A level choices

[mrsnjw]

Son is waiting GCSE results. He is on target to get 8/9 in business and geography. Not keen on maths or science. He has no idea what he wants to study long term. He is leaning towards A level geography and business studies. He wants to do psychology ( he has not studied it at GCSE but likes the sound of it and was impressed with the department at the sixth form open evening). He is also now pondering economics. What are peoples thoughts? Thank you.

@NotDonna thank you.

Facilitating subjects don’t exist anymore.

OP- let your child take subjects he enjoys.

@Dotcheck They just have another name! It’s not accurate to say all subjects are the same. There are some which are considered better prep than others for the most competitive degrees. The top unis often say what they are. Also what is a good complementary subject and which are very course specific and great to have for that degree.

Yes, those would be subject requirements, not facilitating subjects as they used to be

No they are not. Subject requirements are, say History for History. Maths for Maths etc. These are always listed.

“Facilitating”’ described subjects which give the best preparation (as usefully listed by Cambridge) for a variety of subjects. So doing a couple keep options as wide as possible and does not close off too much within arts or sciences. They might not be labelled “facilitating” but the info is now called “Choosing your A levels”. It still lists the same set of subjects!

Other subjects are more course specific but are considered perfectly academic. It’s always worth looking at the best combinations of subjects for a course if it’s very competitive and not just required ones. Helps get an offer.

It’s worth bearing in mind that some unis/degrees have reduced offers for a mix of subjects that are relevant - eg offer ABB instead of AAB if taking at least 2 of listed A levels.

Also there can be some overlap in some subjects which can deepen learning - eg Sociology and Human Geo, History & Politics, even Psych and Soc share research methods.

Entry requirements my DCs schools had for A levels gave a good indication of what was required eg Psych at least a 7 in Bio and a 6 in Maths.

I would get your DC to dig down into the A level curriculum for both Business and Econ as they are quite different. I’d pick one, not both.

Les than two weeks until results day! Still very laid back and pondering 🤣

Yes. Business or Economics. There are clear differences. Economics does have more maths and is often studied with maths at A level, for obvious reasons! Business is ok without maths.

If universities want specific A-levels for a subject (or prefer them) they will list this on their website- and it is worth checking before picking. "Preferred" very often does mean "if you don't do this you have a much lower chance of getting an offer". Lots of science degrees are pretty strict about doing at least 2 science A-levels (although psychology and geography usually count)- if you don't do this it can be a real issue (and this can be the cause of students having to repeat Y12 with different choices etc).

However, students will generally do better in subjects they enjoy and are invested in. Picking 3 more traditional subjects, and then getting BBC won't be more competitive for uni entry than picking 3 subjects they really like and getting AAA.

You don’t need 3 “traditional” subjects (facilitating by another name?) but it’s important to do the ones that make you competitive for the course and uni. Some unis and courses are less bothered than others. AAA in photography, PE and Media will limit choice but of course it might not matter.

Business studies and economics are not very separate. I would do one not both. If he plans to go on to further education he might leave business studies till later.

He sounds bright. Maths can become more interesting at A level if you have the aptitude, though a nightmare if you don't enjoy it.

According to Cambridge, business is a vocational A level and economics is academic. I rather suspect they know. The syllabi are very different. However unis generally don’t like Dc taking both.

My dc got 8 I geography at gcse
Chose it for a level and hated it :(
Partially the rubbish teacher (we got him a tutor in the end...)
More maths in a level geography too

DS is doing geography, economics and a language. He’s good at maths but doesn’t love it. Rather like me (did same A levels years ago). The school have said that’s fine - but will mean he can’t do economics at uni. However it does complement the geography. Good luck got the results!

He can still do economics at uni! Some - but not all - courses aren't open to him. Plenty are.

I think that's pretty poor advice from the school. There will be econ degrees he can access with those A-levels, if he wants to. He can also look at foundation years, etc.

Maths A-level would in theory give him a wider choice of unis for economics BUT not if he got (for example) a grade D in it.

If he's keen to do geography or something related at uni, it sounds like a great combination.

My very non-mathsy dd just finished psychology at A Level (having not studied it before) and found it really interesting and not too much maths for her at all. She was considering doing it at university but it seems that it really does get heavily mathsy at that point, so she changed her mind (and will be doing Spanish and Linguistics).

But you're assuming they would get AAA if they did three different subjects- which isn't the case.

In my experience as a teacher who teaches a science subject at A-level, some A-levels are absolutely harder than others- and I can have students working hard to get a C in my subject, whilst getting As in other subjects in some cases. Equally, I can have students getting As who are struggling to get a C in, for example, maths.

Obviously, there's a discussion to be had around this.

But AAA gives you a lot more uni options than, say BBB.

I agree but the right combinations still matter at some unis for competitive courses. That’s why guidance is useful. Obviously if the uni doesn’t care, fine. But AAA in the wrong subjects is equally unhelpful for some. It’s always highlighted as a reason some bright Dc do not get into courses they should. Subjects and grades matter.

Not all economics degrees ask for maths A level btw including some RG++ Many are happy with a decent gcse maths grade.

Some DC choose subjects because they believe it’ll have more kudos and the uni will care. They rarely mind what a 3rd subject is. For an economics degree one of mine chose chemistry over psychology for her 3rd subject (alongside economics & maths). She would no doubt have got a higher grade in psychol but thought chemistry (even at a lower grade) would count for more - kudos etc. It obviously doesn’t.

Depends what degree she wanted and where, doesn’t it. Not having AAA rules her out of some degrees so that was for her to find out. However AAB does keep you in a lot and presumably she’s ok where she is. It’s like a game of chess really and the school should have advised that a third subject is somewhat immaterial if you want economics. It’s also not necessary to have a hard A level as a third A level for Engineering. However some places will greatly prefer FM. It’s weighing up all the info, knowing where you might apply and for what course.

@TizerorFizz yes school were pretty useless and gave zero advice. She’s on a degree apprenticeship so turned down her econ offers. But she’s still pissed at her chemistry ‘blip’ 🤣She believes (as does her old psychol teacher) it would have been another A* but hey ho! But her experience has made me discuss options with my other DC more thoroughly & ensure they understand.

It’s weighing up all the info, knowing where you might apply and for what course. which is a tough task at 16 for most! And especially when you don’t even know how well you’re about to do in your GCSEs.

It partly depends how the college/ sixth form block the subjects when timetabling. Some students choose a trio of A -levels that don't tradionally 'fit' together and the timetable doesn't permit this as there aren't classes running at separate times. Speak to the school for advice and see what works.