How do you pick A levels when you don't enjoy any of the subjects

[UglyJumper]

I am trying to support Y11 DD to select A Levels. French is a given, not because she enjoys it, but because she's good at it and her predicted grade is a 9. She doesn't like anything else, including creative subjects (which are in short supply in her school anyway), but particularly hates maths and sciences. She's got a low predicted grade in English Lit and she hates it, so won't do that either. I am trying to encourage her to just pick the 2 she hates the least because she has to pick something. She has no idea what she wants to do when she's older. She's under the impression that she's the only one in her whole year who's struggling like this and that everyone's got it sorted.

IB? Broad range of subjects and leaves options open

Don't do A level French if she doesn't like literature!

The difficulty is that btecs and t-levels are more specific. So you do kind of need a better idea of what it is that you want to do. If you’re able academically , then A levels do allow you to keep more breadth across 3 subjects (or more). But you’ve got to love academic studying.

I would encourage her to look at alternatives to A levels. DS got stuck with A levels he wasn’t interested and lasted a term before going down an apprenticeship route instead.

@SnarkyBag same with my son- went down IT apprenticeship (paid) route

Um please look at the syllabus for french - in some of them, they have to do literature - like essays in french. She may not like this as she doesn’t really like English lit. It is hard to do a levels if you dislike the subject. Can she consider more vocational courses?

That's exactly why I chose academic subjects and did English, and two other totally academic subjects and nothing vocational.

University was the same. With a degree you can train in a few things so it was just a door opener for me. I got a few jobs with degree educated in the essential criteria.

I don't think this is a good idea now though with the fees being so high. I'd encourage academic A-Levels then encourage apprenticeships in things that are useful like trades with a view to being able to be self-employed and set up a business later in life. Employment wouldn't be what I would aim for, earnings are capped and few enjoy the rigidity.

But you can also go down the route of training on the job for many things as well and working your way up.

Could she combine French, with some IT course, and secretarial/ office skills? That combination could open doors to a wide range of interesting work.

There are units within btecs that are transferable skills. E.g. my DD1 did travel and tourism. That included some customer service, marketing, business and event management as well as some more specific units.

I agree with other, try to look at other places.

If the schools not offering what your DD is interested in doing then she may find a different setting and choices for her to look at.

MGL specialist here. French A level is a great choice, but I would echo those who say it is really challenging. The new GCSE is much better prep for it than the old one, and 9 would be an excellent grade, but if she is not keen on taking it further I wouldn’t advise it.

A level MFL involves a paper worth 20% which consists of two essays in French on a book and on a film; students also have to do a research project and write a presentation (so, another essay) on it for their speaking exam. It’s not easy and French is especially hard to get a high grade in. If she is not keen on literature and analysis it’s a poor choice.

What does she enjoy doing outside school?
Does she have a part time job, or a hobby, or a tendency to fume about world affairs? In other words, can you see anything that gets her going, and that might lead backwards to what she should try post-GCSE?

(Id agree that a language A-level could be awful if she hates literature.)

Mine just started a T-level, two days a week in work placement, two days a week in college, 1 day at home. Equivalent to three A-levels in terms of UCAS points but so far making her much happier than being in school doing A-levels would have done.

What does she like? Does she have any career ideas?

I would steer well clear of French. If she doesn't enjoy it at GCSE she'll hate it at A level.

What is she interested in out of school?

My dd was pretty uninspired when it came to choosing A-Levels (she had already ruled out other options) Her school didn't have a sixth form so she looked at the local college, she has actually picked up geology and environmental science, so it doesn't have to be anything that they did at GCSE. She seems to really be enjoying environmental science, but I know that not many places offer it.

Her strongest subject was photography at GCSE but she wasn't at all interested in carrying that on. She doesn't really know what she wants to do next, but I just tell her that she doesn't have to make a decision and she can always change her mind.

But if she doesn't really enjoy anything much, she's stuck with six subjects she's not particularly keen on - including compulsory maths and a science. You can't swap out either of those for something more interesting, you can only swap out the one that she might find more interesting for another subject that she almost certainly wouldn't.

When I was that age I struggled to know what I wanted to do when I was older because I had no experience of the world of work, my only experience was school and arranged around school subjects.

