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Original poster

A level maths - advice needed please

39 replies

KittyMcKitty · 24/10/2020 14:38

My youngest dc is needing to start deciding on A level options - obviously we will be speaking to her teachers in detail but would like to ask the collective MN opinion (especially any maths teachers).

Whilst nothing in this world is certain she is predicted 8’s and 9’s at GCSE - her sciences are particularly strong.

She wants to study Biology / Biochemistry / Biomedical Science at university and has aspirations to apply to Oxford.

She will definitely do Biology and Chemistry a A level but the dilemma is should she also do maths? She is not a natural mathematician and it has been a slightly bumpy road - he main problem being lack of confidence (it’s a grammar school - there are loads of v gifted mathematicians and she has at times felt rubbish in comparison. She is at the top of set 3 out of 5 - could have moved to set 2 but didn’t want pressure and it would have meant doing Further Matgs). She got a lowish 8 in the most recent past paper done in class. I would say she’s probably most likely to get an 8.

So my question is would Chemistry be v hard without A level maths? Is it possible she could get a good enough A level grade or would she be better off with a subject she would enjoy more? At the moment that other subject would be probably Drama or Psychology. Studying drama would not exclude her from any of the universities she's looked at (her school also has a track record of people getting accepted onto similar courses with drama / dance as 3rd A level).

Sorry that was long! TL:DR Should she do A level maths or would it be better to do something else?

OP posts:
Original poster
KittyMcKitty · 24/10/2020 16:49

Thanks everyone. She doesn’t need it it was more would Chemistry be a struggle without it so it’s good to hear positives. For Oxford you don’t have to do the Bmat for Biology or Biochemistry but do for Biomedical Sciences and I imagine that would be a struggle without maths.

Nobel thank you and yes really good points and this is definitely the big downside of grammar schools! She will stay where she is for A level and tgey don’t offer Core Maths - just the standard Maths / Further Maths options unfortunately.

She doesn’t like maths so it does seem that it wouldn’t be the best option and I do feel she would get a much better grade in Psychology, Drama or English so that is probably the way to go.

OP posts:
Pikachubaby · 24/10/2020 16:49

I think you can lose perspective in grammar schools.

My DS1, at a comp, got mainly 7s and was considered “high achiever” and being put on a special programme to support him going to a good Uni.

On MN, and in grammer school circles (ie your life OP Grin) you can believe 8s and 9s are needed.

But mostly they are not. If she gets an 8 for maths now, she’ll do well at A levels.

Main thing is she does subjects she enjoys. Maybe that’s not maths... and maybe drama is not that useful for an academic uni subject, so maybe psychology is the best option here?

MarchingFrogs · 24/10/2020 16:39

Being brutal, her chance of getting into Oxford is rather less than her chance of not getting into Oxford, just looking at it numbers-wise.

So if all of the other universities that she is interested in are happy that (although there are almost certainly aspects of what she wants to study that would be easier if she had) having done maths A level is not a prerequisite, then it would be daft to fixate on the requirements for the place she is least likely to get onto, at the expense of 1) enjoying all the subjects she studies for the next 2 years and 2) getting 3 good grades rather than 2 and a 'possibly not and therefore possibly 3) reducing her chance of getting an offer from, or meeting said offer, from the other 4.

Our eldest studied Biochemistry (at Birmingham). I can't remember whether Maths was a requirement, but he did do Maths, because he was both good at it and enjoyed it. Perhaps it's just me, but I can't help thinking that 'Entry requirements should mean just that - We can't teach this course effectively to students without this prior knowledge / skill set. Anything else, desirable but not essential, fine. But apart from that, not relevant.

titchy · 24/10/2020 15:59

My biosciences dc didn't do Maths A level and had to work quite hard at uni to catch up. That said she managed it, and is now doing a stem Masters and helps her (physics ungrad Hmm) sibling with stats.

areallthenamesusedup · 24/10/2020 15:53

2 out of 3 of mine are/have done maths A-level. It is tough. You do need to like it.

Not convinced she would need it for biological sciences. Requirements are all on the uni websites.

noblegiraffe · 24/10/2020 15:36

Look at the university requirements for the courses she is interested in.

Core Maths is a good option if she doesn't want to take A-level but does want to do sciences, it's designed to be taken alongside 3 A-levels (if the school offers it).

She needs to remember that if she were in another school she would actually consider herself pretty shit-hot at maths to be getting an 8 on past papers at this point in the year.

Historygeek05 · 24/10/2020 15:35

My DD was in a similar situation two years ago. She decided to take English Lit along with Biology and Chemistry. She reckoned it was better for her to have good predicted grades (English Lit is an A*) than take Maths which, while it would be useful, would be more of a struggle. She got an 8 in her Maths GCSE but was not a natural mathematician.

She’s had no problems with the Maths content in either Chemistry or Biology and is now in the process of applying for Biochemistry courses at uni.

Having said all that though she has not applied to Oxford; they do say that although Maths A level is not essential it will make your application more competitive.

Original poster
KittyMcKitty · 24/10/2020 15:34

Thank you that’s really encouraging. She doesn’t like maths so it does seem sensible to look at other choices Smile

OP posts:
MrsEricBana · 24/10/2020 15:31

I don't agree, from personal experience, that you need maths A level for a biological sciences degree and in terms of applications, a weak maths grade will be less use than a strong psychology grade. Biology, chemistry and psychology sit well together for the degrees you mentioned and also for neuroscience etc. Not sure about drama. I would definitely advise doing the one your dc likes best and can get the best grade in. Good luck!

iamme21 · 24/10/2020 15:25

DS did A level biology, chemistry and geology, he now has a degree and a masters in biology. He hated maths!

Abraid2 · 24/10/2020 15:20

Thank you and good luck to yours!

Original poster
KittyMcKitty · 24/10/2020 15:16

@Abraid2 thank you and congratulations to your daughter. It’s really good to hear her experience.

OP posts:
Abraid2 · 24/10/2020 15:12

My daughter is a fourth-year medical student (not at Oxford).

She only took AS maths. Her A levels were Biology, Chemistry and Drama. Her school hadn't had anyone doing that combination before but worked it out for her. She didn't take triple science at GCSE, either, just double.

I think unversitites are more flexible than we think. I didn't know what to think and was worried she might be missing some mathematical skill that others would have. If that's the case then it hasn't shown itself as a problem so far.

GrammarHopeful · 24/10/2020 15:05

She will need Maths for her degree, so not taking it at A levels will put her on disadvantage later on.

The holy trinity of Maths, Biology and Chemistry cannot be beat for what she is hoping to achieve.

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