A'Level choices-Geography, Economics & Physics

[everythingisgoingup]

Opinions on these?

DS does not know what he wants to do but these are the subjects he is interested in and predicted a 9 for Geography and Physics.

Likes the look of Economics.

Predicted an 8/9 Maths but doesn't like it enough to do at A'"Level.

Do these work? 😊

Mine is doing economics, geography and chemistry.
Not doing maths a level limits economics choices. Mine wants to do sustainable development.

Thanks exasperatednow thanks for your swift reply, sounds interesting, where is he/she studying?

This is quite an awkward subject profile.
If he wants to carry on with anything physics related, he will need math.
Math is required for most competitive universities for economics.
It is a good profile if he wants to go on to Geography based subjects though.

Dotcheck thanks. He us good at Maths (predictive grades 8/9) but does not love it & cannot face 2 more years ☹️

He is not sure what to do after A'levels. Hard isn't it?

Does he love Physics enough if he doesn't love maths? Obviously, there's particle physics and it's more applied generally, but there is a LOT of maths in physics A-level.

Physics without maths is very unusual and for a good reason. I think one person did that in ds2’s year and found it a real challenge bc so much maths is needed. He would be better subbing maths for geography or economics. Also Yy an econ degree is not easy to find with no maths.

If he is not a fan of maths, economics and physics are surprising choices tbh.

This would be an awkward combination for university admissions, leaving you just with Geography or social science type courses as an option, as Economics and Physics and similar courses all require maths at top institutions, which I imagine your DC would be looking at with 8/9s.

This combination will limit his uni options somewhat.

He has really enjoys physics Hedyprism and it is more than maths (in his opinion) not just maths all the time iyswim?

His physics teacher said only 50% do maths A'Level

But I hear you all, this is my concern 😳

Does he have any kind of idea about what he would like to do at uni? I guess the risk is he enjoys physics or economics so much he wants to read it for undergraduate but subsequently can’t because he didn’t take maths. Whereas if he’s thinking about social sciences or something like law, it would be fine to take those subjects just because he enjoys them/is good at them

It's really hard to only pick 3 subjects when two of them really need maths to support them, it's so restrictive. Is there any chance of taking 4? Back in the day it seemed quite common, but possibly less so now.

CremeEggSupremacy
Not really he is not sure at all!
He knows not Maths but likes the others. I cannot talk him in to it! But understand why it may be a good idea.

Trouble is he is 15 and making decisions for when he is18!

DD did three 'odd ' A levels and is now at top uni just want to keep options open for him but don't want to close things off either ☹️😊

sausageinabun
He could do four and drop one (DD did this interestingly)

😂

Seems a reasonable combination if he's going to do something with the geography

It might be a good choice for environmental science or policy type degrees. Maths rather than economics would definitely give him more options, but if he's set against it...

Meteorology or climate science looks good for his geog and physics interests, but I'm pretty sure would need maths A level.

Only one science and no maths limits sciencey options at uni, if that's a direction he might want to go in. Same with economics without maths, trickier to take forward.
Geography degree? Does he like human geography? I'm thinking socio-economic stuff.
Or maybe he doesn't want to go to uni at all. Which is a completely valid choice. Three slightly non matchy A Levels with good grades is better than three poor or failed matching A Levels!

Ultimately he's the one taking them and he needs to be interested to sustain level of study needed. And really the world is his oyster! He can always do maths part time while working in the future if he suddenly realised he needs it.

the last thing you want is subjects he hates and he is either miserable for 2 years or drops out / fails

Thanksellmau and notango more options 😊

Agree about wanting to do subjects but do worry not enough maths or science

I did 4 ‘odd’ subjects and then couldn’t do the subject I really wanted to as I didn’t have the right combination. So I did law. It turned out okay for me but at the time I was quite gutted and it does obviously affect your job stuff. It’s so heavy to decide this at 15. If your son could see doing maths as a necessary evil for now could he get through it? I don’t think the PT suggestion for maths is a great idea tbh, it’s easier to do maths and physics together as they kind of work in sync as your knowledge in each of them progresses, and once you’re out of maths for a while it’s quite difficult to get back in again IME. If he can take it for a year and drop it that seems a good solution, he’ll know by then what he wants to apply for at uni and if he doesn’t need it then happy days

We're having similar discussions with DD1 about A levels (similar grades, different subjects). Anyway, we looked at A level requirements for degrees she might be interested in and she soon realised herself that some choices really limited her. I even sent her links to less obvious degrees that I thought she might find interesting to give her an idea of how many different options there were so she didn't feel like I was pushing her down one route.

I'm Scottish and think this is a massive weakness of the English system in comparison to other countries. It's apparently fine for those with narrow interests but a nightmare for those who are interested in lots of different subjects. And I'd argue that those with narrow interest would benefit from a broader education for longer. But since CP Snow argued the two cultures were detrimental to Britain in 1959 and things still haven't fundamentally changed I'm not holding my breath. At least governments now realise science education is important.

Physics without maths could be tough going (you had to do maths if you wanted to do physics at my DC’s school).

Geography can be considered a science for some courses, but these will most likely be earth science / environmental science type courses.

Thanks for replies there are several things to consider here.

We had suggested working back from degrees and choose from there.

It is a weakness of the system, specialising so soon.

He still has time to choose but so many aspects to consider 😊

That is genuinely surprising. As I said, IME physics with no maths is v unusual. This may be bc physicists live maths, or it may be bc they realise they need maths ofc.

If he is set against maths, I agree it’s perhaps not great to force him into it (if you even could). But get him to look into some degrees at a few well rated unis so he can see how his options will be limited.

At least if he knows now that physics or certainly econ or engineering is unlikely post 18, he’ll be going forward eyes open.

Physicists love maths lol. Tho they may live it too.

I’d really encourage him to add maths or swap physics for maths. Maths opens up a lot more options and is useful for all of these subjects. Without it it’s slightly awkward combination.

if he can take four and drop one, make it maths. He may well find he enjoys it more at A level- much more interesting than gcse.