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Thinking of taking Philosophy-Help!

Ive just finished AS and am about to begin A2.

In AS I studied Law, Psychology, Politics and Drama.

In A2 I will be studying the same subject's with the exclusion of Drama and the inclusion of History or Philosophy.

So I will finish with 3 A levels and 2 AS levels.

So my questions go to people who have studied Philosophy at A level.

What is it like? How hard is it? How hard are the exams? Bassically I would like a general over-view of A level Philosophy which answers all the common questions and queries and prospective Philosophy student would ask. i.e. content, difficulty, hints, tips, advice etc.

And also, is it looked on well by top Uni's?

Many thanks and all replies appreciated.

Liam.

Reply 1

haz220807

I did A-level Religious Studies which was basically half Philosophy and half Ethics. Before the course began I was really interested in the ethics side of it and didn't think I would enjoy philosophy, however I definitely changed my mind during the two years.

It was fairly difficult but once you got your head around the theory it was just a case of remembering it. If you're someone who has a view in debates and can think outside the box then you'll be fine. I did AS History as well and found it really dull in comparison, History would probably look better on UCAS forms etc but if you're looking for something you can enjoy learning my opinion is that Philosophy is a lot better.

I can't remember a lot of content to be honest! Plus my course would probably have been different to the one you're about to study because of the combination with Ethics.

Reply 2

Nooptheloop

for A level, I found that the bulk of it was easy, the harder part was remembering all the various definitions, "isms", and who said what. What makes philosophy different in terms of assessment is that they're looking for signs of independent thought and argument rather than reeling off lists of facts. Of course, you do have to know the basic doctrines and philosophical texts, but most of it comes from your own take on the topics at hand. Technically there are no "wrong" answers, as long as you understand the problems raised in the questions.
Hope this helps, if you have any specific questions pm me any time, I'm not an expert but I got an A at A level and am doing a philosophy degree now :smile: