QCE Physics was completed by more than 8,300 Queensland students in 2025, and its external assessment is worth 50% of your final result. The 2025 exam tested Kepler's third law, the photoelectric effect, electron energy levels and the ladder-in-the-barn paradox from special relativity, and QCAA's subject report shows exactly where students gained and lost marks.
This guide breaks down the external assessment section of QCAA's 2025 Physics subject report. It covers how every multiple-choice question was answered across the state, the short-response questions QCAA singled out, what effective responses did and QCAA's advice for future students. For the school-based side of the subject, see our companion breakdown of the 2025 QCE Physics internal assessments.
Key Takeaways
- 8,302 students completed Units 3 and 4 in 2025, a 12.86% increase on 2024, and no student received an E.
- An A required a final mark of 87 or more out of 100, and 49.12% of students achieved one, almost half the cohort.
- Students averaged 62.6% on the 20 multiple-choice questions. On Question 12, only 22.98% chose the correct answer, while 65.23% chose the same wrong option.
- Students did well on calculations where they set out their reasoning, and on analysing data to find trends and unknown values.
- QCAA wants more detail in describe and explain answers, and a better understanding of when and why each formula applies.
The 2025 Cohort at a Glance
| Statistic | 2025 |
|---|---|
| Schools offering Physics | 418 |
| Students who completed Unit 1 | 9,691 |
| Students who completed Unit 2 | 9,163 |
| Students who completed Units 3 and 4 | 8,302 |
| Students who completed all 4 units | 85.67% |
| Change in enrolment since 2024 | +12.86% |
Source: QCAA Physics subject report, 2025 cohort.
With almost half the state earning an A, every mark matters at the top end.
QCE Physics External Exam Structure
| Feature | Paper 1 | Paper 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Section 1 | 20 multiple-choice questions (20 marks) | Short-response questions (50 marks) |
| Section 2 | Short-response questions (31 marks) | – |
| Total | 51 marks | 50 marks |
The exam is worth 101 marks in total, which is converted to a mark out of 50 and makes up 50% of your final result. The other 50% comes from your three internal assessments: the data test (IA1, 10%), the student experiment (IA2, 20%) and the research investigation (IA3, 20%).
The most common external assessment results in 2025 fell between about 39 and 47 out of 50, peaking at around 43–45.
💡 Get ready for the exam with our step-by-step guide on how to prepare for QCE external exams.
2025 Grade Boundaries and Results
| Grade | Final Mark (out of 100) | Number of Students | Percentage of Students |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | 87–100 | 4,078 | 49.12% |
| B | 72–86 | 3,113 | 37.50% |
| C | 50–71 | 1,080 | 13.01% |
| D | 20–49 | 31 | 0.37% |
| E | 0–19 | 0 | 0.00% |
Source: QCAA Physics subject report, 2025 cohort.
Your final mark is your internal assessment total (out of 50) plus your external assessment mark (out of 50). Final marks peaked at about 90–93, just above the A cut-off of 87.
Paper 1: Multiple-Choice Results
| Question | Correct Answer | % Correct | Most Common Wrong Answer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | B | 71.44% | A (20.89%) |
| 2 | C | 72.71% | A (18.31%) |
| 3 | A | 50.53% | C (18.55%) |
| 4 | D | 71.53% | B (11.85%) |
| 5 | B | 43.95% | C (23.62%) |
| 6 | C | 77.83% | D (8.96%) |
| 7 | C | 78.31% | D (10.77%) |
| 8 | C | 29.69% | A (43.71%) |
| 9 | D | 79.84% | B (11.40%) |
| 10 | B | 83.72% | C (6.36%) |
| 11 | D | 64.71% | C (18.99%) |
| 12 | B | 22.98% | C (65.23%) |
| 13 | D | 86.98% | A (6.82%) |
| 14 | A | 65.66% | B (15.04%) |
| 15 | A | 67.21% | C (21.69%) |
| 16 | B | 63.58% | D (19.35%) |
| 17 | D | 64.12% | B (22.11%) |
| 18 | A | 70.85% | B (16.49%) |
| 19 | A | 39.63% | C (36.24%) |
| 20 | C | 47.22% | D (36.32%) |
Source: QCAA Physics subject report, 2025 cohort (General examination). Some students did not answer every question.
What the Multiple-Choice Results Show
- Question 12 was the hardest. Almost three times as many students chose C (65.23%) as the correct answer, B (22.98%). A result like this points to a widespread misconception.
- Question 8 also had more students choose a wrong option (A, 43.71%) than the correct answer (C, 29.69%).
- Questions 19 and 20 were close contests between two options, each drawing more than a third of students.
