Chemistry · National 5
National 5 Chemistry takes you from the atom out into industry and the environment: how and why reactions happen, how to calculate with them, and where chemistry shows up in fuels, food, plastics, medicines and metals.
What it offers you
Chemistry opens the door to medicine, pharmacy, dentistry, chemical engineering and research, and the practical and calculation skills it builds are expected in every laboratory science.
What National 5 actually asks of you
Section 1 — multiple choice
Quick single-answer questions covering the whole course.
Section 2 — questions and calculations
Extended answer questions with working: reacting quantities, equations, structure and bonding, and explaining chemistry in context.
Assignment — a short piece of research plus an experiment you carry out and report on, with conclusions and evaluation.
Exact timings and mark allocations are printed on the front cover of each paper below.
Topics that come up
Papers & marking schemes
2026
3 files2025
3 files2024
3 files2023
3 files2022
3 filesSQA publishes the most recent five years of papers. Older papers and specimen papers live on their site — open Chemistry National 5 on sqa.org.uk.