Cambridge IGCSE 0478 · 2026 to 2028 syllabus · Live online · Worldwide

Working Python in Paper 2 scores zero. The syllabus says so.

Cambridge requires solutions to coding problems in Paper 2 to be written in pseudocode, and states that solutions written in programming code will not be awarded marks. There is exactly one exception, the 15-mark scenario question, where pseudocode or Python, Visual Basic or Java are accepted and nothing else is. So a student who is genuinely good at programming can lose most of the algorithm marks by doing the thing they are best at. We teach Cambridge pseudocode as a language in its own right, from the first term.

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The three courses behind this page

The 0478 course carries both papers. Mathematics and Python sit alongside it because data representation and the 15-mark question depend on them.

Cambridge IGCSE Computer Science 0478 course thumbnail

IGCSE / 01

Cambridge IGCSE Computer Science 0478

The course this page describes. All ten topics, pseudocode taught as a language of its own, and past papers marked to the real Cambridge mark scheme.

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IGCSE Mathematics Mastery course thumbnail

IGCSE / 02

IGCSE Mathematics Mastery

Taken alongside by most 0478 students. Data representation gets considerably easier when the arithmetic underneath it is quick.

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Python for Teens course thumbnail

IGCSE / 03

Python for Teens

The language most 0478 students choose for the 15-mark scenario question, and the one that makes pseudocode make sense.

Open the syllabus →

The course

Cambridge IGCSE Computer Science 0478, taught live across two years

One course, two formats, both live. The batch works to a shared schedule toward the same series; one to one is rebuilt around whichever of the ten topics this particular student keeps losing marks on.

How it runsBatch of five to eightOne to one
Live classes each weekTwo, fixed slotTwo, slot chosen with you
Length of a class60 minutes45 minutes
Pseudocode drillingWeekly from term oneWeekly, and more if it is the weak spot
Past papers markedEvery fortnight, to the mark schemeWeekly if the entry is close
Topic coverageAll ten, on scheduleAll ten, reordered to the student
Joining part wayAt the start of a termAny week
Monthly feeUSD 100USD 150
TrialFirst class free, no cardFirst class free, no card

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The short answer

Cambridge IGCSE Computer Science 0478 is examined by two written papers, each 1 hour 45 minutes and 75 marks. Paper 1, Computer Systems, covers topics 1 to 6 and calculators are not allowed. Paper 2, Algorithms, Programming and Logic, covers topics 7 to 10. The rule that decides the most marks is that where a solution involves coding, candidates must answer in pseudocode, and solutions written in programming code are not awarded marks. The single exception is the 15-mark scenario question, where pseudocode or Python, Visual Basic or Java are accepted and other languages are not. Modern Age Coders teaches it live online, one to one or in batches of five to eight, from USD 100 a month, first class free.

Module by module

The eight modules that cover all ten syllabus topics

Numbered in teaching order rather than syllabus order, because pseudocode and data representation need the longest runway and are therefore started first.

01

Data representation, by hand and at speed

7 classes · Topic 1

  • Binary, hexadecimal and the conversions both ways
  • Arithmetic without a calculator, because Paper 1 does not allow one
  • Representing text, images and sound, and the size calculations
02

Cambridge pseudocode as a language of its own

7 classes · Topic 7

  • The specified format, written the way the syllabus sets it out
  • Selection, iteration and totalling in pseudocode before any Python
  • Why a personal style costs marks even when the logic is right
03

Data transmission, hardware and the CPU

6 classes · Topics 2 and 3

  • Packet switching, transmission methods and error checking
  • The fetch-decode-execute cycle in the words the paper uses
  • Components, storage and the vocabulary the mark scheme expects
04

Software, translators and the internet

6 classes · Topics 4 and 5

  • System against application software, compilers and interpreters
  • How the web works, and the security content students skim
  • Command words, and answering the question actually asked
05

Algorithm design, flowcharts and trace tables

7 classes · Topic 7

  • Standard algorithms in pseudocode: search, count, total, maximum
  • Flowchart symbols exactly as the syllabus specifies them
  • Trace tables required on every question until the habit is automatic
06

Programming constructs the paper wants

6 classes · Topic 8

  • Arrays, procedures, functions and parameters in pseudocode
  • File handling and validation the way 0478 asks for it
  • The bridge from pseudocode into a real language for question 15
07

