Thoughts on doing 5 A-level subjects

OP I remember you from a previous thread as joining a U.K boarding school from overseas and also a comment about requiring EAL.
If you have already covered much of A level maths syllabus then 5 for you could be fine and not as much of a stretch as for UK students transitioning from GCSEs. Have a look at the maths and FM syllabus to get an idea, you may be pleasantly surprised how much you already know.
However don't forget that you need a fair amount of time away from your room to make the most of the experience and activities of your new school, also for any work experience as well as EAL sessions.

The other thing to bear in mind as well is the total move to linearity and the big step up in challenge in the current batch of A levels.
Since for Science there has only been one year group through so far, and for maths none, all the advice of “oh I managed it” is based on the old system.
At this point 2 years ago all our good students would have accumulated so many UMS that the stress was very much reduced in y13, now it is all done in June of y13, with nothing in the bag.

No benefit, loads of downsides, especially in stress for you.
There are fewer and fewer med schools that will take students without biology so tread carefully there. You certainly don’t need 5 once you are at med school either, if you want to intercalate they will look at your current uni performance, and anyway it is much easier ( since you pay an extra £9k) these days to add in that extra degree.
Really you need to decide which course you are aiming for, and not try to hedge your bets for too long.
Most engineering courses also don’t need further maths ( obviously Imperial, Cambridge etc expect it) have just asked one of my dc who is doing mech eng at a RG and they say very few on their course have further maths.

My DD is only taking three A levels, but also as a music scholar has lessons in violin, piano and voice, as well as doing exams for those, as well as a voluntary thing for an hour or so a week. She copes well, but I think you have to be focused to get the work done.

It might be worth talking to your potential Sixth Form and check if you can drop one in the first term if it's too much. Also, look at various university sites (ones you might want to aim or those close by) for the courses your interested and they'll give you an indication of their requirements.

Whatever you chose, keep your options open as you could change your mind.

I did five (not General Studies which was on top) in the dying days of linear exams, where my three essay subjects were linear but Maths and FM were modular.

I had seventeen exams to sit in two weeks of the summer of y13. Four in one day (had to go into isolation overnight and sit one the next day). For that reason alone I would advise against. The benefits have been entirely tangential and the notion of having a "spare" subject in case one of your subjects goes badly is just a myth. The risk of missing your star because you're spread too thin is far greater.

For engineering subjects I think FM is a real benefit, as it means you hit the ground running rather than having to catch up. Physics essential.

For medicine biology is as pps have said unnecessary, but chemistry is crucial. But if you aren't already absolutely certain you want to be a doctor then chances are (1) you won't be able to convince an interview panel in 20 months' time and (2) you'd be taking on an awful lot of work and debt for no obvious gain.

I'd recommend Phys/Chem/Maths/FM -with a view to dropping either Physics or FM as your career intentions become clearer.

Best of luck.

My DS heard the term 'Asian quintet' at his boarding school to describe the combination of the three sciences and two maths. The phrase was propogated by the Asians themselves who were justly proud of being able to do that combination and ace it.
Obviously lots of other 5 A level combinations are possible and done successfully like Needmoresleep's DCs
One of mine in a 5 day week day school started with 5 (mixture of old and reformed A levels) mainly because of being unable to narrow down preferences. The 5 Alevels including the two maths and an essay subject were perfectly manageable despite loads of extracurricular but the essay subject was dropped after two terms partly due to being less interested and partly because of wanting to spend more time doing other things.

Friends continued with 5 including essay subjects and MFLs very successfully but were all hard workers.

I understand it is used informally at some UK boarding schools where perhaps some overseas Asian pupils are very focussed on results and perhaps not that well integrated into school life. But in selective academic schools all pupils will be capable so racial stereotypes tend not to come into play.

‘Will not be using it as a term.’

Kirsten, the weird thing it that in our experience, and I can think immediately of a dozen of DCs friends who took five A levels, it is not true.

DDs fifth A level was an-extracurricular subject which happened to be examined. Certainly no more work that others who took music, drama or debating to a high level. I assume that if there were concerns that any pupil were struggling, the school would have had a conversation about work load and the scope to reduce commitments, but as far as I know this never happened.

