Yearly warning not to take A-level maths with less than a 7 at GCSE

@noblegiraffe Thank you for replying.
They did put the papers in order of those that they thought would be worth getting reviewed and said that one paper definitely wasn't worth getting reviewed.
Obviously they can't give a guarantee that it will work and it's a lot of money to spend if he's still maybe one mark off at the end of it all, but worth it if he has actually got those points!
We'll think some more on it.
Thanks again for replying.

At my DS’ school you cannot do A Level maths unless you get an 8 in GCSE maths.

It's a shame not all schools offer core maths. DS got a secure 7 in maths but doesn't want to take the A Level. I think it's a shame he can't continue maths alongside his other subjects without doing the A Level.

Thank you.

So after it all going a bit Pete Tong, we are now thinking of dropping FM for economics, eSports is totally off the cards.

Maths with a 7 sounds a good plan though.

@noblegiraffe - what is your view on Dr Frost Maths? My DC seem to have used that for free extensively to practise. As well as Seneca for Science. And YouTube videos if they don’t understand a concept. Maths seems to be like music practice, little very often goes a very long way.

Can I ask about Core Maths? My dd did gcse foundation maths and got a 5. She wants to do psychology a level and the school are suggesting she does AQA Core Maths to support this. Would a gcse foundation student struggle with this?

DS got a 9 in Maths and Further Maths.

He does want to do them both at A level but he has zero interest in science so Maths, Further Maths and History.

He's not sure what he wants to do at uni or generally.

My DS is taking Maths and Further Maths at A level. He got a high 8 in GCSE (4 marks off a 9). He’s strong at maths and enjoys it, but god this thread has me worried, he has a good work ethic most of the time, but this does lapse occasionally. He’s defo not been set any bridging work which is concerning.

Totally agree with this. DD did maths, further maths, chemistry and French - all subjects frequently mentioned as difficult. However for her, I think any other subject would have been harder. (It turned out to be particularly light on essays - at an academic writing workshop she was asked what how long her longest essay was expected to be at A-level. 350 words - unless you count the UCAS personal statement!)

My dd did that combination for her A levels but dropped the further maths because she didn’t see the point of doing an extra A level when she didn’t have to. She is studying economics at university
However, if your ds is driven he may as well give it a go with the four A levels

6 in maths is fine for psychology and economics, but it's generally recommended to take maths alongside physics. Our school likes a 7 in maths as a minimum to take physics and preferably to take maths A level as well.

Would psychology, economics and business not be a better fit?

@noblegiraffe - thank you for posting that bridging work document. We were given work (already done) but have no idea if is correct so this one is really useful with the answers for checking.

If he's good at maths, it's a good combo.

@noblegiraffe and @lanthanum - thanks very much.

Once he's back from Reading, we'll sort the final choices.

I agree with this.

Same applies to other subjects like the sciences, although would accept 6's most sciences whereas needs a 7 for maths.

Sometimes, no amount of hard work is going to help.

There are always exceptions to the rule, but often the kindest thing you can do is not let them on the course.

Oh well, it's all gone to pot. The college won't allow him to any A Levels even A level maths ( he got a 7).

We are looking into other options, and hopefully have one that will be a bit more accommodating.

My son did this combination. He only got a C originally for GCSE maths but got either A or A* at A Level. I think they advised against it due to his maths grade, but he pushed for it. To be honest, he was probably always capable but he was lazy before sixth form. Anyway, he found these subjects fine for him, he enjoyed them and it led him to uni.

I remember being told that candidates whose results are within 1 or 2 marks of a grade boundary are automatically remarked. This was in the context of OCR A level Maths, I don't know if it's generally applied, and if it's just an arithmetical check of the marks or a full look at the student's papers.

It would have been a few years ago and also I can't remember where I heard it - either in a Maths department meeting or at an OCR meeting for teachers - but I have believed it ever since. 😔

Has anyone else heard that?

@peanutcookie "tough" combinations are subjective. It was a long time ago - before the whole do 4 subjects in Y12 and stop one as AS level. I did Bio, Phys, Chem and maths. Most people would say that's a "tough" combination, however I promise you I'd have found most other subjects harder. My brain works STEM-like. You son has 8s and 9s in the subjects linked to most of those A levels. Sounds like he should enjoy the combination.

DS got a 9 yesterday in Maths and 8,9 in Double Science. He has enrolled for Maths, Further Maths, Economics and Physics. He is quite excited to these subjects and confident but a friend who is a maths teacher has said that this is a really tough combo. My thinking is that he can always drop the FM but now I'm worrying a bit if he is overloading himself. The unis he is thinking of prefer FM if applying for Economics

Hi @Hoppinggreen I teach Business Studies A Level. At my school you would need 6 in both Maths and English to do either Business or Economics. Business Studies is about 25% numerical and its not particularly hard maths, they just don't give you all the info you need to work out the answer so it's not as straightforward as just remembering the correct equation and then inputting the correct figures as you would have to do one or two steps before you can use the equation. Plus it's more about interpreting the numbers into how it will impact the business. I had a student who was very able but fell apart whenever it came to a mathsy question, in his mocks there was a 20 marker essay that was maths based and he couldn't do it. He still came out with an A* for his final grade