Business History and Media A levels- what do you think?

[Flyhigher]

Good choices? What degrees could they lead to?
Like to hear anyone's experience.

They are good choices for someone who enjoys those subjects. No direct experience but they could lead to degree in history, business, media studies (obvs) and lots of other degrees for which no specific A level is needed (things like sociology, journalism, criminology, social policy).

Is this for someone in yr 11 now? Do they study these subjects for GCSE (I mean history presumably yes)? What are they interested in studying at uni?

Don't be led by the MN mantra of "must study maths or science at A level" - that's not for everyone and two years of misery studying maths and biology if hated is not helpful IMHO.

Frankly,study what you like what you’re good at
I imagine those A level will result in humanities, social science or media studies degree
Media studies used to have a rep as a soft subject,bit of a doss

I guess they’re non-facilitating subjects so I’d assume the student perhaps isn’t v. academic in a traditional sense or perhaps that they are academic but from a less privileged background so haven’t been able to realise their potential.

Either way I’d recognise they might be super creative, hard working, good with people and any number of attributes that’d make them a brilliant student and eventual member of the workforce. Any route of their choosing is open aside from maybe super elite corporate law or consultancy type jobs that most of us would be excluded from anyway.

I saw a phenomenally successful chap on LinkedIn this week with similar sorts of A levels from a non-wealthy background. He’s now smashing it in every sense as an entrepreneur profiled in national newspapers etc

I guess they’re non-facilitating subjects

That's outdated terminology. History is definitely an 'academic' subject, and it's 'facilitating' in the sense it's likely to be a requirement for a history degree.

Some of the views on the merit of various ".... studies" A levels may not be valid nowadays following the reforms.

Yes agree, facilitating subjects is outdated.

History was on the list anyway.

Media is not a doss - ask @piggywaspushed

It depends what they want to do?

History is a lot of reading and is regarded as academic, business and media are broader and more accessible - this is not to say very bright kids don’t do them, but they are accessible to less academic kids.

Yes, sorry, I recall the Russell Group dropped the term ‘facilitating subject’ just before the pandemic so it’s definitely dated. You know what I mean though! Certain subjects will always have a certain cachet with certain employers. That said, I think you could do plenty with that combination. Most of us don’t want to go to a stuffy uni and end up at McKinsey and Company anyway! It’s a combination that leaves lots of options open.

Sometimes career paths are unlikely. Apparently history grads are now highly sought after in data analytics. Business is a good all rounder. And media is great for anything requiring critical thinking which is pretty much every job of the future with the advent of AI.

Yes AI. So will there be no marketing jobs as AI takes up all those jobs?

Hi OP,
If you are concerned about university Pathways with these subjects a nice way to waste time instead of working is to go on University websites and look for their entrance requirements. This sort of task takes me ages because I start looking at housing and sports and imagine its me going not the young person.
From my own experience though I would suggest Economics instead of business, I just found it a lot more interesting, broader scope and some economic history which went with my History A level really neatly.

@Flyhigher i suspct there will always be marketing jobs because of the human element that’s hard to replace with robots. The creativity, comms and strategy parts maybe. I can see that a lot of the admin, scheduling, analytics etc could be replaced with AI.

Totally agree with this. AI will be very helpful in terms of data analysis of survey results, trials etc and its speed might allow for bigger sample sizes, which will make the data more relevant. But people skills and creativity are vital elements in marketing, and I think we are still some way off replacing those.

@Flyhigher business studies keeps a lot of doors open and is a solid choice these days for both A levels and degrees. I think in some quarters media studies is still seen as a slightly softer option (not sure I agree with that view fwiw), but alongside history and business is unlikely to be a major issue for many universities..

op asked for opinions, anecdotally media studies had a rep as doss A level and doss degree. To be clear I don’t necessarily agree but it’s an opinion that’s oft repeated and commonly held. At one point media studies was not counted as an A level by oxbridge and other universities

Nowdays people routinely do a masters or conversion degree. So initial degree doesn’t matter so much. Arts and Humanities degree graduates go into many career and have options

if those A levels are a good fit I’d say go for it . Study what you’re interested in

op asked for opinions, anecdotally media studies had a rep as doss A level and doss degree. To be clear I don’t necessarily agree but it’s an opinion that’s oft repeated and commonly held. At one point media studies was not counted as an A level by oxbridge and other universities

Was that point before A levels were reformed? Is it perhaps an outdated opinion?

Sure it’s outdated view that I don’t share, and it’s probably still got some residual traction
I am surprised if anyone hasn’t heard disparaging comments regard media studies. I don’t think it’s a who’d have thunk it opinion
As I have repeatedly said study what is a good fit and of interest, that will retain interest and commitment

The expression “facilitating” has been dropped but “informed” choices are still relevant. Cambridge says what I’ve attached. No getting away from what they think but of course many others won’t.

It’s all about academic preparation. Also some subjects are seen as best preparation for a wider choice of subjects and others are more focussed on a narrower range. History is great prep for very many humanities degrees. I would probably see if another academic subject could be substituted but don’t bother if DC isn’t looking for a uni or subject where it matters. The best business/management courses like maths.

Consider what type of degree and where and then make an informed choice. Read the Cambridge advice “How to Choose A levels or High School Subjects” and you won’t go far wrong. Plus not all unis are highly competitive and you must balance choices with grades likely to be achieved.

If two A levels are new, is this a good idea? What else could be continued from GCSE?