Hi Yummy
DD17 (Year 12) did 12 GCSEs (2 early) and got straight As and an A for her Additional Maths (which is the highest grade - it's marked on the AS level scale and so As are not possible).
She's doing 4 AS levels despite school (pushy, academic) trying to get her to do 5 and will do 3 subjects at A2 (not 4).
I'm completely and fully behind this decision because:
A: She wanted to "have a life" in the sixth form - which she absolutely has (lovely boyfriend, part-time job, lots of extra curruculars) not just be a slave to her academics
B: NO university makes offers on more than three A2s. She may well be academically capable of going all out for the 5AS/4A2 route but what advantage is it to her? When the rest of the country is (mostly) doing 4/3, she would only have been spreading herself thinly/ diluting her efforts. Better to do fewer subjects and do better in them. She's hoping she'll have done very well in her AS levels.
C: If anyone ever finds themselves underemployed, academically speaking, there are always other things that you can do like the EPQ (which DD is doing) which is much more interesting to do and more attractive to university admissions tutors than yet another AS since it involves a much more (university-style) independent approach.
DD 15 (Year 10) is going through the same school so, like your's, is in the middle of a clutch of GCSE exams/modules right now. She also puts pressure on herself but not in quite the same way as her sister.
What route is your DD thinking of? Is the school lining her up to do 5/4? Does she have an idea of which subjects she wants to do yet? It can be hard for kids who achieve well across the board because they don't have any obvious weak areas to strike out. Makes choosing subjects difficult.