Online degree course tools

[VanilleFraise]

My son gets his gcse results this week and is determined to study chemistry, history and psychology at A level. I'm a little concerned about the choices as we always envisioned him studying science at university and I believe you need 2 science A levels in order to do so - which thos set of choices will not allow.

Is there an online tool which will take his A level choices and tell him which degrees would be open to those choices? The only things I can find are a bit vague...

Thanks

If he wants to do psychology later then a biology a level opens up more degree choices.

I think the easiest thing is to go to a set of universities (top tier, russell group, other reseeach intensive, post 92) and then see
the UCAS website is a good way in
But would suggest your son takes maths or another science to open up more options

https://www.informedchoices.ac.uk/subjects

You may have envisioned him doing a science degree - but what does he want?

Psychology is a science btw….

You may have envisioned him doing a science degree - but what does he want?

Psychology is a science btw….

yes agree - who exactly envisioned the science degree?
and yet psych counts as a science ata lot of unis. Check some out wrt possible degrees eg chemistry,.

Random search of Birmingham uni says chemistry BSc requires chem A level but no other science mentioned. Same for Leeds uni. So certainly some top tier unis happy with just chem.

Warwick tho wants another science from a short list, not inc psych.

He says he has no idea what he wants to do.

We've always seen him as being sciency as he has always done well in them, although his "favourite" subjects seem to change year on year depending on whether he likes the teacher or not.

I'm well aware psychology is a science as I studied it at degree level.

One of his teachers has confirmed at the last parents evening that psychology usually doesn't count. Interesting tho, the comments about Birmingham and Leeds.

Ive decided Not to get involved this week. He is autistic and has decided that that is what he wants to study and won't be swayed. So that's that.

Many thanks for links and input - I will remember them as I have a feeling this subject may crop up again.

One of his teachers has confirmed at the last parents evening that psychology usually doesn't count.

This is a curious comment from the teacher. Have they really looked at all the science degrees you can do and concluded that psych is rarely allowed as a science?

It varies actually, from uni to uni and from course to course. I picked the ones I mentioned above somewhat at random.

To take Loughborough as another example: to study biological sciences there you need biology and another science – which indeed can include psych (or env science). To study chemistry at the same uni you need chemistry and "preferably" another science or maths. No list given (poor) but perhaps fair to infer they mean physics or bio.

Let’s take uni of Nottingham. Biology there – you need bio and another science from a list of 11 including psych, geography and PE (! much hated by some on MN, defended by others - inc me). Chemistry – the only specified A level subject is chemistry.

So you see there is a lot of variation. If your DS has picked the subjects he will enjoy and do well at, then they are good choices. There are lots of options those A levels can lead to, so in that sense they are positive choices too.

@clary thanks for your research - that all looks a bit more promising. The ones I'd looked at - ones more local to us in the NW needed another science.

I will say tho, I'm all for enjoying your subjects, it's just I wanted to keep his options open post A level.

Many thanks all.

Psychology is actually quite a hard a level. There is a lot of content and you have to learn how to answer the longer questions in a particular way. You can understand everything but still get a very low mark. There is also a big overlap between A level and first year at uni.

@drwitch I wouldn't be remotely surprised. I'm not sure had a thorough understanding of what it is. I suspect one of the reasons it appeals is because he likes the teacher who was his form teacher in year 7 and 8.

I studied psychology at uni as part of a combined studies programme. I didn't like it particularly- prob because it was hard. I majored in the other subject in the end.