EPQ Ideas by Subject: 100+ Titles and How to Choose One

By Michael Thompson · Education Specialist; 10 years teaching the IB at Bromsgrove School · Published 24 October 2026 · Updated 25 October 2026

EPQ ideas are easy to find and hard to make work - the gap between a vague topic and a title that holds up for 120 guided learning hours is where most projects stumble. The Extended Project Qualification, worth up to 28 UCAS points under the new tariff according to the OCR H857 specification, rewards students who pick a genuinely focused question and manage their time carefully - not those who pick the broadest possible subject. OCR moderators reviewing summer 2024 submissions noted that candidates who did well 'selected a topic which genuinely interested them' and 'refined a research question (or, for an artefact or event, a brief) which was targeted and focused', while those who struggled 'selected a generic topic' and 'researched broadly and shallowly'. This guide gives you 100+ ready-to-use EPQ titles grouped by subject, the title-shapes that work, a four-move method for narrowing any topic into an approvable question, and a checklist for confirming your idea is feasible before you submit it for centre approval.

Key Takeaways

In This Article

  1. What makes a good EPQ title - and what the moderators actually look for
  2. How to narrow a topic into a question: the four-move method
  3. EPQ ideas for medicine, dentistry, biology and chemistry
  4. EPQ ideas for law, criminology and psychology
  5. EPQ ideas for history, politics and economics
  6. EPQ ideas for engineering, physics, computer science and maths
  7. EPQ ideas for English, the arts, geography, sport and environment
  8. Checking feasibility before title approval
  9. Linking your EPQ to a university application honestly
  10. What to do next

1. What makes a good EPQ title - and what the moderators actually look for

Choosing from the thousands of possible EPQ ideas is less about finding a clever topic and more about forming a question that the project structure can actually answer. A good EPQ title passes four tests: it is a focused question or design brief rather than a loose subject area; it reflects something the student genuinely wants to investigate; its scope fits the 120 guided learning hours the qualification allows; and its aims map onto the steps needed to produce the outcome. Fail any one of those and the project tends to drift, which shows in the marks. The example titles in the two lists below are written for this guide, not taken from real projects.

The OCR moderators said it plainly in their summer 2024 report. Candidates who performed well "selected a topic which genuinely interested them", "refined a research question (or, for an artefact or event, a brief) which was targeted and focused", "narrowed and deepened research as they progressed", and evaluated "with genuine self-reflection and insight". Those who did less well "selected a generic topic", "researched broadly and shallowly", and produced evaluations that were "descriptive or lacked awareness of strengths and weaknesses". The same report flags projects that were "too limited or too large in scope" for 120 GLH, and notes that "at least some aims should relate to the steps needed to achieve planned outcomes" (OCR H857 Moderators' Report, Summer 2024).

Title shapes that work

Title shapes that fail

Why the product matters more than the plan

A non-obvious but important point: under AQA, AO3 (Develop and Realise) carries 40% of the total marks, 20 of the 50 available. Under OCR, AO3 is worth 24 of 60 marks, with its own four-band scale running to 24 points while the other three objectives cap at 12 each (OCR H857 Specification v2.1). The implication is practical: a title that produces a thin or unfocused outcome cannot be rescued by meticulous planning. Both the question and the project product it demands must be strong from the start.

2. How to narrow a topic into a question: the four-move method

A broad topic is not an EPQ title. "Mental health" is a field of study; "Artificial intelligence" is an industry. Neither gives you a research question, a line of argument, or any way to judge when you are finished. The four-move method below turns a topic into something workable in 120 guided learning hours.

Apply the moves in order:

You do not always need all four, but running through each one forces you to make a decision rather than leave the title vague.

Before-and-after pair 1 (written for this guide, not an exam-board exemplar or real student work)

Before-and-after pair 2 (written for this guide, not an exam-board exemplar or real student work)

Notice what the four moves produce: a defined group, a specific context, and a comparator or evaluative frame. Question stems such as "To what extent..." and "Should..." tend to support stronger arguments than pure "What is..." questions, which can slide into description.

Takeaway: Pick your broad topic this week, then write one answer to each of the four questions above - the resulting sentence is your draft title.

3. EPQ ideas for medicine, dentistry, biology and chemistry

These EPQ ideas are written for this guide. Each is phrased as a question or investigative brief, not a topic, because that is what the OCR moderators' report for summer 2024 singles out in the strongest projects: a focused, targeted question with a realistic scope for 120 guided learning hours.

One practical note before the list: an EPQ does not replace the A-level grades (usually including chemistry and/or biology) that medical and dental schools require. Some universities make alternative offers that include the EPQ as a condition, but the science A-levels remain a separate requirement, so check each university's admissions pages.

Medicine and dentistry

Biology and biomedical science

Chemistry and pharmacology

Sources and ethics

These questions typically draw on peer-reviewed journals (PubMed, The Lancet, BMJ), NHS and NICE guidance documents, and public health datasets from the Office for National Statistics. If your project involves a survey of peers or patients, the OCR moderators' report is clear that surveys should only be used where they can meaningfully add to the outcome. Discuss any primary research involving people with your supervisor before the title is approved; centres have their own ethics procedures.