Databases and Boolean logic

6 classes · Topics 9 and 10

  • Single-table databases, field types and query structure
  • Logic gates, expressions and truth tables, treated as reliable marks
  • Both topics drilled on past questions, which repeat in shape
08

Emerging technologies and full past papers

8 classes · Topic 6 and all

  • Robotics and AI, with the vocabulary the paper rewards
  • Both papers under time, marked to the real Cambridge mark scheme
  • The 15-mark scenario question in the student's chosen language

The rule that costs the most marks

Your child can write working Python in Paper 2 and score zero for it

This is in the syllabus in plain language, and it is still the thing Cambridge families discover last, often after a mock.

The syllabus says that where a solution involves coding, candidates are required to write it in pseudocode, and that solutions written in programming code will not be awarded marks. Not fewer marks. No marks. A correct, elegant, working Python answer to a six-mark algorithm question scores nothing at all.

There is exactly one exception, and knowing precisely where it applies is worth a grade. In the 15-mark scenario question, and only there, a candidate may answer in pseudocode or in Python, Visual Basic or Java. Anything written in another language, in that question too, earns nothing.

So a student who has spent two years learning to program, and who is genuinely good at it, can walk into Paper 2 and lose most of the algorithm marks by doing the thing they are best at. It is not a knowledge failure. It is a failure to know how the paper is marked.

Which is why Cambridge pseudocode is taught here as a language in its own right, with its own conventions, from the first term. The syllabus specifies the format pseudocode will appear in, so there is a correct way to write it, and writing it fluently under time is a separate skill from programming.

The two papers, exactly

Cambridge IGCSE Computer Science 0478 exam structure

For examination in 2026, 2027 and 2028. Every figure below is from the published syllabus rather than from a revision site.

Paper 1Paper 2
TitleComputer SystemsAlgorithms, Programming and Logic
Length1 hour 45 minutes1 hour 45 minutes
Marks7575
Topics examinedTopics 1 to 6Topics 7 to 10
Question styleShort-answer and structuredShort-answer and structured
All questions compulsoryYesYes
Coding answersNot applicablePseudocode, except the 15-mark question
CalculatorsNot allowedSee the syllabus for the current rule
Grade range assessedA* to GA* to G

The ten topics, and which paper they are examined on

TopicNamePaperWhat it really tests
1Data representationPaper 1Binary and hex arithmetic, by hand, at speed
2Data transmissionPaper 1Packets, methods, error checking
3HardwarePaper 1The fetch-decode-execute cycle and components
4SoftwarePaper 1System and application software, translators
5The internet and its usesPaper 1How the web works, and security
6Automated and emerging technologiesPaper 1Robotics, AI and the vocabulary for them
7Algorithm design and problem-solvingPaper 2Pseudocode, flowcharts, trace tables
8ProgrammingPaper 2Constructs written the way the paper wants them
9DatabasesPaper 2Single tables, fields, and SQL-style queries
10Boolean logicPaper 2Gates, expressions and truth tables

Two details in the first table repay attention. Calculators are not allowed in Paper 1, which matters because data representation involves real arithmetic in binary and hexadecimal that a student must do by hand at speed. And both papers are the same length and the same number of marks, so a student who is strong on one and weak on the other is losing exactly half the qualification, which is a more common profile than families expect.

Where marks are lost

Six ways able 0478 students throw away marks

None of these is about being weak at computer science. Every one is about the paper.

Answering algorithm questions in Python

The single most expensive mistake in this qualification. The syllabus is explicit that programming code earns no marks, and a student who has spent two years learning Python is exactly the student most likely to make it.

Using the wrong language in the 15-mark question

Even in the one question where code is accepted, only Python, Visual Basic or Java are. A student who has learned C++ or JavaScript at home and reaches for it there earns nothing.

Writing pseudocode in a personal style

The syllabus specifies the format pseudocode will appear in, which means there is a correct way to write it. Invented conventions cost marks even when the logic is right.

Skipping trace tables and tracing in the head

Trace questions are reliable marks for students who write the table out and a lottery for students who do not. It is a habit, not a talent, and it takes about three weeks to build.

