but frequently fails to benefit the original community. Success depends on who you ask and over what timescale.

✕ Loses marks

"Regeneration makes places nicer but some people get moved out." This is Level 1. No city named, no project named, no data, no developed argument.

✓ Wins marks

"Temple Quarter in Bristol plans 10,000 new homes, but house prices in Bristol rose 69% 2012-2022 (Land Registry). Original residents are priced out before the project is complete. Regeneration succeeds as physical renewal but often fails the existing community."

Sustainable urban living questions test whether you know specific strategies: renewable energy in new builds, sustainable transport (tram and cycling infrastructure in Bristol), urban green space, and waste reduction. These are not complicated, but you need one concrete named example per strategy to move past Level 1.

✕ Loses marks

"Cities need to use less energy and have more green spaces." Vague. No named strategy, no named place, no scale.

✓ Wins marks

"Bristol invested in the Bristol Cable and cycling infrastructure as part of its sustainable transport strategy. The city aims to be carbon neutral by 2030, targeting a 50% increase in cycling mode share by 2036."

The changing economic world: Nigeria data you must know

The development section on AQA Paper 2 has three parts: development indicators (HDI, GDP, literacy rate and so on), a case study of a Newly Emerging Economy (Nigeria for most schools), and a case study of how the UK economy has changed over time.

Development indicator questions are worth 1-4 marks each and test recall. The pattern that earns marks is: name the indicator, say what it measures, give a value for two countries and draw a comparison. Students who write "Nigeria's HDI is 0.548 compared to the UK's 0.929" are writing at Level 2. Students who add that HDI combines health, education and income (not just wealth) are writing at Level 3.

Worked example

Compare the level of development of Nigeria and the UK using development indicators. [4 marks]

1HDI: Nigeria 0.548, UK 0.929. HDI combines life expectancy, years of schooling and GNI per capita. Nigeria is classified as medium human development; the UK is very high.
2GDP per capita: Nigeria approximately $2,100 (2023), UK approximately $46,100. The UK is over 20 times higher.
3Note that GDP alone does not capture inequality. In Nigeria, 62% of the population lived on under $1.25 per day in 2020 despite the economy growing at 6.9% per year from 2000 to 2014. GDP growth and poverty reduction are not the same thing.
4Conclusion: Nigeria is a Newly Emerging Economy (NEE), not simply "less developed." Use the correct classification in your answer.

For the Nigeria case study, the detail that separates good answers from excellent ones is the tension between economic growth and inequality. Nigeria's economy grew rapidly (sixth largest in Africa by GDP in 2014, with oil accounting for roughly 90% of export revenue), but that growth was not evenly distributed. The Niger Delta communities near the oil extraction sites experienced environmental damage without proportionate economic benefit. Knowing one or two specific named examples of that tension is what moves answers into Level 3.

Worked example

Explain how the multiplier effect can lead to economic development in a country. [4 marks]

1A new factory or investment creates direct jobs. Example: a manufacturing plant employs 200 workers.
2Those 200 workers receive wages and spend them locally, on food, housing, transport and services. This creates demand for local businesses.
3Local businesses expand to meet that demand, hiring another 80 service workers (shops, restaurants, mechanics). Those 80 workers also spend their wages locally, creating perhaps another 30 jobs.
4The original 200 jobs ultimately generate 310+ jobs through the multiplier effect. Investment in one sector ripples through the whole local economy.

✕ Loses marks

"Nigeria is developing because it has lots of oil." This scores 1 mark. No classification, no growth data, no named tension.

✓ Wins marks

"Nigeria is a Newly Emerging Economy (NEE). GDP grew 6.9% per year 2000-2014, but 62% still lived on under $1.25/day in 2020. Growth was concentrated in oil (90% of exports), while Niger Delta communities experienced environmental damage without proportionate benefit."

Population pyramids regularly appear in the changing economic world section. Examiners expect you to read the shape and connect it to a named country's development stage.

Worked example

Describe and explain the differences between the population pyramids of Nigeria and the UK.

1Nigeria: wide base, tapering quickly toward the top. Wide base = high birth rate and young population. Narrow top = lower life expectancy and higher mortality rates in older age groups. This is typical of an NEE or LIC.
2UK: narrow base, relatively even width through working-age groups, widening slightly in 60-80 age range before tapering. Narrow base = lower birth rate. Even width = consistent survival rates. Wider older section = ageing population.
3Explanation: Nigeria has high birth rates because of lower access to contraception and family planning, lower female education levels, and children as economic assets in agricultural households. UK birth rates fell as education, healthcare and economic conditions improved.
4Link to development: UK's ageing population creates pressure on pensions and healthcare. Nigeria's young population could be a demographic dividend if employment is created, or a source of instability if it is not.

✕ Loses marks

"Less developed means poor." The term "less developed" is not wrong but it is imprecise. Examiners reward classification.

✓ Wins marks

"Use LIC (Low Income Country), NEE (Newly Emerging Economy), or HIC (High Income Country). Nigeria is an NEE: it has a growing economy and rising incomes but significant inequality. The UK is an HIC."

