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help need in choosing A level subjects

I am utterly confused about choosing my A level subjects mostly because i'm unsure of what career to pursue.I have been cudgeling my brain over choosing between law and medicine.I'm not overtly passionate about either,because i havent commited to one yet.could i get into a good university(cambridge,oxford etc) for a law degree with english language ,history and law?i have heard that its a bad idea taking law because its considered a soft subject but i want to get a feel of law before university to see how i like it.other subject combinations for law would be appreciated.The thing is i hate Math and physics and for med school a good combination is the 3 sciences and math but i dont want to take subjects i dont enjoy because i probably wont get top notch grades in them.I like biology and can tolerate chemistry.but can a combination of biology,chemistry,english and a fourth humanity get me into a good medical school if i chose while making sure that law is still an option?:confused:
Reply 1
Avatar for liesels
liesels
7
Law is considered a "soft subject" at A Level by Oxbridge and some other top unis- if you really want to get a feel for the subject, it's probably best to read around the subject in your own time. Something like History and Politics with two other traditional subjects would probably work better.

For medicine, you definitely need biology and chemistry and it's definitely a huge advantage if you have maths. As long as your fourth subject is traditional (History, a language...) then that doesn't affect it too much.

You might want to look around specific universities/courses and find out if they have a "blacklist" of subjects before you start applying.

If you don't feel passionate about either subject yet then maybe neither are for you.
I've heard that you can do law with almost any combination as long as you have on essay subject. So I guess Chemistry and Biology is okay for medicine them 2 others for the law option. You should do subjects you'll get good grades in is the most important but be aware some prefer Maths but it depends where you are thinking about apply.
Reply 3
Avatar for smile:D
smile:D
16
It doesn't really matter what A-levels you do for law, provided they are 'traditional' subjects. In terms of getting a feel for law, the best way to do this would probably to do work experience with a solicitor or barrister. It is also worth considering that you can do a law conversion course after uni with practically ANY degree, so you could do something that interests you then go into law. Liesels is right, law is considered 'soft', this is seen as the definite list (published by a Cambridge college) http://www.trin.cam.ac.uk/index.php?pageid=604 and law comes under 'More Limited Suitability', so it would be ok, but not ideal as a 4th choice.

Medicine is highly competitive and biology and chemistry is the bare minimum needed to do the subject. Ideally you'd want to do physics/maths especially if you're aiming high, but this probably isn't for you. Also, if you can only 'tolerate' chemistry perhaps you would be better off focussing on the humanities and probably having more of a chance of getting into oxbridge for law, as I'm assuming you'd get higher grades in the subjects you enjoy most :smile:
thank you for your help.i think i'm going to stick with the humanities and aim for a law degree.My strength lies in writing and i enjoy History and the more analytical subjects as opposed to the sciences and math.I was only considering medicine because thats what my parents want.is english language considered soft as well?I picked it over literature because its more practical and i wont be needing lit for law.I'm really frustrated over this whole traditional subject fuss.what do the sciences have to do with a law degree?can you suggest any "traditional subjects" aside from them and math of course.i'm ready to put some elbow grease in but not for subjects i'm not enthused about.
Reply 5
Avatar for smile:D
smile:D
16
I found this really helpful, it's a pdf published by the Russell Group of top unis and basically discusses the best A-levels to do (they describe traditional ones as 'facilitating') it also suggests A-levels for specific degree courses:
http://russellgroup.ac.uk/media/informed-choices/InformedChoices-latest.pdf

'Traditional' subjects are essentially ones which are considered more academically rigorous. English language is seen as soft, whereas English lit isn't (I have no idea why!), also subjects like History, Geography, Sciences, Languages etc. are also considered traditional subjects, so history would definitely be a good choice, although I would choose eng lit over eng lang, because it's considered much more traditional. The good thing about choosing law is there is a lot of flexibility when it comes to A-levels, you can pretty much do whichever traditional subjects you want.
thank you smile,the pdf was of prodigious help and helped me to realize that there is no way i'm getting into a good university without two or more traditional subjects.The school i am planning on attending for my a levels unfortunately does not offer history or eng lit because very few pupils opt for them.I'm going to wait for my result in august and judge whether my performance is up to par in the traditional subjects and go from there.
Just got my o level result a few days ago and it's safe to say I am very pleased with it.i got 5A*'s and 3 A's .so nothing below an A.i had taken the sciences but I think I have finally chosen to be a lawyer if God wills.i met with a career advisor and she suggested that I take eng lit,history,math and economics.now I know I detest math n all and it's going to be a tough ride but I did manage an A* and if I exert myself some more I mite just manage an A in my A levels.the career advisor said that these subs would make me a good all round student instead of a one trick pony.i am not the slightest bit familiar with economics.would I struggle with it terribly and also although I consider myself to be fairly good at English but I have never been acquainted with lit and so am uncertain with how well I would do in it.any opinion and advice will be much appreciated

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