It is really feasible to do 4 "hard" A levels?

Cauli it doesn't count if she revised!

My child did 45,559 a levels and got A* in them all.

Actually studying Biology A level made no difference to your ability to do this years A level Aqa Biology - paper 1.Even with a text book in the exam it wouldn't have helped.
Dd has just completed her A levels.They were advised to do three apart from Oxbridge candidates.They also did Epq and Creat awards .Dd had 11 gcse 8 A*3A in hard academic subjects , so no dummy.
One - Maths was predictable due to the old modular system.The other two - Biology and Chemistry were not as they were the new exams.Biology in particular was a major curve ball as was one of the Chemistry papers.
There is absolutely no use in comparing experiences years ago to today's exams.The two sciences involved much more application of knowledge which in itself is no bad thing.However it's a step up for teachers and pupils and it will probably be far tougher to achieve higher grades.

DS3 is doing 5 A levels ( three languages, maths and history)

He finished Spanish this year L6 and will carry on with the others next year.

Depends on the individual. Do they enjoy the subjects?

Bertrand I think 'vintage' experience from more than 20 years ago
(O' level / A level era) may come into its own here as it is more akin to the workload challenge of four new style A levels than recent experience with modular A levels from the last 5 years.

I do wish people would stop thinking that their 20 year old personal experience is even remotely relevant to people taking A levels today!

Or, in fact that any anecdote about education 20 years ago is of anything except historical interest to people dealing with the system as it is today.

If he's incredibly clever, extremely organised and works very hard he should cope. He'll soon know if the workload is too much for him and, if so, think about dropping one subject.

I did Maths, Physics, Chemistry and French in the 1990's with no great bother and got straight As. Did help that I had done additional Maths as a GCSC which basically covers a good chunk of the A level maths syllabus.

Back in the dark ages I did A levels in chemistry, physics, biology and AS maths- got AABB ( before A*) I also had a ft boyfriend, attended drama classes (and did lots of shows) and worked every Saturday morning in a nursing home. 16-18 year olds are resilient, totally doable IMO.

Many years ago but my friend did chemistry, biology, maths and physics at A Level. She didn't have many free periods. She got all As and went to Cambridge to study veterinary science . She was and is very clever though!

bert I completely forgot it was mumsnet some of the children probably don't need to attend the lessons either but will surpass thd others

So it's feasible and good for some to be intellectually stretched but it's not necessary usually and if they find A levels hard then three good grades are better than four lesser grades.

It depends on the child and how they adapt to advanced study.
Mine all did six A levels or equivalent apart from one son who always focused on what he needed to get where he wanted and no more. He only did four.
Daughter one did A level theology in year 11, then three sciences and Latin in sixth form with critical thinking and an extended essay as part of the AQA baccalaureate which counted as an extra A level.
Son just did Physics, Maths, Drama, English to A level plus RADA exams.
Then third did Sciences, Maths and Further Maths with theology in year 11.
After that they moved to IB so took six subjects anyway. Youngest did IB plus dance A level and vocational dance exams.
Twins did IB but added in A level drama plus RADA exams.

Did any of you read the thread in May with the MN kid who was going to do AS maths with no lessons and 1 week's study per exam? Everyone (including @noblegiraffe ) scoffed. Then he did mocks 48hrs before each exam and got astoundingly good marks. I'm waiting on tenterhooks to see how he faired in the real thing...

"You cannot show up at A level exams without studying at all and achieve good grades that's absolute bollocks."

Mumsnetter's children can.

You cannot show up at A level exams without studying at all and achieve good grades that's absolute bollocks.

I suppose it depends on how hard you had to study for your GCSEs then. Some study from Easter (or Christmas!) and some simply show up on the day to achieve the same grade.

I think the jump from GCSE to A level is quite big and I got excellent grades in both.

I think so. A-Levels really aren't difficult, no matter the subject (assuming you were okay at GCSE).

I just want to reiterate how much harder in terms of content especially these new A levels are. A couple of years ago 4 A levels was really no biggie if you were good academically. Now I would say you'd need to be exceptionally good. And as universities offer 3 grades (and many consider the EPQ as more valuable than an AS) it is a lot more normal to encourage students to do 3.

A friend did this (different A levels) and ended up with less than stellar grades in all of them and had to retake.

i would say it's risky unless he is incredibly academic.

They're hard subjects in that they're easy to fail. But they're not more work than other subjects. In particular maths, further maths and physics are probably less "work" in terms of time spent and stuff to remember than any other combination of three A levels.

Do not persuade him to do English or History instead.

My dd is doing 4 hard A levels. She's doing maths, further maths, chemistry and physics. She's just finished y12, and so far is getting As in everything.

She doesn't have a part time job though, which a lot of her friends have. She does do extra curricular things a couple of evenings a week, but other than that all her time can be spent studying if she needs to.

Those A levels are only hard if it's not your thing. If you've got a good natural ability then they're easier than essay subjects.

If he wants to do sciences then don't force him to do a humanities subject. He'll want to do some sort of stem subject at uni, which would expect science subjects at A level.

He can always start 4, then if he discovers it's too much then drop whichever one is hardest/least interesting.

It's hard but it's possible, it's getting the balance right,
I studied Biology Chemistry Maths PE & Physics.
It's entirely dependent upon the child & their college/sixth form. It helps to have a 'fun' subject but that can be hard when you only have an option of 4 subjects sometimes.

I agree with unihorn. I did the same and did well. It depends how motivated they are. I wouldn't dismiss it if they're keen.