[coolguysfwn]

Hey guys,
I have come across a lot of students confused about making their post-16 (i.e. A-levels or equivalent) subject choices when planning to apply to Oxbridge in the future.

The cambridge University has published a leaflet answering this query for 11-grade students who are about to make their choices for A-levels (Or equivalent courses).

An online copy of the leaflet is available at http://www.cam.ac.uk/admissions/unde...ectmatters.pdf


An excerpt from the leaflet is as follows :

Introduction
The AS and A Level subject choices you make when in Year 11 (or equivalent) can have a significant
impact on the course options available to you at university.
When assessing applicants at the University of Cambridge, we consider not only the individual A Level
(or equivalent) subjects taken but also the combination of these. We generally prefer applicants to have
taken certain subjects, or combinations of subjects, because we believe that they are more likely to
provide an effective preparation for study at the University.
If you are in Year 11 (or equivalent) and are having to choose your AS/A Level options, this leaflet
provides useful advice to ensure that the decisions you make will not unduly limit the opportunities
available to you should you decide to apply to Cambridge in the future.
If you are studying in a qualification system other than A Levels the advice about subject combinations
that follows essentially still holds true.

Do you know the course you want to study?
Many Cambridge courses require prior knowledge of certain subjects and Colleges will expect such
subjects to be passed, normally with at least an A grade at A Level or equivalent.
If you have already decided on a course that you would like to study at university, we recommend that
you take a look at the information on Course Requirements given on our website
(www.cam.ac.uk/admissions/undergraduate/requirements/) before you finalise your A Level subject
choices to check that they will be appropriate for a Cambridge application. You might also wish to do this
for the same course – or similar courses – at other universities.

Are you inclined towards the arts or social sciences?
If you think you would like to study an arts or social sciences course at university but you are not sure
which one, then English Literature†, History, languages and Mathematics are good ‘keystone’
subjects: choosing one or more of these will provide a good foundation for your subject combination.
Other good choices to combine these subjects with include: an additional language, Ancient History,
Classical Civilisation, Economics, Further Mathematics‡, Geography, Philosophy, Religious
Studies and sciences (Biology, Chemistry or Physics).
Other possible subject choices, for instance Archaeology, Citizenship, English Language,
Environmental Science, Government and Politics, History of Art, Law, Music, Psychology or
Sociology, are useful preparation for some of our arts and social sciences courses.
The arts and social sciences courses currently offered at the University of Cambridge are: Anglo-Saxon,
Norse, and Celtic; Archaeology and Anthropology; Asian and Middle Eastern Studies; Classics;
Economics; Education; English; History; History of Art; Land Economy; Law; Linguistics; Modern and
Medieval Languages; Music; Philosophy; Politics, Psychology & Sociology; Theology and Religious Studies.

Are you inclined towards the sciences?
If you think you would like to study a science course at university but you are not sure which one, then
you are advised to take at least two, and ideally three, of Biology, Chemistry, Mathematics and
Physics. Some pairings of these subjects are more natural than others. The most natural pairs are
Biology and Chemistry, Chemistry and Physics, and Mathematics and Physics.
In practice the vast majority of applicants for science courses at Cambridge take at least three of these
subjects. Another useful combination is Mathematics, Further Mathematics‡ and Physics. Many
students take four of Biology, Chemistry, Mathematics, Further Mathematics and Physics.
If you are planning to study biological or medical sciences you should take Chemistry; for physical
sciences or engineering you should take Mathematics and Physics and ideally Further Mathematics.
Other possible subject choices, for instance Computing, Design and Technology, Electronics or
Psychology, may be useful preparation for some of our science courses.
The science courses offered at the University of Cambridge are: Computer Science; Engineering;
Mathematics; Medicine; Natural Sciences; Veterinary Medicine.

[21stcenturyphantom]

I thought I should post this here. The Russell Group have issued an information booklet titled 'Informed Choices'. The link to the article is here, whilst the aforementioned information booklet can be found here. Quite informative for anybody who is struggling to decide upon their A Level choices.

[Thomb]

Question. The cambridge dept of arc specifies that mature students applying for the BA in arc. could take one a level i preperation for the course-does this presume a levels were taken at leaving school age and does it assume high grades were achieved?

Bit confused about that one

[Dahir123]

I am currently doing as in maths, biology, chemistry and politics and I've decided I want to do law at Oxford. I've heard the standard offer is 3 A's and I've did really badly in my jan exams. Do I have a chance bearing in mind I stressing so much over these may/june exams. Say if I do bad and I retake the year, touch wood I don't will that be it? Will I have a chance to make it to Oxford even If I change my subjects. As I think I'm of the humanities type. Will that disadvantage me. Please give me some advice.

[tommm]

(Original post by Thomb)
Question. The cambridge dept of arc specifies that mature students applying for the BA in arc. could take one a level i preperation for the course-does this presume a levels were taken at leaving school age and does it assume high grades were achieved?

Bit confused about that one

This is a very specific question, you'd probably be better off asking the department directly.