Doing binary arithmetic slowly

Calculators are not allowed in Paper 1 and data representation is topic one. A student who is slow at hand arithmetic loses time they needed for the later structured questions.

Treating Boolean logic as an afterthought

It is a full topic on Paper 2 with predictable question shapes, and it is among the most learnable material in the whole syllabus. Students who leave it to the last fortnight leave marks behind.

The two years, phase by phase

How we sequence Cambridge IGCSE Computer Science

Two live classes a week, one to one or in a batch of five to eight, with past-paper questions between them that the teacher marks against the real mark scheme.

  1. Term 1: data representation and pseudocode, together from day one

    The two things that take longest to become automatic. Binary and hexadecimal by hand, and Cambridge pseudocode written to the specified format, started in week one so that neither is being learned in the final term.

  2. Term 2: hardware, software and the fetch-decode-execute cycle

    The Paper 1 systems content, which is heavy on precise vocabulary. Taught with the command words the paper uses, because a correct idea described in the wrong words does not always score.

  3. Term 3: algorithm design, trace tables and programming constructs

    Topic 7 and topic 8. Every algorithm answer written in pseudocode from the start, and trace tables required rather than encouraged, until writing one is the automatic first move.

  4. Term 4: the internet, emerging technologies, databases and Boolean logic

    The remaining topics, including the two on Paper 2 that students most often under-prepare. Boolean logic in particular is highly learnable and is treated as reliable marks rather than as a curiosity.

  5. Term 5: the 15-mark scenario question, in the chosen language

    The one place code is accepted. The student picks Python, Visual Basic or Java and then practises that question shape repeatedly, because it is the only question where their programming ability converts directly into marks.

  6. Term 6: full past papers, marked to the real mark scheme

    Both papers under time, marked against Cambridge mark schemes rather than to intent. This is where students discover which of their habits the examiner does not reward, and there is still time to change them.

Told apart properly

Cambridge IGCSE 0478 against UK GCSE and against O Level

Families in international schools frequently compare these, and the differences are real.

Cambridge IGCSE 0478UK GCSE Computer Science
BoardCambridge InternationalAQA, OCR or Edexcel
Taken mainly inInternational schools worldwideSchools in the UK
Coding answersPseudocode, with one exceptionUsually a real language, commonly Python
PapersTwo, equal length and marksTwo, board dependent
GradingA* to G9 to 1
Practical workAssessed through the written papersBoard dependent

The practical implication is about programming. A UK GCSE course typically expects the student to answer in a real programming language, most often Python, and several boards assess programming skill directly. Cambridge 0478 assesses algorithm design mainly in pseudocode. Two students of identical ability can therefore need quite different exam training, which is set out further on the UK GCSE page.

Being straight about it

What we will not tell you about IGCSE Computer Science

We do not guarantee a grade. Nobody can. What a teacher controls is coverage of all ten topics, marked past-paper practice, and how fluently a student writes Cambridge pseudocode under time. We will tell you after a few weeks what band the current work points at, which is more useful than a promise.

We are not your child's school. Your school enters candidates, chooses the series, and knows its own scheme of work. We teach alongside that rather than replacing it, and where our advice differs from the school's, the school is usually right about logistics.

We will not pretend programming practice is wasted. A student who can actually program writes better pseudocode, understands the trace questions, and is far stronger in the 15-mark scenario. The point of this page is not that Python is useless. It is that Python in the wrong question is worth nothing.

We will say when a student should not take it now. A student who is uncomfortable with basic arithmetic will struggle with data representation in Paper 1, and a term of foundations first is sometimes the honest recommendation.

Outcomes

What a student can do by the end of the course

Each of these is something a teacher watches happen in a lesson. That is why they are here instead of a predicted grade.

Write Cambridge pseudocode to the specified format, fluently

Selection, iteration, arrays and procedures, in the conventions the syllabus lays out, quickly enough to leave time for checking.

Know exactly where program code is allowed and where it is not

And therefore never lose an algorithm mark by answering in Python, which is the most expensive avoidable error in this qualification.

Produce a trace table without being asked to

As the automatic first move on any trace question, which converts a lottery into reliable marks.

Do binary and hexadecimal arithmetic by hand at speed

Because Paper 1 does not allow a calculator and topic 1 is where slow arithmetic quietly eats the time later questions needed.

