Maths degree without further maths A level

[fernsgotlegs]

Is it possible to get into a decent uni to study maths with an A or A* in maths A level but no further maths A level? And if you do get a place would you feel out of your depth among students with FM?

DC doing maths, econ and politics A levels, predicted A*AA and feels exams are going very well so far. Has accepted an offer for business at Exeter, but really prefers maths, but lacked confidence to apply because of not taking FM. Would it be realistic to reapply for maths, or is the lack of FM a genuine barrier/disadvantage?

I got a first in maths from Durham and I didn't do further maths a level

OP, perhaps your DS should decide which Maths programmes appeal to him and reason backwards. He can find statistics on what proportion of recent entrants have done FM. As soon as that approaches 50%, my sense is that the student vibe and teaching pedagogy will start to assume it.

It will be possible for a very self confident student willing to work hard, ignore their peers and utilise office hours to do any course that does not require FM. But that describes very few Y1 students. I stand by my earlier comment that as soon as most students have had FM I would want my own DC to be in this position also.

Of course it depends on the programme. But the PPs saying they didn’t have FM and were fine are very likely from the days when FM was a minority subject almost everywhere except the COWI tier. It wasn’t that long ago.

DS has read this thread with interest. He spoke to the UCAS coordinator at school briefly on Friday and is going back to speak to her and also the head of maths once exams are over. I think he will probably spend time researching his options over the summer and possibly take a year out. Thanks for all the replies - lots of useful points made.

Irrelevant in as much as Durham require FM these days .

Hi OP - if by a year out you mean 'a year in which t=he takes FM A level' then great, But be aware that (I gather) maths uni courses tend not to like students to take a year out from education as they find their maths ability starts to slip. Just anecdotal tho.

When? Did your school offer it? How unusual was it not to have FM? Did it make life harder?

My son's school only allowed 3 A levels, but for those wanting to do FM, that group did their A level in the lower sixth and then the FM A level in Upper Sixth, so they only did 3 A levels each year.

@Needmoresleep - admittedly I graduated just over a decade ago, so things may have changed since!

I got an unconditional offer. I studied maths and physics at a-level, so maybe they figured that was mathsy enough? I was also accepted to study maths at UCL.

I went to a v.competitive school that most certainly did offer FM. The only reason I didnt take it was that I changed my mind about what I wanted to study about a million times during y12 and y13.

@Needmoresleep - it was pretty unusual on my course not to have done FM. A lot of my friends on the course said that the first year recovered a fair amount of FM content, so it would've made first year easier I suppose, but also didn't make it impossible for me.

I would say LSE suits a student with a lot of independent motivation. They kind of leave you to sink or swim. But if you are the right kind of driven you will make connections and get opportunities like nowhere else! It's really a straight avenue into a well paid career if that's what drives you.

I agree. DS was at LSE, not that long after you and on a similar course (Econometrics and Mathematical economics). He too knew students without FM but said that first year for them was harder as a result. Apparently they covered the content of half a first year FM statistics paper in a single lecture. It was much easier to have already gone through it in the classroom, and have first year University as revision. For some it might be the fine line between sink and swim.

LSE suited DS as well. But it is not for everyone.

OP,

@clary is correct, and it is not just anecdotal. Many STEM courses including most of the more competitive ones generally take a dim view of a gap year, and the reason is a concern that maths skills will be lost.

I generally think this concern is not warranted and of course spending the year doing FM entirely mitigates it, but your DS should be aware of it

He can just self study some of the FM pure modules over the summer to ensure he is not behind

Thanks, that's useful to know about unis not liking a year out. I think ds will see what his maths and UCAS teachers advise before deciding and perhaps speak to a couple of unis. He's also wondering about studying the FM over the summer and not actually taking the exam.

Just bear in mind the average hours to study an a level is thought to be 350. I would say further maths might be longer. Spread over three months that’s 27 hours a week which is quite a commitment. I guess if it’s just the pure maths that’s halved but still quite a lot.

Well, I got an MSci in Maths from Imperial in the late 1990s without F Maths. I was definitely in the minority, but I coped fine. We were sent work to do in the holidays before we started, and I basically taught myself F Maths then. I must have interviewed well - they taught me something I hadn’t done, then watched me solve questions on that topic on the board.

These days I wouldn’t be able to get into the same course with my chosen ALevels.