Resource management: the topic you choose

The resource management section has two parts. The first is a short global overview covering food, water and energy security at the world scale (this is compulsory). The second is a longer in-depth study of one resource: food, water or energy. Your school chose which one you studied.

The global overview section tests recall: what is food/water/energy security, why is demand rising, why is supply uneven. These are short-answer questions and the marks are for naming specific facts, not general statements.

✕ Loses marks

"We need to use less water because there is not enough." No strategy named, no example given, no scale.

✓ Wins marks

"Water transfer schemes move water from areas of surplus to areas of deficit. China's South-North Water Transfer Project moves 44.8 billion cubic metres per year from the Yangtze River basin to northern China. Other strategies include water recycling, desalination (e.g. Saudi Arabia) and water metering to reduce demand."

For the in-depth topic, the examiner expects three things: the problem or challenge, the strategy being used to address it, and a named example with specific data. Students who cover all three are writing at Level 3. Students who cover two are usually at Level 2.

Worked example

Assess the effectiveness of strategies to increase food security. [9 marks]

1Introduce the challenge: food insecurity affects approximately 733 million people globally (FAO, 2023). Causes include rapid population growth, climate change reducing crop yields, and water scarcity.
2Strategy 1 (technology): the Green Revolution introduced high-yield varieties (HYVs) of wheat and rice in the 1960s-70s. India's wheat production rose from 11 million tonnes (1960) to 75 million tonnes (2000). Effective for production, but required chemical inputs and irrigation that smaller farmers could not afford.
3Strategy 2 (local/sustainable): agroforestry and permaculture reduce the need for inputs. The Sahel region's "farmer-managed natural regeneration" (FMNR) programme in Niger helped 5 million hectares return to productive farmland by allowing trees to regenerate alongside crops.
4Judgement: technology-led strategies increase production but can increase inequality. Local, low-input strategies are more sustainable but scale more slowly. Effectiveness depends on which problem you are solving: yield, sustainability or equity.

Map skills and grid references (these come up every year)

Paper 2 geography revision often focuses entirely on case studies and ignores the skills questions. Those skills questions are worth 4-8 marks and the answers are either right or wrong: no partial credit, no developed-argument marks.

Six-figure grid references come up almost every sitting. Students drop these marks because they reverse the easting and northing, or they estimate the tenths-of-a-square incorrectly.

Worked example

Give the six-figure grid reference for the church symbol on the map extract. The symbol is in grid square 34/67, two-tenths of the way across the square and eight-tenths of the way up.

1The four-figure grid reference is 3467. Easting (left to right) = 34. Northing (bottom to top) = 67. Always easting before northing.
2Add the tenths for the easting: two-tenths of the way across grid square 34 gives easting 342.
3Add the tenths for the northing: eight-tenths of the way up grid square 67 gives northing 678.
4Six-figure grid reference: 342 678. Read the easting digits first (342), then the northing digits (678).

✕ Loses marks

Writes northing first: 678 342. This is the wrong order. Eastings always come before northings. The mnemonic is "along the corridor, then up the stairs."

✓ Wins marks

Writes easting first: 342 678. Along the corridor (easting) before up the stairs (northing). Every time.

What to do today and in the last few days

Geography Paper 2 is today for most students. If you are reading this on the morning of the exam, the most useful thing you can do is spend 20 minutes with your case study data: Nigeria figures, Bristol project name and one or two statistics, and the name and data for your in-depth resource topic.

If you have a few days left, the pattern is the same as every subject: one timed past paper section per day, mark immediately with the mark scheme, identify the three things you got wrong, and fix those three things before tomorrow. Re-reading notes at this stage is not revision. Testing yourself is revision.

Geography GCSE revision that works in the final days is case study data, command word practice (describe vs explain vs assess vs evaluate all require different structures), and skills practice for grid references, graphs and maps. Those three things cover the majority of marks on Paper 2.

✕ Loses marks

Spends the last hour reading the textbook chapter on urbanisation again. Feels prepared. Cannot name a single specific regeneration project in the exam.

✓ Wins marks

Spends 20 minutes writing out the Nigeria case study from memory: NEE classification, 6.9% GDP growth 2000-2014, 62% below $1.25/day, oil = 90% exports, Niger Delta tension. Then does two timed 9-mark questions.

If you use GCSE Geography revision on PrepWise, the adaptive quiz flags which case study details you keep getting wrong before you sit down in the exam hall. But the principle works without an app too: test yourself on the data, not on whether you can recognise it when someone reads it to you.

10 minutes on Bristol data. 10 minutes on Nigeria data. 10 minutes on your resource topic. That is the geography revision that still moves marks at this point.

GCSE Geography Paper 2: what to revise (urban issues, economic world, resources)

What Paper 2 tests, by board

AQA Geography Paper 2 (8035/2)

Edexcel Geography Paper 2 (1GA0/2)

OCR B Geography Paper 2 (J384/02)

Urban issues: what Bristol questions actually ask

The changing economic world: Nigeria data you must know

Resource management: the topic you choose

Map skills and grid references (these come up every year)

What to do today and in the last few days

Related reading

See all Geography Paper 2 exam questions with model answers