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How hard are the 3 sciences and maths at A level?

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Reply 20

Coolina133

Its okay if ur willing to do the work. But if u find them interesting like me, ull be finee

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Reply 21

David Tennant

As long as you work, from day one you will be fine :smile:

Reply 22

louistoffee

if you're bright, you'll do well with sufficient work. this combination works well for people wanting to go into a science based degree course (leaves all doors open) and doesn't require much essay writing (although some biology courses there's a synoptic essay at the end of the course.
i did these at AS and have only dropped physics. GCSE science: AA maths A*. AS science and maths AAAA with predictions of A*A*A (A in chem) for A2. As far as science grades are concerned, there's no difference between an A and A* at GCSE but maths i'd recommend only doing it if you have an A*, A at a push. I've seen lads with A*s at GCSE getting Ds and ones with As at GCSE getting Us and Es.
great combination, requires a lot of learning!

Reply 23

TheMJCG

In GCSE you handle many more subjects that A level. In A levels your down specifically to the 4, so for me the amount of difficulty was the same. I did not have a choice because our school ( I don't live in the UK) either offered the sciences plus math or the commerce subjects plus math, so i chose the first option. If you like the subjects and have good teachers for them, then go for it. For me during my AS we did not have teachers for Physics, Math and Biology ( A shock I know) so I along with all my classmates did them by ourselves and got average results. But for Chemistry we did have a teacher, and a good one, and so I did much better in Chemistry. Bottom line no it is not hard, make sure you like them and have good teachers for them.

Reply 24

ZA_pink

Sooo difficult! :,(

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Reply 25

3mma_gal96

Original post by ZA_pink

Sooo difficult! :,(

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Oh no

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Reply 26

3mma_gal96

Oh by the way, I meant to ask..I presume Business isn't regarded as important as History? Not such a good idea for me to take if I want to apply to Med school?

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Reply 27

Abbseh

I do those subjects now at AS and was in the same situation as you last year.
I did duel science for GCSE and got AA (1 UMS off A* in core) so I was on a disadvantage, on paper, from the start. I did struggle at first and in my first test results got BUUE (biology, physics, maths and chemistry) though that was down to exam technique mainly as the concepts were going in just fine! By mid November I'd say my chemistry, biology and physics got on track with As and high Bs but maths had only just started to click properly.
At GCSE I was 1 UMS off an A* in maths so I was expecting to do alright at least at AS level but core is quite difficult for me though statistics seems to be alright.
I have an increased work load than my friends I've noticed but to be honest it's not impossible! I do regret not taking history in biology's place as I tried to but it was too late to change... It would be nice to have a little variation but biology fits very well with the other three!

At the end of the day, take what you truly enjoy rather than what it expected as you'll do better in the long run when you actually enjoy what you are learning about :smile:

Reply 28

Booyah

From my experience from a grammar school GCSE results are not a great way to compare how you will do at A-Level, I have seen people with A's and A*s in their subjects flopping because they can't even be bothered to do 30-60 minutes revision a night (You don't have to but I recommend you do). I personally think that Maths+Bio+Chemistry are equally hard subjects, maybe I'd lean towards Biology being harder due to the exam technique involved).

If you work consistently (unlike I) you should pass through the year easily. For the record I was predicted CCCC after my mocks when I got CDDD, and in the end I pulled it out of the bag by getting AABB. If you have a lot of work ethic then A-levels should be easy.

Reply 29

ZA_pink

Original post by 3mma_gal96

Oh no

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But don't worry, as long as you do ALOT of work every night on each subject (unlike me :P) you will do great!

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Reply 30

letsbehonest

Workload isn't crazy, I get 1 piece of homework, per week, per subject.
Usually a work sheet or something which takes about 30mins

Reply 31

nivrap402

Really does depend on how comfortable you feel doing them. If you do those 4 that's 4 exams in January, mine were 4 in 4 days with Weds, Thurs, Fri and Monday. Personally if you dont get an A* in maths gcse i wouldnt bother with it at A Level, A* at GCSE if relatively easy to get. Personally i wouldn't recommend doing all 3 as its so much work compared with doing 3 and 1 "less demanding" a level but if you think you can handle it then by all means try.

The step up from GCSE is probably steepest in physics and lowest in maths for the first modules. But honestly its not all its cracked up to be just a larger workload and harder to get your head round, if your willing to learn its not too bad

Reply 32

fdry1

Original post by Khurc003

Hello... It feels like this question is specifically aimed at me because I was in the same situation as you last year this time and have taken exactly what you are considering! lol

Well, not different to what many people say... A levels are HARD.... not worth comparing to GCSE'S because they seem to small in front of A levels. Specially, if you're taking these subjects... First few weeks are a BIG push and then I think it's fine - not because it gets any easier or better but because you get used to it being soooo hard hehehe

I got grades A, A, A*, A* for bio, physics, chem and maths GCSE'S (respectively) and my settling in exam results: B, B, U, D (same order) I'm sure its pretty easy to spot the difference... My strong subjects are not my strong subjects anymore loool thats why GCSE results can be misleading at times

I would say think about what you want to do at uni and depend your decision on that and if you do choose to go ahead with these subjects then be prepared to work hard. :smile:

I'd be glad to ans anymore questions based on my experiences so far :wink:

Hey I was just wondering if you don't mind what grades you ended up getting at the end of AS? I'm in the same position as the OP was. Thanks :smile:

Reply 33

TheMysteryMan

Original post by TayS

Hey I was just wondering if you don't mind what grades you ended up getting at the end of AS? I'm in the same position as the OP was. Thanks :smile:

I also found the first week or two quite overwhelming, particularly maths. But now it's fine, exam time however, is very stressful. :rolleyes:

Reply 34

fdry1

Original post by TheMysteryMan

I also found the first week or two quite overwhelming, particularly maths. But now it's fine, exam time however, is very stressful. :rolleyes:

Okay this thread has really helped. I think I'm going to go with this combination :smile:

Thank you

Reply 35

Abbseh

If anyone has any questions feel free to ask, I did chemistry, biology, physics and maths at AS and am now doing chemistry, physics, maths and an EPQ. I'm applying to do physics at university by the way if anyone has any questions about physics in particular :smile:

Reply 36

Muppet Science

There is certainly a step up but assuming some capacity for the subject and diligence good grades are achievable. I got A*A*A in Biology, Chemistry and Physics because I made sure I knew the content and what the mark scheme would want. Just work throughout the year (do not just cram a few weeks before... as some of my friends did) and if you do not understand something like make sure a teacher explains it to you.

Good Luck :smile:

Reply 37

CJKay

I actually found the jump from GCSE to A-Levels more difficult than from A-Levels to degree, which is what my teachers at the time said would happen.

Reply 38

ermm

I took those subject and further maths too. Honestly, it's not the difficulty that gets you, it's the little word games you have to play to make sure you right exactly what the marker wants to read.

My biggest regret is starting too late. I understood the content very well, but sometimes in exams a right answer isn't enough, you have to assume the people marking are STUPID (which in some cases they may be). It isn't too bad at all, just have to manage your time well.