4. EPQ ideas for law, criminology and psychology

Law, criminology and psychology sit in a sweet spot for EPQ ideas: they generate genuinely debatable questions, they have rich publicly available source material, and they connect directly to competitive degree applications. The challenge is precision. "Should drugs be legalised?" is a topic. "To what extent would decriminalising cannabis possession reduce reoffending rates among 18-to-25-year-olds in England?" is an EPQ title.

All ideas below are written for this guide, not drawn from exam-board exemplars.

Law and criminology

Corporate and commercial law

Criminal law and criminology

Criminal psychology

Child and social psychology

One practical note on sources and ethics. Law questions draw well from case law databases (BAILII publishes freely accessible UK judgments), psychology questions from peer-reviewed journals via your school library or Google Scholar, and criminology questions from Ministry of Justice and ONS criminal justice statistics. If your question needs a survey, check your centre's ethics policy first. Primary research involving minors or sensitive topics such as trauma, self-harm or substance use typically requires parental consent and formal ethics sign-off; as the OCR moderators' report notes, surveys are only appropriate where they can meaningfully add to the outcome, not as a substitute for engaging with existing evidence.

5. EPQ ideas for history, politics and economics

History, politics and economics sit well together as EPQ territory because the strongest questions in all three subjects share the same underlying shape: they ask you to weigh competing explanations, not just describe events. A question like "What caused X?" tends to collapse into a list; "To what extent was X the decisive cause of Y?" forces a structured argument. That distinction matters more here than in almost any other subject cluster.

The ideas below are written for this guide.

Evaluative questions

Comparative questions

Analytical and causal questions

A note on sources. These EPQ ideas draw on primary historical documents (treaties, speeches, parliamentary records), Hansard for UK political questions, published economic datasets from institutions such as the ONS and the World Bank, and academic monographs. Be aware that access to physical archives, such as the National Archives at Kew, may not be practical within your project timeline and will affect feasibility at the approval stage.

6. EPQ ideas for engineering, physics, computer science and maths

These EPQ ideas work well for students aiming at STEM degrees. The list mixes dissertation-style research questions with artefact and design-brief shapes, because the EPQ supports both. Each idea below was written for this guide.

Engineering (including chemical, marine and environmental)

Physics and astrophysics

Computer science and AI

Mathematics

On sources and feasibility: physics and astrophysics research questions draw well on open-access journals and preprint archives; computer science projects can use publicly available datasets, such as those published by the UK government; engineering investigations may need simulation or CAD software, so check what your centre can provide before you commit to the title. If you choose an artefact or design-brief project, the OCR H857 specification requires a minimum 1,000-word written component alongside the physical or digital outcome, and the AQA specification applies the same rule.

7. EPQ ideas for English, the arts, geography, sport and environment

This section covers EPQ ideas written for the guide across eight subject areas. A quick structural note before the lists: if your project outcome is an artefact or performance rather than a dissertation, both AQA and OCR require a written report or extended piece accompanying it, with a minimum of 1,000 words. You still need a Production Log (AQA) or Project Progression Record (OCR) running from planning through to final evaluation, plus a presentation at the end (AQA specifies a non-specialist audience). The log and the presentation are not optional extras for artefact or performance projects.

English literature and language

Ideas written for the guide

Art, music and classics

Ideas written for the guide

Geography and environment

Ideas written for the guide

Sport and exercise science

Ideas written for the guide

Animal behaviour and ecology

Ideas written for the guide

For sources, literary criticism databases such as JSTOR and the MLA International Bibliography suit the English and classics titles. Environmental and geography questions benefit from UK government open-data sets, the Met Office, and peer-reviewed ecology journals. Sport science titles should be grounded in journals such as the Journal of Sports Sciences or British Journal of Sports Medicine. Animal behaviour fieldwork carries its own ethics considerations: any primary observation or data-collection involving animals should be cleared with your centre before you begin, so raise it at your very first supervisor meeting.

8. Checking feasibility before title approval

Before your supervisor signs off a title, run it through four checks. Skipping this step is the most common reason students hit a wall three months in.

1. Sources available and accessible Can you get hold of enough material to support a sustained argument? Academic journal access through your school or a public library, books in print, and reputable online archives are all fair game. If your question depends on data held behind a paywall your centre cannot access, the title will stall.

2. Ethics and safety Primary research needs particular care. The OCR moderators' report for summer 2024 states that surveys should be conducted only where they can meaningfully add to the outcome, not as a default method. Expect your centre to want to approve any research involving personal data, under-18 participants or physical risk before you start, so build that step into your plan.

3. Skills the project genuinely requires A coding project, a film, or a structural model may demand technical skills you have not yet built. Be honest about the gap between where you are now and what the outcome needs.

4. The formal approval step Both of the boards covered in this guide have a gate here. Per the OCR H857 specification, project titles must be approved by the centre, and the Verification of Topic and Title form must not be submitted to OCR at any stage. AQA's specification lists drafting a title and aims "for formal approval by the centre" before the planning, research and production stages. Approval is a centre decision, so get it in writing before you commit serious time.