Answer with the command word in mind

Describe, explain, state and identify ask for different things, and a correct idea in the wrong register does not always score.

Complete a truth table and simplify a logic expression

Topic 10 is among the most learnable content in the syllabus and among the most often left to the final fortnight.

Write a full answer to the 15-mark scenario question

In Python, Visual Basic or Java, having practised that specific question shape rather than meeting it once in a mock.

Sit both papers under time without running out of it

Two papers of equal length and equal marks, practised often enough that pacing is a habit rather than a discovery.

The catalogue

The courses this sits inside

Cambridge IGCSE Computer Science is taught from its own course. The ones below are what students on this page most often take before it, alongside it, or after it.

I

The Cambridge course

Built to the 0478 syllabus for 2026 to 2028

IGCSE / 01

Cambridge IGCSE Computer Science 0478

The course this page describes. All ten topics, pseudocode taught as a language of its own, and past papers marked to the real Cambridge mark scheme.

Open the syllabus

IGCSE / 02

IGCSE Mathematics Mastery

Taken alongside by most 0478 students. Data representation gets considerably easier when the arithmetic underneath it is quick.

Open the syllabus

IGCSE / 03

Python for Teens

The language most 0478 students choose for the 15-mark scenario question, and the one that makes pseudocode make sense.

Open the syllabus
II

The programming underneath

Real code, which makes better pseudocode

CODE / 01

Java Programming for Teens

One of the three languages accepted in the 15-mark question, and the usual choice for students continuing to A Level or an AP.

Open the syllabus

CODE / 02

Data Science for Teens

Real files, real messiness. Makes the databases topic concrete rather than abstract.

Open the syllabus

CODE / 03

Git and GitHub for Teens

Not on the syllabus, and the thing that turns two years of school work into something a sixth form or university can actually look at.

Open the syllabus

CODE / 04

ICSE Computer Applications, Java and BlueJ

For students sitting an Indian board alongside Cambridge, where the Java overlap is worth using deliberately.

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III

What comes after 0478

Sixth form, and the routes out of it

NEXT / 01

IB Diploma Computer Science

One of the two common destinations after an IGCSE, and a very different style of assessment.

Open the syllabus

NEXT / 02

AP Computer Science A Exam Prep

The other common destination, for students in schools offering Advanced Placement alongside Cambridge.

Open the syllabus

NEXT / 03

Data Structures and Algorithms

For a student who found topic 7 the interesting part and wants the real version of it.

Open the syllabus

NEXT / 04

Competitive Programming for Teens

Where an 0478 student who enjoys algorithm questions can go next, toward olympiads and contests.

Open the syllabus

NEXT / 05

AI and Machine Learning for Teens

Topic 6 taken seriously, for students whose interest was the emerging technologies content rather than the systems.

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Fees

What Cambridge IGCSE Computer Science tuition costs

The same two figures in every country we teach outside India, charged monthly in US dollars. Nothing to start, nothing owed after you stop, and the first class is free without a card.

Free first class

USD 0

no card required

  • Taught rather than sold
  • A real diagnostic on the exam itself
  • You watch it, then decide
Book it

Group batch

USD 100

a month, billed in US dollars

  • Five to eight students, one teacher throughout
  • Live video, never a recording
  • Past-paper work between classes, marked by the teacher
  • Certificate on completion
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One to one

USD 150

a month, billed in US dollars

  • Private teaching, paced to the entry date
  • The only way to get a weekday morning slot
  • Syllabus rebuilt around the papers the student is weakest on
Enquire

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The other nine

The other exams we prepare students for

Same method, different specification. Useful if your child sits more than one of these, or if you are weighing Cambridge against another curriculum.

AP Computer Science AJava AP Computer Science PrinciplesAny language Cambridge A Level 9618Python, VB, Java UK GCSE Computer SciencePython IB Diploma Computer ScienceJava or Python USACOC++, Java, Python Informatics olympiadsC++ PCEP and PCAPPython Canadian Computing CompetitionC++, Java, Python

IGCSE 0478 questions

What Cambridge families ask about 0478

Can my child answer Paper 2 questions in Python?

