GCSE Geography: Paper 3 pre-release
materials for summer 2026

For the attention of GCSE Geography teachers and exams officer 
  
Dear colleague  
 
The summer 2026 Paper 3 Geographical Applications pre-release materials (8035/3/PM) will be available on Centre Services, our secure website, from Thursday 19 March 2026. 
 
You will find the materials using our Centre Services link or by following these steps:   

• log into Centre Services  
• click ‘Resources’  
• click ‘Assessment and training’  
• choose ‘Geography'  
• tick ‘GCSE' in the qualification list  
• tick ‘preliminary material’ in the resource type.  

Hard copies will also be sent to your school or college where we’ve processed final entries. These must be kept secure, and can be given to students from 19 March 2026. 

A few reminders ahead of the release 

Remember these are live assessment materials and are confidential. This means that teachers and students must not:  

• share these materials on any social media or public website  
• email copies to anyone who is not a student sitting the exam  
• share resources you have created publicly that contain information lifted from the materials (including images, texts and data) due to copyright. We recommend avoiding this where possible or share with colleagues securely 
• upload any image, data or text from the materials into an artificial intelligence (AI) tool. 

For 8035/3/PM you can:  

• post hard copies home to students 
• allow students to take their hard copies home  
• upload an electronic copy of the materials to a platform that it is only accessible by students you teach, such as Google classroom, a school Microsoft Teams channel or intranet.  

Please encourage students to use only the hard copy given to them. There’s no requirement for students to study beyond the information in the pre-release.  A clean copy will also be given with every question paper in the exam on 11 June 2026.  
 
Remember, you’ll need to submit a signed centre declaration form to confirm that all students have had the opportunity to attend planned fieldwork by 15 May 2026.

Update for modified large print pre-release materials only

Where appropriate for the 8035/3/PM modified question papers (A4 18pt, A4 24pt, A3 24pt, and A3 36pt enlarged) pre-release papers, we’ve included a black and white equivalent image or a written description.   

This is provided as an alternative to support students who use modified large print papers to access the pre-release. The change only affects large print modified versions of the pre-release. No other versions of the question papers are affected by this change. 

If you have any questions or any concerns about permissions, please contact the Geography Customer Support team at geography@aqa.org.uk or call 01483 477791.  
  
Kind regards 
 
Stacey Hill 
Subject Lead for Geography