One further requirement: the project must extend beyond your other courses. AQA's specification says a student who submits 'a piece of coursework for another qualification as an EPQ' or 'chooses a topic central to one of their other courses of study' is not 'extending or developing beyond what they have already learned'; Pearson's says learners 'may not simply resubmit work that has been or will be submitted for another qualification'; OCR's says the Extended Project 'does not overlap with any other qualifications' but 'can be used to extend the learners knowledge or skills in a subject they are already studying'. Raise any overlap with your supervisor before the proposal goes in.

The OCR summer 2024 moderators' report also flags a specific pattern to avoid: performative topic-selection evaluations, where a student who has already decided on a topic spends time weighing up others they have no intention of studying. The report calls these "performative and time-consuming" and says planning around topic choice "should not outweigh planning and management of the project". The same report is clear that moderators want a curated portfolio of evidence, not bulk submissions such as photocopies of books or oversized artwork.

Run all four checks before you commit to a title in writing.

9. Linking your EPQ to a university application honestly

The EPQ carries up to 28 UCAS points under the new tariff - A* = 28, A = 24, B = 20, C = 16, D = 12, E = 8 - the same ladder on every board; the OCR H857 specification gives the 28-point maximum and AQA's EPQ page prints the full table. Some universities translate that into a lower conditional offer for strong applicants.

Two universities say so in print. The OCR H857 specification quotes the University of Manchester - students 'can refer to the Extended Project in their UCAS personal statement and at interview to demonstrate some of the qualities that universities are looking for' - and the University of Cambridge: 'We welcome the Extended Project and would encourage applicants to undertake one as it will help to develop independent study and research skills valuable for higher education.' WJEC's student guide adds that 'increasingly, universities are including the EPQ in their UCAS offers. Very often an A/A* grade in the EPQ will lead to a lower A Level grade requirement.'

One point worth knowing: the EPQ does not replace the A-levels a course requires, and offers vary by institution and by year, so check each university's admissions pages directly.

Choose your question carefully. Ideally the project sits next to your intended degree - extending beyond the A-level syllabus, not rehearsing it - and it must extend beyond your other courses rather than resubmit coursework from them (see section 8).

The bigger trap is choosing a topic for how it looks rather than what it investigates. The OCR Summer 2024 moderators' report describes candidates who "produced performative and time-consuming evaluations of topics which they had no intention of studying", and says they would have been better off narrowing the topic they actually cared about. Admissions tutors are likely to see your personal statement and your EPQ title together. A question you genuinely pursued shows; one chosen for optics usually does not.

10. What to do next

A common reason students lose momentum early is simple: they wait for a deadline that never comes from the exam board. Title approval is a centre decision (OCR's specification says the title form must not be sent to OCR at all), so your supervisor or EPQ coordinator sets an internal title-approval deadline, and that is the date that matters. Miss it, and your approved question arrives late, which compresses everything that follows.

So do one thing this week: ask your supervisor directly when the centre's internal title-approval deadline is, and write it in your calendar. While you have their attention, check whether your working question is a genuine question or still a topic. A topic becomes a question the moment it has a comparison, an evaluation, or a design brief attached to it.

Everything else in this guide follows from that approved title. Get the deadline first.

FAQ

Can an EPQ be about anything?

The topic must be self-chosen and must extend beyond the student's other courses rather than resubmit their assessed coursework (see section 8); OCR centres are also prohibited from providing titles or themes to learners, so the idea must come from the student.

Do you need primary research for an EPQ?

No - the OCR summer 2024 moderators' report says projects should use appropriate research methodology and that surveys should be conducted only where they can meaningfully add to the outcome, so a dissertation built on secondary sources alone is acceptable where that is the right method for the question.

How many UCAS points is the EPQ worth?

The OCR H857 specification and AQA's EPQ web page both give the EPQ as worth up to 28 UCAS points under the new tariff, awarded at grade A*; the full ladder, the same on every board, is A* 28, A 24, B 20, C 16, D 12 and E 8.

What is the word count for an EPQ dissertation?

A research-based written report or dissertation is approximately 5,000 words; where the project product is an artefact or performance, the accompanying written piece must be a minimum of 1,000 words, as confirmed in both the AQA and OCR specifications. WJEC's student guide sets different figures - at least 5,000 words for a dissertation or field study and Project Outcome Notes of at least 1,500 words for an artefact, design or performance - so check your own board.

How do I get my EPQ title approved?

Both AQA and OCR require formal centre approval before work begins - AQA uses a formal proposal and approval process, and OCR states that project titles must be approved by the centre; speak to your supervisor about your centre's internal deadline.

What EPQ title shapes work best?

Comparative questions, evaluative 'to what extent' questions, design briefs for artefacts, and testable hypotheses all give a clear endpoint to work toward; a bare topic, a yes/no question with an obvious answer, or a question requiring inaccessible data are the shapes that consistently underperform.

References