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Reply 260
MickyFinstar
I know this is going to be contraversial but iv had a go of listing the a level subjects in order of credability they receive. Firstly we have to define credability as the merit universities give the alevel on face value. Iv probably forgotten a few alevels so just mention them. Iv also catergerised them into 3 groups, well resprected, respected, not as much respected but still have some creditability as they require a decent amount of work

Further Mathematics
English Lit
Chemistry
Maths
Physics
English Lang
History
Music
Economics
Modern Foriegn langauages (French, German, Spanish)
English Joint
Geography
Statistics
Biology

Art
Electronics
Classical foriegn languages (Greek, Latin)
Philosophy
Classics
Religious Studies
Computing
Psycology
History of art
Design Technology: Product design
Government and politics
Socialogy


Business studies
Theatre studies
Law
Critical thinking
General studies
Media Studies
Drama
Sports studies
Film studies
Photography


I had no idea there were so many. How can a national curriculum hope to deliver this lot?
Howard
I had no idea there were so many. How can a national curriculum hope to deliver this lot?


It doesn't. Most of them are completely optional, and things like Electronics, Product Design and Photography are pretty obscure.
Reply 262
No, chemistry should stay where it is. It's the hardest subject I do, and most people on the course say the same, and its my second time through!
Reply 263
HaggenDaZ
But does that ever happen? :wink:


With physics the answer is either right or wrong. With English, you can wangle marks because of how the examiner interprets what you've written.
Reply 264
Wangle marks? Peh. It's certainly not wangling. If it's rubbish, it's rubbish. If it's a valid statement, or idea, you'll get a mark.
tiger_babe
With physics the answer is either right or wrong. With English, you can wangle marks because of how the examiner interprets what you've written.


it doesn't matter - it all evens out
tiger_babe
With physics the answer is either right or wrong. With English, you can wangle marks because of how the examiner interprets what you've written.


How an examiner interprets what you've written? I don't think so dear. If your answer is relevant to the question, and you've made a valid argument that's congruent with what you've written then you’ll get the marks. The examiner cannot make subjective judgments; in order to achieve the higher bands your ideas must be presented clearly and cogently. Yes there are no right or wrong answers - however, does that not make the subject more difficult? You cannot take learned answers into the exam, you have to form your own ideas (and make sure that they're valid assertions) and must be able to express and argue the complexity of these thoughts very well.
Reply 267
well if you're gonna class it like that then i shud b accepted into oxbridge! i do maths, further maths, economics and eng lit!!! lol!

eng lit is so hard.
so is film studies. - it's not a doss.

you won't know how difficult a subject is until you are doing it. it's all so easy to say "that's a easy subject, therefore it's disrepected" well it's not. i agree with the above post: ENGLISH IS HARD!!!! YOU CAN'T JUST MAKE SOME C*AP UP AND EXPECT TO GET SOME MARKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Reply 268
How can you put Biology below Music and Statistics?
Reply 269
I think it's unfair to compare the credidbility of, say, Physics to erm...English or something because they're entirely different subjects, I think it's probably more realistic to compare the credibility of essay subjects, and then separately compare the credibility of maths/science subjects. All A-levels (with the exception of General Studies) require bloody hard work, otherwise they wouldn't be a qualification in a subject at an 'Advanced level', but I think by credibility we're actually really talking about how respected the course is by Universities, and that in itself is complicated because for someone applying for English - Physics, Chemistry and English lit would be all well and good, as they're academic A-levels, but it wouldn't be sensible to apply for an arts subject when two of your A-levels are Scences. Similiarly, if you were applying for, say, Chemistry - having Chemistry, Art and French A-levels would probably fulfil the requirements, and although Art and French are good subjects, they're not going to be 'respected' by a Chemistry department for a Chemistry course, they're much more likely to favour the other sciences and maths along with Chem for a Chem degree. How respected a subject is by Universities depends on the course you're applying for. They might like the subject because of it's academic nature, but if you've got 2 Arts subjects and you're applying for a Science course, Unis probably aren't going to be interested.

Employers, on the other hand, are going to respect subjects that they know are good solid subjects. An old employer might not recognise Media Studies or Critical Thinking because it's a relatively new subject. He/she will, however, recognise A-levels in Maths, English, History, Physics etc.

I've probably rambled on for a bit here and might not have made much sense but it's late and I'm tired, so I'm just going to shut up now :smile:
Reply 270
"All A-levels (with the exception of General Studies) require bloody hard work, otherwise they wouldn't be a qualification in a subject at an 'Advanced level'

You really think that?
Reply 271
crana9
"All A-levels (with the exception of General Studies) require bloody hard work, otherwise they wouldn't be a qualification in a subject at an 'Advanced level'

You really think that?


I do, except for extreme cases (e.g. taking French when already fluent etc.)
Although at AS level I've heard critical thinking is a doss for those naturally got good reasoning skills, as there isn't content to learn as such.
anyone who's made a comparison between english and physics is stupid, both are very academic subjects but COMPLETELY DIFFERENT. fair enough if you're comparing biology say with chemsitry and saying the former is less difficult but a science with an art?!!!!!!! also at the end of the day it all comes down to one's strength in the subject, generalisations can't be made.

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