[chelseafan]

I'm thinking of changing my A levels based on the fact i want to to study law now. I was thinking of picking Economics,History,Law and Buisness studies for as. Would those A levels be good for a decent uni (top 20).

[canŵio]

i don't know about 'soft' but personally i'd scrap law and business studies in preference for things like english, maths, maybe a language or science.

edit: just looked around, UCL says law and business studies are ok. but cambridge say both are of 'limited suitability'.

[Jack22031994]

You want to do law at uni? If so DON'T do law a level as I'm pretty sure and have heard unis dint like A level law especially for law degree, which is weird but check

Try Politics as it is good and so is history

I have just finished my a2 exams


This was posted from The Student Room's iPhone/iPad App

[tehforum]

(Original post by chelseafan)
I'm thinking of changing my A levels based on the fact i want to to study law now. I was thinking of picking Economics,History,Law and Buisness studies for as. Would those A levels be good for a decent uni (top 20).

top 20 eh

I'd change business studies, you could keep Law if you want to.

Economics and business studies sound too similar - even though they are different.

[HighestKungFu]

It annoys me when Law is classed as a 'soft' A-Level because it really wasn't easy but yes it is regarded as soft, as is Business Studies.

As has already been stated, keep History and Economics (and Law in my opinion since you're taking a humanities/social sciences route) and drop Business Studies for a strong A-Level like English Literature.

[Historophilia]

Economics and History = good

Law and Business = Bad

Universities advise against taking Economics and Business as they cover too much of the same ground. And Law won't help you at all at University and some Universities prefer you not to have it.

If you can do Maths, do Maths, however if you can't I suggest English Literature and Government and Politics

[chelseafan]

So what about Maths,Eco,History and Buisness studies/law only up to AS to though?

[Daydreamer18]

What do you want to do at uni?

The only one I'd say is 'soft' is business. I'd recommend changing that one if you're at all worried.

As someone said, though, if you want to do a law degree then it's not advisable to do a law A level. I looked in to law myself and was told this by law lecturers at open days. They prefer you to have other specialisms and be more well rounded, and then be taught law by them as opposed to A level tutors. That's not to say you won't get in to law with a law A level, but as I said, that's what I was told, most specifically at Nottingham when I looked in to law there.

You may not be considering law at all, though, so you can discard what I said above if not.

[tehforum]

(Original post by chelseafan)
So what about Maths,Eco,History and Buisness studies/law only up to AS to though?

Good.

ONLY if you are confident of getting a good grade in all of them.

[chelseafan]

(Original post by tehforum)
Good.

ONLY if you are confident of getting a good grade in all of them.

It's just maths that i have doubts about...

[battycatlady]

What about swapping law/business for english lit? I think enlighs lit is a good one to have for law

Edit: Speaking as someone who isn't naturally talented at maths, I really struggled and it took lots of time and took lots of hard work for me to scrape a b at as-level. If you're not super confident with maths/aren't prepared to work hard don't do it!

[Tortious]

(Original post by Jack22031994)
You want to do law at uni? If so DON'T do law a level as I'm pretty sure and have heard unis dint like A level law especially for law degree, which is weird but check

Try Politics as it is good and so is history

I have just finished my a2 exams


This was posted from The Student Room's iPhone/iPad App

(Original post by Historophilia)
Economics and History = good

Law and Business = Bad

Universities advise against taking Economics and Business as they cover too much of the same ground. And Law won't help you at all at University and some Universities prefer you not to have it.

If you can do Maths, do Maths, however if you can't I suggest English Literature and Government and Politics

(Original post by Daydreamer18)
What do you want to do at uni?

The only one I'd say is 'soft' is business. I'd recommend changing that one if you're at all worried.

As someone said, though, if you want to do a law degree then it's not advisable to do a law A level. I looked in to law myself and was told this by law lecturers at open days. They prefer you to have other specialisms and be more well rounded, and then be taught law by them as opposed to A level tutors. That's not to say you won't get in to law with a law A level, but as I said, that's what I was told, most specifically at Nottingham when I looked in to law there.

You may not be considering law at all, though, so you can discard what I said above if not.

Here.

(Also, for what it's worth Daydreamer18, I went to the Nottingham open day too and don't recall being told it's preferable not to study it...)

[Ben F]

Don't take Economics AND Business Studies please!! Top unis tend to regard these as very similar, and will consider an A-level in both as just one A-level. My advice would be to keep economics and drop Business Studies, Economics is much more highly respected.

As others have said, Law isn't recommended by many top unis as an A-level if you're going to take it to degree level. That's not to say they won't accept it, many Russel Group unis do take students for law if they've taken it at A-level, but some, such as the LSE, will not accept it as an A-level if they see it.

