I'm interested in dentistry, what A-levels should I take?

I'm in year 11 and currently thinking of the following: Biology, Chemistry, Psychology at A2 and Photography at AS.

Now, I know that Biology and Chemistry are a must and maths is advised, but not essential. I also know that photography is not academic and is not seen as well as the other 3 of my options, but it's only at AS and I was advised to take an A-Level to take the stress off of my shoulders, so I've chosen my hobby, photography. I'm very intrigued by the sound of Psychology too! English lit is my reserve.

Would you say that these are good A-Levels for my field?

P.S: I'm working at an A* in Chemistry and Biology and an A/A* in English lit. A in maths too. (just incase advised)

I'm in year 11 and currently thinking of the following: Biology, Chemistry, Psychology at A2 and Photography at AS.

Now, I know that Biology and Chemistry are a must and maths is advised, but not essential. I also know that photography is not academic and is not seen as well as the other 3 of my options, but it's only at AS and I was advised to take an A-Level to take the stress off of my shoulders, so I've chosen my hobby, photography. I'm very intrigued by the sound of Psychology too! English lit is my reserve.

Would you say that these are good A-Levels for my field?

P.S: I'm working at an A* in Chemistry and Biology and an A/A* in English lit. A in maths too. (just incase advised)

You will have to look at the entry requirements for universities to get a real idea of what they are after and what they want from you.

Personally, I think that they will not be fond of your AS in photography.
Dentistry is one of the top, if not THE TOP degrees that you can get into these days and competition is exceptional!

If you want my advise, you should do all 3 sciences, and really maths and/or further maths. Dentistry applicant are of the most academic with the "best" academic qualifications. If you want any shot in a competitive field, you really need to take the top subjects, and be prepared to work exceptionally hard. Besides, as you have probably head many a times, i'm going to say it to you again, the gap from GCSE to A Level is MASSIVE!

You seem like a academic student and one with a bright mindset, so i'm sure you'll do well.

My last words to you will be that you need to be prepared to study hard, and long into the night sometimes. Also be prepared for setbacks and times where you might not be doing as well as you think or want to be, just learn from your mistakes and keep working even harder. Most importantly, enjoy what you are doing, and if you are genuinely interested in doing dentistry and love the idea of it then get some experience such as work experience!

If you have any questions feel free to ask, i'm currently in my AS year so I know how big the gap is :O

Good luck and I hope this helped

Thank you so much for the advice. I really do not like physics at all, but enjoy maths a lot. So instead would you advise doing Chemistry, Biology, Maths and Psychology. I just wasn't sure if your AS level mattered, therefore I thought it was ok to take a 'doss' subject . BTW, I'm hoping for a scholarship for American football to an American university, to also study dentistry and trust me, I know this will take over my life for 5 years ahahah. So due to me having a scholarship, do you think they'd mind as much if I took photography? Sorry for the excessive questions!

No problem, here to help aha

Yes, i don't see what is wrong in those subjects. It is just that the maths was an essential in a sense that most good uni's and maybe even all uni's are going to start implying that they want those who have done maths at an advanced level.
I wouldn't worry too much about the physics, it's just again, sciences are well recommended and it's good to have a broad scientific knowledge. What better than doing all 3 sciences!?
But as you stated, if you don't like a subject then there is no point in doing it. It really won't benefit you at all.

I think you're in with a good chance, and especially if you've already been offered a scholarship from America! that's amazing! Just make sure you balance you're sport with you're studies!

Of course man, you're so helpful! Yeah I make sure I do! So I was just thinking and do you think: Chemistry, Biology, Maths and Photography would be ok? I'm not too sure and I know exactly what you mean about individual uni's. It's just, as a serious sports man, my life would be taken over completely and it'd mean that I don't have time for anything else, absolutely nothing. This is why I so desperately want to take photography, I love it! But, I know what you mean about the competition, I was just thinking about the scholarship and if they'd care too much about my AS option. I think they'll care more about my A2's and American football haha What do you think about that selection (Chem, Bio, Maths and Photography? And, what do you study right now at AS and do you enjoy them? Thanks man!

I'm in year 11 and currently thinking of the following: Biology, Chemistry, Psychology at A2 and Photography at AS.

Now, I know that Biology and Chemistry are a must and maths is advised, but not essential. I also know that photography is not academic and is not seen as well as the other 3 of my options, but it's only at AS and I was advised to take an A-Level to take the stress off of my shoulders, so I've chosen my hobby, photography. I'm very intrigued by the sound of Psychology too! English lit is my reserve.

Would you say that these are good A-Levels for my field?

P.S: I'm working at an A* in Chemistry and Biology and an A/A* in English lit. A in maths too. (just incase advised)

Just to let you know that it is unlikely that AS photography will let the 'stress off your shoulders' - it's more likely to be a source of stress. Don't be fooled into thinking it's an easy subject, one which you're likely to do well in - it requires a lot work and effort to get a good grade, and is very time consuming.

Aha thank you
Yes, that would be acceptable and you'd just have to explain to them in your UCAS (if you apply in UK) your reason for taking photography.

What i mean is that each uni has their own requirements, so it is best to first check what they are and then where you would be eligible to go

American uni's are among the best in the world, and if you want to do dentistry, then you are not only going to have to achieve the BEST grades in HARD subjects, bust also, they will want to interview you as to why you really want to take the course, what is it inside you that gives you a love for dentistry and having a career in it. So if you do plan to go to America, make sure you get some good experience before hand!

Americans seem to value their sport a lot, but they also have a requirement for academic ability as well. To be honest I've never heard of a successful american sportsman who has done a sought after degree such as dentistry or other branches of medicine. Probably because its almost impossible to be successful at your sport, and get so much studying done at the same time. You would have to be non-human to cope with all of it

I think that you should think hard about what you'd really prefer to do going forward. Would you like to excel in your sport and is that the main reason you want to go to America? or do you want to do dentistry 100%

Finally, yes I think you have a great selection. But its not what you pick, it is the grades you come out with, so work hard my friend!

