A level choices - too weak?

[dinomirror]

Dd has chosen History, Politics and Economics. She is predicted mainly 8s (school doesn't predict 9s). Lots of people have been a tiny bit shocked when told choices and there seems to be an underlying feeling that they aren't 'hard' enough for her(especially politics) although i know history is a content filled subject . Should she change?

Believe me, History is a very challenging A level indeed. It's not just the content, it's the analysis required and the high level of literacy. Politics and Economics aren't exactly easy either!
Those are good choices and I don't know who has claimed that they are "easy", but that person is very mistaken.

Look at informedchoices.ac.uk which is created by the Russell Group universities.

Those A Levels look pretty respectable to me.

Ignore the people who seem to sneer. Good choice of subjects. The most important thing is to do subjects she actually enjoys.

Ds took these A levels. Got 5 offers from Russell group unis, all in the Sunday Times top 20. He got a first from the LSE.
Yeah they were hard. People saying otherwise have absolutely no idea. He did also take philosophy.

What does she want to do next?
In many cases, unis/employers will be looking at the grades not the subjects at A Levels (except to study a particular subject) so she would be better with three "easy" As than three difficult Bs.
If she wants to continue with economics though, I think she would need maths.

No such thing as an easy A level @dinomirror . If she is interested and will do well then they are good choices.

What’s the thinking behind econ tho? An econ degree usually needs maths tbh so she should be aware of that.

Does she want to go to uni? What might she study? If history is a passion then happy days. Otherwise (and this is the only caveat from me tbh) politics and economics of themselves don’t open any doors. If she was unsure about uni options she might like to take something like geography or MFL or Eng lit or maths which would keep more doors open. But the choices otherwise are fine.

Thanks all, she didn't know what else to pick so picked Econ purely because 'it looks interesting'. History is a huge passion yes- she is naturally gifted at essay based subjects/english. She wants to go to uni and has no idea what to study which is a problem- wants a lucrative career.

Ah we were ok until you said lucrative career!

If she is interested in economics then would she consider maths? If she ended up loving econ enough to take it at uni then maths is needed really.

Have a look at uni websites for course ideas - the worst thing just now is to close doors she later wants to keep open.

Shes not particularly interested in economics and is playing about with law as a carer option but not really keen

How about History, English and Politics?
She could do a History degree then go for a career in Law.

History is the hardest essay based A level. Really hard. The others are also fine. What do people think she should be doing, STEM? I mean, if that's neither her aptitude nor interest what is the point in making that comment?

Yes stem- particularly the sciences as she does excel but she just doesn't really like them

There's no point in taking STEM subjects then.
People saying this are obviously out of touch.

No point taking STEM subject if you don't want a STEM career. Obviously she could take maths instead of politics if she wants to focus on economics, but if she's not really interested there's no point pursuing it.

No point doing A-Levels she doesn’t like, but if she wants to do Economics as a BSc she will need maths. There is a lot of maths and it is more advanced than A-Level maths.

My ds is in the middle of his A-level exams doing these 3 subjects and I would challenge anyone to tell him they're not hard at the moment! The amount of work he has done is phenomenal.

He has had offers from 3 Russell group universities plus Bath (his first choice) which is top 5 for his course and only admits 10-20% of applicants.

I fail to see how anyone can say they are not 'hard' enough - she should choose the subjects she is interested in and which will lead her in the direction she wants to go. Stuff what anyone else thinks!

Econ and Politics A levels do fit well with History. However, they are also 'unknown quantities' in that they are (usually) not taken at GCSE.

One of my DC considered both those subjects for A level and found it useful to review past papers and some of those CGP study books to get a feel for the syllabus and the exams. They did not go forward with the subjects in the end; your DD might take a different view; as always, 'information is power'.

Ultimately it is about the trade-off between likely grades and doors kept open (if the latter matters). Better AstarAA in History, Econ and Politics than AstarBB in History, Maths and Physics. However, AstarAA in History, Econ and Maths would keep more doors open but A level Maths is a material step up and if your DD is realistically likely to attain an 8 rather than a 9 at GCSE, then the likelihood of securing an A in A level Maths is diminished.

They look hard to me!
Had she looked properly at the Economics? It might have more maths content than expected.

Maths shes most likely to get 7 rather than 8 and it doesn't come naturally to her so doesn't want to take it. Yes unlikely to get A in maths. In the course consultation the teacher said that econ has 25% maths and she needs to get grade 5 which she can definitely get.

If your DD is naturally gifted at essay based subjects why doesn’t she take more of those subjects and play to her strengths?

DD got mostly 9’s and a few 8’s at GCSE’s and was being pestered by her Maths teacher to take Maths. She was good enough but didn’t love it. But she also has a natural talent and a passion for English and essay based subjects. She took English Lit, History and Philosophy & Ethics and is on track for Astar, Astar, A. Got an interview at Cambridge (rejected after) and offers from Durham, Warwick, Exeter and Lancaster.

Your DD should choose the subjects that she loves and is most likely to get the best grades in.

DD can attest to History NOT being an easy A level. It is the hardest of her 3 and the only one she hasn’t been predicted Astar in.

I would get her to watch some videos of A level economics so that she can get more idea of what it is like and if she would be interested.

Ah I would maybe steer clear of maths if she is likely to get a 7, and will get 8/9 in other subjects. I would suggest Eng lit rather than economics as that will also enable an Eng lit degree and you say it is a strength of hers.

I agree that it is often the unknown A levels that appeal but also that disappoint - psychology is a classic for this. I would second the suggestion to look at past papers to see what kinds of questions are asked.

Agree with others, no point doing STEM if not keen. DD got As for all her sciences (pre-number grades) but would have hated a triad of biol/chem/phys.

To repeat, there is nothing wrong with the chosen subjects, but has she considered all other options? You say she didn't know what else to pick - as in, didn't like anything enough, or as in, couldn't choose as she liked so many things? What else does she do for GCSE apart from science and maths?

When the exams finish, the school will run taster lessons - she should go to those.

Doesn't like eng lit 🙄🙄. Lang is more her so is a potential option. She actually does psychology gcse and the exam board would be the same for A Level so she is leaning slightly towards that. She's very indecisive if you can't tell!

Does she enjoy psych GCSE? Enough to continue studying it?

Eng lang A level is nothing like the GCSE according to DD's pals who took it.

I want to stress that there is nothing wrong with the options she has chosen - just I would want her to be sure she is choosing them bc she will enjoy those subjects and do well in them, not just bc she doesn't like the GCSEs she is doing, these subjects are new and she thinks they might be interesting.