I'd say go for economics, maths, history and politics. Politics is very complementary to law and is well respected, so I'd strongly advise that over business studies/law .

[Alkain1607]

I did law at A-level and got offers from all my Unis, none of which actively disclosed that they didn't want law. I've firmed York, so fingers crossed for August! Regards to your A-level choices. History is good, Law is good, Business is good, economics sounds good to me. As long as you aren't picking subjects which are.... not so testing intellectually- you'll be fine. I honestly don't think that Uni's take your A-levels into consideration, the focus is more on the Grades and your personal statement. Also, if you want to get into a top University, then you need good GCSE grades as well. The best piece of advice I can give you is this: Write a killer personal statement, focus on your subjects and exams. Also, focus in your first year, if you work hard then, then you wont need to worry about cramming all your hard work in the second year.

[Jazzeh]

To all those saying that universities don't like Law, please either research more and come back with a more correct opinion or don't advise someone incorrectly.

A select few universities do consider law a soft a level, but this is overstated massively. Undertaking an A Level will not put you at a disadvantage to someone else who hasn't taken it; it all depends on your results. If you feel that you will work hard in your law a level and get a high grade, then take it.

However, make sure you have a varied set of A Levels. Maths, English, History and a science would probably be the best possible combination but this extreme isn't required. Economics and History are perfectly acceptable A Levels to undertake, and there is nothing wrong with Law so keep that if you want.

English would be the A Level I recommend the most, out of those you haven't selected already, due to the writing skills required and developed on the course. It's perfect considering your interests.

[Jam']

Unis really hate law a level ESP. If you want to do a law degree. They have to like 'unteach' you stuff. I'd avoid that at all costs.

Don't do business either.

Law is extremely competitive - try doing ALL hard subjects. Science / Maths / English Lit

[tehforum]

(Original post by chelseafan)
It's just maths that i have doubts about...

Don't bother.

Pick subjects you will enjoy and you will get a good grade in.

(Original post by Jazzeh)
To all those saying that universities don't like Law, please either research more and come back with a more correct opinion or don't advise someone incorrectly.

A select few universities do consider law a soft a level, but this is overstated massively. Undertaking an A Level will not put you at a disadvantage to someone else who hasn't taken it; it all depends on your results. If you feel that you will work hard in your law a level and get a high grade, then take it.

However, make sure you have a varied set of A Levels. Maths, English, History and a science would probably be the best possible combination but this extreme isn't required. Economics and History are perfectly acceptable A Levels to undertake, and there is nothing wrong with Law so keep that if you want.

English would be the A Level I recommend the most, out of those you haven't selected already, due to the writing skills required and developed on the course. It's perfect considering your interests.

Nah.

English A-level is overrated. All it is jumping through hoops i.e assessment objectives to get the grade. I fail to see how this helps to develop writing skills.

History is a far better option and is actually interesting to learn and understand.

[Jazzeh]

(Original post by tehforum)
Nah.

English A-level is overrated. All it is jumping through hoops i.e assessment objectives to get the grade. I fail to see how this helps to develop writing skills.

History is a far better option and is actually interesting to learn and understand.

I meant reading, not sure why I put writing. Nonetheless, you are wrong. English A Levels trains you to analyse information and coherently structure your arguments, points and display your evidence in an eloquent way. All these skills, just a selection of those strengthened by taking English, are invariably important for undertaking a law degree.

You obviously like history, 'interesting to learn', so your opinion seems biased regardless. Saying that I do agree that History is a better option, but only because it is the best option at A Level in preparation for a law degree. I'd have English second.

[littlelucas]

(Original post by Jack22031994)
You want to do law at uni? If so DON'T do law a level as I'm pretty sure and have heard unis dint like A level law especially for law degree, which is weird but check

Try Politics as it is good and so is history

I have just finished my a2 exams


This was posted from The Student Room's iPhone/iPad App

I agree, and I think the law thing is because they like to start with a clean slate- not all centers offer law, and they may not agree with the way you've been taught and have to 'un-teach' you etc etc... I think its actually easier for them to teach you if you haven't done it to A Level. But it may be a good idea to do some more research, e.g. with the uni's you're thinking of applying to- I spoke to people who had done my course at my first choice before choosing my A Levels, and it was a massive help. Good luck!

[RSP18]

(Original post by chelseafan)
I'm thinking of changing my A levels based on the fact i want to to study law now. I was thinking of picking Economics,History,Law and Buisness studies for as. Would those A levels be good for a decent uni (top 20).

don't do buisness studies or law (they're are seen as soft subjects by top uni's).

Y not consider english and a modern foreign language as an alternative, as these are more attractive subjects to the top uni's for law.