DD is now studying medicine. She has already used each of her subjects one way or another, and expects a wider base knowledge to help when she starts applying for intercalation. (Possibly bio-engineering or something around imaging.) It also meant that she did not notice much shift in workload at University, which was helpful given how much else is going on then, and has meant she has sufficient capacity and organisation to engage with non academic things there.

I will confess though that she was at a private school with lessons on Saturday mornings and fairly long school days so timetabling was less of an issue.

Is it even possible on your school timetable?

In some schools, the Further Maths A level isn't really an "extra" subject, so doesn't need extra lessons so not a timetabling problem. They do the normal A level work in year 12 and then the further maths work in year 13, so it's just faster rather than more lessons.

@EllenJanethickerknickers it’s a judgemental stereotype based on the made up concept of race - yes you’re being racist

If you want to do medicine then I’d say work experience in a care home will be far more beneficial to your application that a 5th a level. To do medicine you need to prove your commitment and dedication to it and don’t underestimate the amount of work experience others will have done.

It depends on how good at Maths you are and how flexible your teachers are. A couple of years ago I had a student who were very good at Maths so in the normal Maths lessons I let him do other subjects’ work and in the Further Maths lessons, he often finished the work early and then worked on STEP. He coped well with 5 subjects and still had plenty of time for other interests. It only worked because I had been teaching him for a few years. Eventually he dropped Biology in year 13 because he didn’t need it for his offer and spent the time doing STEP instead.

For most pupils they are far more likely to do worse with 5 A Levels than with 3 (eg. 3 A/A* vs AABBB. Unless you are absolutely top notch and have excellent time and stress management (this is key - it’s not just about being clever. Some are badly suited to more than 3 A Levela temperamentally) then there’s no advantage and likely an actual disadvantage.

I teach at a v high achieving selective independent at the moment. Only Maths and Further Maths pupils are doing 4 at A Level. Quite a few doing 4 in Lower Sixth and then dropping this term to 3. High numbers for Oxbridge and Medicine and I think you’d be advised not to do that many. The new A Levels are demanding and there’s simply no need.

Also, due to A-Levels going linear, it's no longer as simple as starting off with more, and then dropping one or two after the first year, and many schools/colleges no longer allow for that as they would now take a hit on their retention & success figures, if students quit halfway through a qualification.

I wouldn't recommend it! Unis no longer ask for more than 3 as standard, 4 for the AimHighers and with the switch to linear, you are looking at doing 3x2-3hr long exams in June of your second year in each of your subjects; so if you were doing 5 subjects you'd be doing up to 15 exams in a period of 2-4 weeks!!! Completely unnecessary pressure to add to an already stressful time when it's not actually needed.

I would have thought it's a complimentary stereotype at worst?

Complementary stereotype is a good way to put it. For what its worth i've known two boys do 5 A'levels and yes both were British Asian.

Think carefully about what else you could be doing with your time, other than taking 2 more A level subjects than you actually need - more reading/research, work experience, attending lectures and events, taking part in workshops, competitions, pursuing hobbies, sports, music etc - all things that are likely to make you a more interesting and rounded person than someone who spends every waking hour studying. If you want to make your application stand out, there are other ways to do it!

There is no upside and plenty of downsides I think. You don't need to do 4 A levels even if you do further maths. DS is at Oxford studying maths now. His A levels are maths, FM and physics. That's all.

Both mine did five finishing them two and four years ago. Not a major deal as far as I could see. The fifth subject was optional but one they both enjoyed.

Neither were perfectionist nor particularly hard working, which probably helped. Doing homework quickly for five subjects does not take too much longer than doing homework quickly in four. Still plenty of time for gaming (DS) and sport (DD). The main issue was for DD was that she had no frees at all during the school week.

Yeah, if your dream is Oxbridge then take 5 by all means, but otherwise it's overkill for no real gain. It's worth noting that by your second year of uni, no one will give a shit what your A level subjects / results were. I don't mean this in a rude way, just that the things that are or seem hugely important at one stage of your life, fade into the background as you move on.

The upside to doing five is that it differentiates you.

With regards to uni applications, I know for my old subject at Oxford, their three A level offer is AAA, but AAAA for four A Levels. If you do five, then not only are you more likely to get an interview, but you need less A, and if you drop to a B in one subject it doesn’t effect you.

It’s a risk, but like I say, if you can manage it then it makes you stand out.