Only in the 15-mark scenario question, and there the accepted languages are Python, Visual Basic or Java. Everywhere else in Paper 2, the syllabus requires pseudocode and states that solutions written in programming code will not be awarded marks. This is the single most expensive thing for a Cambridge family not to know, and it is the reason we teach pseudocode from term one.

What are the two papers?

Paper 1, Computer Systems, is a 1 hour 45 minute written paper worth 75 marks covering topics 1 to 6, with all questions compulsory and calculators not allowed. Paper 2, Algorithms, Programming and Logic, is also 1 hour 45 minutes and 75 marks, covering topics 7 to 10. Both assess the full grade range from A* to G.

How much does the tuition cost?

A batch of five to eight students is USD 100 a month and one to one is USD 150 a month, billed in US dollars, and the figures are the same in every country we teach outside India. There is no enrolment fee and no minimum term, and the first class is free without a card.

Are the classes live?

Every class is live, one to one or in a batch of five to eight students, taught from India to students worldwide. We do not sell recordings in place of classes, because a recording cannot watch a student write pseudocode in their own invented style and correct it in the moment.

Which syllabus version do you teach?

The one for examination in 2026, 2027 and 2028. Cambridge revises these on a cycle and we teach the current one, which is why the topic list on this page has ten topics in the order the current syllabus gives them.

Does my child need to know programming already?

No. The course starts from the beginning and the pseudocode comes first anyway. What helps more than prior programming is comfort with arithmetic, because data representation is topic one and Paper 1 does not allow a calculator.

Which language should we choose for the 15-mark question?

Python for most students, because it is the least punishing to write by hand under time. Visual Basic and Java are also accepted. What matters is choosing one early and practising that question shape in it repeatedly rather than deciding in the exam hall.

Is 0478 the same as UK GCSE Computer Science?

No. Cambridge 0478 is taken mainly in international schools and grades A* to G, and its coding answers are in pseudocode. UK GCSE is set by AQA, OCR or Edexcel, grades 9 to 1, and generally expects answers in a real programming language. Two students of equal ability can need quite different exam training.

How many topics are there and which paper are they on?

Ten. Topics 1 to 6 are examined on Paper 1: data representation, data transmission, hardware, software, the internet and its uses, and automated and emerging technologies. Topics 7 to 10 are on Paper 2: algorithm design and problem-solving, programming, databases, and Boolean logic.

How long does the course take?

Two academic years at two classes a week is the normal shape, matching how schools run it. A one-year intensive is possible one to one for a student joining late or self-studying, and we will tell you honestly whether the remaining time is enough.

Can we start in the middle of the school year?

One to one, any week, and that is usually the right format for a mid-year start because the syllabus gets reordered around what the student has already covered at school. Batches take joiners at the start of a term.

Do you follow our school's order of topics?

One to one, yes, and it is often the most useful thing we do, because a student getting the same topic twice in the same fortnight learns it properly. In a batch we follow our own order, which front-loads pseudocode and data representation.

Do you mark past papers?

Yes, against the real Cambridge mark scheme rather than to intent. That distinction matters: students routinely write a correct idea in words the mark scheme does not credit, and finding that out in November is worth far more than finding it out in a mock.

What happens in the free first class?

A short diagnostic rather than a sales call. Usually a small algorithm question and one binary conversion, because how a student handles those two predicts the two papers better than anything they can tell us. You get a straight assessment afterwards, including if the answer is to wait a term.

What happens after we send the form?

A mentor calls you at a reasonable hour to arrange the free class. Nothing is charged and no card is requested. Tell us the exam series on the call, because a June entry and a November entry lead to different honest recommendations about format.

Read next

Cambridge publishes exactly how pseudocode appears in the 0478 papers.

The indentation rule almost nobody teaches, the identifier rules the mark scheme applies, and the one thing that goes wrong when a student answers in Python instead.

The 0478 pseudocode rules examiners mark

Enrol

Book the free first class, and find out which paper is the weak one

The first class is a diagnostic: one small algorithm question and one binary conversion. Between them they show whether the risk this year is Paper 1 or Paper 2, and those need different work. You will also get a straight answer on whether the student is currently writing pseudocode in a way the mark scheme rewards, which is the fastest grade improvement available in this qualification and takes about three weeks to fix.

Rather read first? The full course syllabus, AP Computer Science A, or how we teach.

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