As for me, I did pretty poor in my GCSE's, everyone said i did not do bad but I was not satisfied. As a result I moved school and am at a sixth form which is not only closer to my home, but also in the top 60 state schools in the country. So I was privileged to be accepted.
From this I learnt that this was my second chance and I was not going to throw it away what so ever!
I am currently doing Applied Science Double Award A Level (it covers all 3 aspects of science and in both an academic manor and applied manor, just not as in depth or in a specializing way such as the individual sciences), Maths and Spanish

Applied science is great and in fact, it prepares you a lot better for uni than normal A Levels, because you create your own portfolios and do your own research, which is what you will have to do at university. I think it's amazing and I highly recommend the course to anyone interested in studying a science based degree at uni. It has endless options!

As for Spanish, its relatively easy as I am half Mexican myself so having a Spanish background helps a lot. The only area that I need to improve on is my grammar and tenses, as when i communicate by people its usually by speech, and not by writing/email. Other than that, it takes some weight off my shoulders an I enjoy it which is a bonus

As for maths, this is the hardest of the lot, I achieved a low A at GCSE so I was lucky to be accepted onto the course, however, what all the teachers and staff and friends said to me was true, it is incredibly difficult and the jump was enormous! We've almost finished our first term and to be fair, we are all struggling, just some significantly more than others. I'm overcoming the struggles well though, I make sure i study extra hours after school and also have a tutor, who explains to me what I don't know after the school hours. I have some fairly old maths books as well but very detailed, not like these revision books from AQA or whatever that you can get. The book I have are from like the 1980's but are incredibly detailed.
I also make sure I apply my maths as well and contribute to an engineering project going on at the moment called Bloodhound SSC, its a project that a group of scientists, engineers, and many other scientific staff are undergoing to try and create the worlds fastest car! they want to make it reach a speed of 1000mph! It focuses a lot on aerodynamics, kinematics and mechanics so I learn a lot of advanced stuff too, even though it literally seems crazy to me, but I will understand it eventually

Anyway I've been yapping away for too long now so yes I do enjoy my subjects and I hope you will enjoy yours too, any more questions, feel free to ask

Oh, forgot to mention, i'm on interim currently for:
Applied Science: AB
Spanish:A
Maths: E/U

Damn, so helpful haha. I find the UCAS thing very reasonable. I think I'll do well e.g A grade (I have such a good work ethic and ability to achieve when I really want something) at Chemistry Biology and/or Photography/Psychology (Whatever I do) it's just Maths A-Level that worries me alot!

I'm in the same situation you was in, I'm working at a low A, but you say that you've started to cope with maths a bit now, (take it in mind that you're only new to the subject too ) so do you think you'll get a B or A by the end of it?

I'll speak to my agency about the dentistry with American football combination, as you know both are extremely hard things to do at Uni. But, I think it'll be ok, it'll just mean that I have literally hardly any free time! I've watched alot of student athletes, and although they don't study dentistry, they still study some demanding subjects such as law and still manage to play/train. But their life is literally taken over. Also I don't know if you know, but division 1 american football is bigger than any other sport in the world, one stadium can seat 121,895 people (Michigan) so it's not some saturday league, who cares thing. This ****'s real! Sponsored, multi-million dollar programmes, everything! I'll just make sure to talk to my agents tomorrow about it all, I'm sure they'll help me with it (as they're all retired, American, student athletes).

But most of all, I just want to say thank you, you've opened my eyes a bit. I'm so glad I've got a couple more months to think about it all!

A good work ethic helps a lot, and you really have to be keen on studying not just at school, but also outside, and during your free hours.

To be honest, if your aiming or achieving top grades in equally demanding subjects such as chemistry/biology etc. then you shouldn't be put off by maths at all. Take it straight on and smash it!

I'm improving slowly, but that's because i'm such a wide thinker and like to always think outside of the box (that's why im doing good in science and not maths, because my understanding is too slow and poor atm) But slowly is a good sign and yes, hopefully i shall pass at least. I want to make sure I get at least a B. However, this term has been quite a shock and defiantly tough! so if it continues like this throughout the course I will just consider dropping it after Y12, an AS in it will be nice anyway

I've recently started getting quite fond of american football as well, and yeah, I know about their events. They are HUGE! just hope you don't mind getting sacked in front of 100 odd thousand people!

Speak to your agency, they should be advising you anyway

I'm more then happy to help anytime, and no, thank you for actually asking about this.
It's nice to help people and advise them

Good luck my friend and any more questions, feel free to ask

Ps: Vikings are the best, Peterson is world class

not sure about which A-levels but if you don't take photography you can always pursue it as a hobby even if you don't take it as a subject. I think photography as a hobby/interest or joining a club (at school i used to use the blackrooms etc as an extra curricular thing) will look better than photography AS on a cv personally

I want to do dentistry, I am in Year 12

I picked: Biology,Chemistry,Maths,History and the Extended Project
I wouldn't pick Photography, it's not respected at all by universities and most certainly it is not a traditional subject.

You could do 3 sciences and maths, but be aware the workload is immense and only do them if you really enjoy Physics. I got an A at GCSE Physics, but I already knew I didn't want to take it at A Level, but it's your choice.

You could do Psychology, but do you have any other more interesting traditional subjects in mind such as: History,Geography,Physics,Further Maths, a language, English? - They're more respected by universities and you'll have a better chance of getting in.

Jatz

I think this is what I'll do, thank you. That seems very reasonable, and a great way to put it.