- Questions 10 and 13 were answered correctly by more than 83% of students.
- Across the paper, students averaged 62.6%, so the typical student lost about 7 of the 20 multiple-choice marks.
A small group of students sat an alternative sequence (AS) version of the exam, which shared 11 multiple-choice questions with the General paper. Their results are reported separately and are not included above.
💡 Check out why past papers are the best way to study for exams.
Short-Response Questions QCAA Highlighted
Paper 1, Question 23(b): Saturn's Orbital Period
Students calculated how long Saturn takes to orbit the Sun, given orbital data for Earth.
Effective responses:
- recognised that the question needed Kepler's third law
- converted Earth's orbital period into seconds (365 × 24 × 60 × 60 = 3.1536 × 10⁷ s)
- set up T²/r³ for Earth equal to T²/r³ for Saturn and solved: T ≈ 9.38 × 10⁸ s.
QCAA also accepted a valid alternative method: using Earth's data and Newton's law of universal gravitation to find the mass of the Sun (about 1.97 × 10³⁰ kg), then calculating Saturn's period from it.
Paper 1, Question 24(a): The Photoelectric Effect
Students explained how the photoelectric effect gave evidence for the particle nature of light and contradicted the wave model.
Effective responses covered all of these points:
- electrons are ejected from a metal surface when light shines on it
- a photon's energy depends on its frequency (E = hf)
- below the threshold frequency, no electrons are ejected, however intense the light
- increasing intensity only increases the number of electrons ejected, not their energy
- the wave model predicts that brighter light (greater amplitude) should eject electrons at any frequency, which is not what is observed.
Paper 2, Questions 4(b) and 4(c): Photons From Energy Level Transitions
Students explained why electrons moving from n = 4 down to n = 2 can produce three different photons, and found the photon with the longest wavelength.
Effective responses:
- explained that photons are released when electrons drop to a lower energy level
- identified the three possible transitions: 4 → 2 directly (7.6 eV), or 4 → 3 (3.4 eV) then 3 → 2 (4.2 eV)
- explained that each photon is different because each transition has a different energy
- recognised that the lowest-energy transition (3.4 eV) gives the longest wavelength: λ = hc/E ≈ 3.65 × 10⁻⁷ m.
Paper 2, Question 9: The Ladder-in-the-Barn Paradox
Students described the ladder-in-the-barn paradox and explained how it is resolved using frames of reference.
Effective responses:
- described the scenario: a ladder moving at relativistic speed towards a barn of the same length
- explained that in the barn's frame, the ladder is length contracted and fits inside
- explained that in the ladder's frame, the barn is contracted, so the ladder appears not to fit
- resolved the paradox using simultaneity: the doors close at the same time in the barn's frame but at different times in the ladder's frame, so both observations are correct.
What Students Did Well
QCAA said the 2025 cohort responded well to:
- calculation questions, when they set out their mathematical reasoning using the information and diagrams provided
- analysis questions that required using data to identify trends and work out unknown values.
Areas QCAA Wants Students to Improve
1. Describe and Explain Questions
QCAA wants answers that go beyond basic descriptions of physical phenomena. Include detailed, relevant facts that show you fully understand the concept, as in the photoelectric effect and ladder-in-the-barn answers above.
2. Understanding Formulas
Know the concept and context behind each formula, not just how to substitute into it. Understanding why a formula applies helps you choose the right one and use it accurately.
💡 Not sure what "describe", "explain" or "calculate" are asking for? Read our complete guide to QCE cognitive verbs.
How to Prepare for the QCE Physics External Exam
- Practise multiple choice carefully. Several questions had a wrong option chosen by more students than the right one, so test every option against the physics.
- Write full explanations for key phenomena such as the photoelectric effect, energy level transitions, time dilation, length contraction and simultaneity.
- Learn the conditions for each formula in the formula and data book.
- Show every step in calculations, including unit conversions such as years to seconds and eV to joules.
- Practise data analysis, including reading graphs, finding gradients and identifying trends.
- Sit full past papers under timed conditions.
For more preparation:
- read our guide to getting an A in QCE Physics
- see our breakdown of the 2025 QCE Physics internal assessments
- read our 2025 QCE Chemistry external assessment breakdown
- check the QCE exam timetable 2026 for this year's exam dates
- learn how QCE subject scaling works.
Need Help With QCE Physics?
Our QCE Physics tutors work one-on-one with students to master gravity, electromagnetism, relativity and quantum physics, and to write the detailed explanations and clear calculations QCAA markers look for.
Source: Queensland Curriculum & Assessment Authority, Physics subject report, 2025 cohort (January 2026).