How many adults do you know with jobs? Could you arrange for her to visit as many companies/as many of those adults at work as possible, or if visiting is tricky, get them to send through info, "a day in my life" kind of thing. I sort of knew about jobs which directly related to subjects I liked, so designer/illustrator, and jobs which I'd come across in the world like teacher/doctor/chef/postman/etc but things like a HR department, project management, quality control, research and development of specific things - those things were totally missing from my understanding of work, and in hindsight it would have been really useful to know about them. I was approaching work from the standpoint of what skills I have and what type of work would suit me, without really knowing what jobs exist. Instead you can try approaching from an interest point of view - what's her favourite brand or product, does she have a hobby?

Let's say that she loves a specific computer game - there are hundreds of jobs involved in producing a computer game, from the conceptualising to the art to the coding to the testing to the engagement with the community to the marketing to the events management to the translation etc etc - loads and loads of varied roles. Or if she likes rock climbing - there will be hundreds of roles associated with that, from a trainer to a competitive climber to somebody making and designing new types of ropes and harness, safety testing the ropes and harnesses, making/designing the clothing, mapping out routes, running an indoor hall, designing, building, repairing indoor walls.

Does she like French? What about an exchange year in a French school or even Canada? That's the norm across Europe, it just doesn't seem to be done in the UK. Despite the name there is no requirement to have a foreign student in exchange. It might be expensive if done through a private company, though if you are on a low income and she is very good at French she might qualify for a scholarship.

I agree with looking at local colleges as they often offer much more of a range of courses than the usual A levels - there are courses in travel and tourism, animal sciences, so many things. Colleges often have great careers advisers as well. Get her to give her local college a call and go in and see someone.

I picked subjects I was good at rather than what I enjoyed. When the work got harder I didn’t have enough interest in it to sustain me. You can handle something that’s boring - but when it’s hard AND boring you end up failing.

Not to mention that boring A-levels lead to a boring job in the subjects you studied, then a boring job for life. You must must must study something you enjoy if you want to achieve success and have a happy life.

Have a look at apprenticeships and BTEC (the latter is easier, more coursework focused and still get you into uni). Or A-levels like business or graphic design or anything else that isn’t available at school.

She shouldn’t be doing A Levels if she genuinely isn’t interested by any of her subjects. She needs to research vocational qualifications, look at what local colleges offer, and start working out what she does want to do. Not just shuffle on to A Levels because that’s what everyone else does!

Just echoing what everyone else is saying. Ds (in year 12 now) was the same - apart from History (which he didn't take in the end for other reasons) and Business, he hated the academic subjects. He's chosen Business, Sociology and Criminology and for the first time in his life he's coming home and telling me about what he's learning. They're really interesting 'real life' subjects and there's debate involved, which he enjoys.

Dd did Psychology and Religion, Philosophy and Ethics alongside History. She really clicked with RPE and got an A star.

It's got to be better getting As and Bs in these sorts of subjects, even if it rules out some jobs, than getting lower grades in traditional subjects and hating sixth form!

Google whether your local colleges and sixth forms have open days/open evenings as those would be really good to go to. But if you've missed them, contact them anyway and ask for info.

It's a, massive jump from GCSE to alevel in French. You go from reading a silky wee paragraph to reading an entire book in french. All the tenses, lots if vocab. It's really a big stretch.

I would look into an apprenticeship for her.
What is she into outside of school?

Silly not silky! Sorry

What does she want to do afterwards? Uni?

Has she had any decent career advice from the school yet? Buy this stage my DS1 had been offered lots of different tests and lots of chats and lots of advice and lots of online checks opportunities to find out what they may like. Has your dd not had this?

Don't do A'levels if she doesn't like any of them! What does she want, and what does she need to get, in order to get there?

But you need to be careful what you do decide and it doesn't hinder you in anyway. Now we are all more aware of these choices, back in the day most people never even had any careers advice. but now they're more aware. that if you want to do something sport science at say Loughborough University, they normally demand a science particularly biology. I only mention that because Ds1's ex-girlfriend wanted to go to Loughborough and missed out because she didn't have a science she didn't know that she was supposed to take biology. So don't let that happen.