Taking 3 or 4 A levels

This is where the IB is a much better setup. I wish it was offered more widely. I suppose we don’t have the teachers for it.

While I agree that four are not required for anything, I think that three are really limiting in terms of breadth (and in my opinion not really a full-time education, even if you double the timetabled hours with work at home). However, in terms of grades, he may be disadvantaging himself compared to everyone taking three if he takes four. I would actually like to see everyone move to four with one contrasting subject so that everyone has to show some breadth as well as depth. (Just my opinion, I know it won't be popular.) But I would hesitate to recommend it for an individual in the current setup. What does his school do?

As universities only make offers based on 3 a-levels and the workload is supposedly very high these days, the usual advice is to only take 4 if one is FM. I do know some schools where you can start with 4 but with the option to drop one at some point. This is often for students who are undecided on their degree path and may need to keep options open. It depends on the subjects and the reason for taking 4.

Yes, very true! I meant really that it offers no advantage for university applications. But obviously not everyone wants to go to university.

I do agree about starting with four and dropping to three too. It's a good way of finding out which you really enjoy, especially since some subjects aren't offered at GCSE level.

One of my children has done 4 A-Levels (not including Further Maths) because he liked all 4 subjects and couldn't decide which one to drop. So, he started 6th Form with 4 subjects and we've kept an eye on how he's been coping in case it might have been sensible to drop one subject at any point, but he's coped well. His workload is obviously bigger than his peers but he enjoys all the subjects and has worked really hard. The only real pinch point has been that two of the subjects he chose had a big coursework element so there was some pressure as those deadlines loomed - but that might have been the case if he'd only taken 3 A-Levels I guess. He's not going to university so I can't comment and whether the extra A-Level would have helped or hindered a UCAS application.

DC1 did Maths, Chemistry, Physics and Biology. Got 4x Astar. DC1 is incredibly bright and also incredibly hard-working. I think for these subjects it is worth considering doing 4 because you kind of need them all to do well in science (DC1 did a science degree) For a very clever and motivated young person, it js feasible to do 4. But as others have said, I agree that AAA is better than BBBB.

I think starting with 4 A levels is fine. It can be difficult to narrow it down to 3 after gcse. Ds started with 4 for this reason, and knew half way through year 12 which subject he would 'drop'. It was one he had enjoyed at gcse but discovered he had no interest in at A level . It would have been a bit tricky if he'd only had that subject as one of 3.

Well, except if you're interested and passionate about the subjects I suppose...
I did 3 science A Levels (because I knew it was what I wanted to pursue at uni), plus English Lit out of enjoyment. My uni offer was only based on the sciences so I could do the English with no pressure and simply for the love of the subject.

I think it’s a good idea to start with 4 and assess halfway through year 12. That way if the load is too much can drop one - also if hate one have flexibility. Don’t over think now.

In general many places will only allow three a levels unless you are already doing maths and the fourth one is further maths.

private schools tend to be more flexible, but it is a lot of work and universities rarely require more than three so the general thinking is better to get top grades in three than only ok grades in four.

Some sixth forms let everyone do 4 A levels until the end of year 12 and then drop one subject so when they apply for uni it is with 3 A levels and an AS. There are very few courses where 4 A levels are essential, usually these are top tier unis for courses that would prefer them to have Further Maths. Lots of sixth forms do not offer Further Maths so unis cannot say it is essential however as applicants they will be competing against those with Further Maths.

Only a very small percentage of students take 4 A levels. Both my children did 4 A levels in a state sixth form where most do 3 A levels and the only 4th A level option is Further Maths. My children studied maths and Further Maths but their degree courses needed them as they were maths heavy. Some will ask them to sit an entrance exam such as MAT or STEP. Other top tier course such as History or Languages also require an entrance exam. Look ahead now at all the options at university.

Looking back at my children's timetables for A levels
5 hours of contact time per subject (4.5 for DC2)
6 hours of free periods even with 4 A levels
Enrichment (extra curricular anything from sport, knitting, reading club, chess etc on a Wednesday afternoon)
Assembly
Tutorial.

Both mine managed to either complete work in class so no homework or most of the homework set was completed in their free periods which they used as a study group so they sat with their mates and everyone did their work. The sixth form had a chatty hangout area and a dedicated study area.

I would ask yourself why you feel the need for a 1 hour free period "break" in their school day? They don't have one now. Mine still got a 20 minute morning break and a 30 minute lunch every day.

Unless the fourth A Level is Further Maths or the young person would like to apply to US universities, there is no real point in sitting four A Levels. At least, that's what we were told.

What’s the motivation behind it? What does he want to do post 18? What else does he do in terms of work, hobbies and socialising that he will have to stop?

A bright boy doing 4 which includes maths and FM plus 2 other STEM subjects, has few other commitments and is aiming for a very competitive course which builds on knowledge from a-levels, is in a different boat from an academically average boy who wants to do 4 very disparate subjects because they don’t know which one to drop.

As a rule, AAA, is better than BBBB - but it depends why you are doing it. If it’s a stepping stone to higher education where you will be selected on the basis of the best 3 grades then choose the 3 subjects you are likely to get the best grades. If you want a broader knowledge and don’t mind too much about grades and are happy to work hard then choose 4. If you want to do economics at LSE or MORSE at Warwick etc choose 4.
Revising for 4 different subjects at once is hard. The vast majority will get better grades by sitting 3.