Help DD's option choices have to be in tomorrow and getting nowhere fast

sorry for hijack but in similar position ...

ds has to do GCSEs (or iGCSEs depending on subject)

Eng lang
Eng lit
Maths
Biology
Chemistry
Physics
Spanish (have to do MFL and he's only doing one so no choice there)

Then at least one humanity - he wants to do
History

So he then has 3 options to choose from

PE
Latin
Art Graphics (not good at pure art)
Philosophy & Ethics
ICT

He def wants to do PE (easy A* for him!),
has been told he'll do brilliantly at Philosophy & Ethics and is now struggling between the other three ...

as he has a solid academic base, does it really matter?

Based on what she wants to do now.... bearing in mind she is still very young so this may change.... Then I'd say if she is very keen on Pyschology it may be worth doing it as it will tell her if she is really interested or not. But assume its as a subject she would be interested in as opposed to being "bankable" And I'm guessing it depends on where she lives but perhaps there are some extra cirriculum art activities she could do to keep her interest in that area. But maybe someone can advise - if she doesn't do Art GCSE can she do Art A level?

As a university admissions officer we rarely look at GCSE options. What is more important is that she does well in her core subjects - maths, english, science.

My advice would be to let her do what she wants for the others - because then she is likely to do better in them and have more free time for studying for her core modules.

If she specifically wants to do certain A levels then obviously choose those options now.

If she wants to be a psychologist (I am one) then she needs high A level scores think AAB type at least - maths and biology are the ones which would help her most. Some universities actually prefer you not to have psych A level so you are all starting at the same point.

Music GCSE is surprisingly academic (and equiv to theory Grade 5 so quite demanding musically too). Not really regarded as a creative subject.

History and a MFL are incredibly useful whatever you choose to do later.

I'd still recommend Art or History over Pysch at GCSE. AS Level is the time to explore this avenue IMO. Keep your GCSEs traditional if you want the option of a good Uni.

Can she still do Psych A-level if she doesn't do GCSE? I don't agree that A-level Psych is of no use for Uni entrance. I don't think it's obligatory by any means, but my cousin has offers from all her university choices and her A-levels are history, biology and psychology. And the unis include Warwick and Manchester. It would be a good way for her to see if she does actually like studying Psychology before dedicating a degree to it.

If she's really interested in Psychology then she should take it - but I don't think it's 'bankable'.

sorry bonsoir you did not, I read it wrong

I agree that Psychology GCSE is perceived as a bit woolly, but if that's where she wants to go in the future it will at least give her a better idea of whether it suits her. Art GCSE is bloody hard - how talented at Art is she? I'd say out of all my DD's GCSEs, Art was the one she spent the most time on - very little natural talent in her case, and so a lot of hard work.

As a teacher I am guessing her GCSEs look like this:-

English Lang
English Lit
Maths
Science (possibly triple Sciences or a Balanced Science worth 2 - triple would be better if she is thinking of psych-type career)
ICT

Plus

French
Music
and

Art/Pyschology. I'd suggest Art of those 2.

Just one thought - no History/Geog there - she won't be awarded an English Bacc. Might not be an issue for her personally (seems to be targetting the school rather than the student) but some Unis might be looking for this in 4 years time.

I haven't recommended psychology GCSE!

History or Art, would be my advice not Psych.

bonsoir Psych really is not a good GCSE to be doing, especially as university places are very competitive.

So your DD has:

6 core GCSEs

English Literature
English Language
Maths
Biology
Chemistry
Physics

Which are science-heavy.

1 obligatory optional GCSE:

Music

So she has 7 non-optional GCSEs.

How many does she want (or have) to take in total?

I am not saying is what I meant to say - not I am not satin. Blessed iPod and it's so called predictive text.

There is a thread about subjects which are the choice of death for a career - and I'm sure it says that Psychology won't help you become a Psychologist! Is she doing Triple Science? If so, she's going to be knackered (my own bright little thing is in Y10 and is on her knees). I would advise Art. It will give her three periods a week for rest and recuperation. I am not satin Art is easy - I couldn't do it - but it will be a time for her to express herself and be quiet.

Dd takes Health and Social Care for this very reason. She wants to be a Midwife but knows that this isn't directly linked. Her teachers are already telling her this. But all her other topics are quite academic and she H&S is a bit of a break for her.

Good luck!

Wangle99 - do you realise how difficult it is for other people to understand your questions if you do not give explicit information? Just because your DD doesn't get to choose her "core" GCSEs doesn't mean the list isn't relevant to her option choices.

Could you please write a complete list of all the subjects you deem "obvious/core" and a list of the options?

I disagree about French for psychology - bilingualism/biculturalism is like gold dust for challenging your assumptions about human behaviour!

Art or Psych, are they the only 2 choices? I would try and fit in a more traditional subject- one of the sciences.

French is good.

If she is off to Uni soon, then A levels are what counts and GCSEs not so much, however good grades here make it easier to access A levels.

Consider what kind of learner is she, the rote learning of hard facts in Medicine is hard work and long hours, where as an Art Degree would be more kinaesthetic and creative, and hard work too, but more flexible.