A level choices- respected/ importance?

Heyoo,

I am at the stage where I have to choose my A Levels (but only provisionally) later this week! All my friends seem to have a clear idea but I really don't know.

So basically I've cut the extensive list of A Level options down to these 6! (No particular order)

1)Biology
2)Chemistry
3)Maths (the one I'm least likely to take but oh well)
4)Law
5)English Literature
6)Economics
7)History

Could you try to order them to the most respected in universities nowadays (top most, bottom least)

And if you have any important details or warnings about any, they would be much appreciated! :smile:

I have to choose 4 by the way and possibly drop down to 3 after AS!

Thank for your time,

Biscuitmuncher

Reply 1

SuperiorGenius

If I were you I'd do: Biology, Chemistry, Maths and then History/English.

Reply 2

username1434402

Bio, chem, maths, eng lit, history well respected. Maybe maths top. Then economics then law. Obviously it depends on the uni course.

Reply 3

uncommonsensing

Law is definitely the least respected, and economics would only be useful for a limited amount of subjects. If you don't really want to do maths then Biology, Chemistry, English Literature and History would probably give the most opportunities and you can decide after AS whether you want to specialise in humanities or sciences.

Reply 4

Biscuitmuncher

Original post by SuperiorGenius

If I were you I'd do: Biology, Chemistry, Maths and then History/English.

I agree. The problem I have is I am not sure whether I'd be up to the standard for doing maths as I am not naturally good at it. In my last progress check it said I was predicted a B Grade for GCSE so I'm not sure if thats acceptable

Reply 5

Rhetorical Hips

Original post by Biscuitmuncher

I have to choose 4 by the way and possibly drop down to 3 after AS!

Thank for your time,

Biscuitmuncher

I'm biased as I'm a scientist but I'd say sciences are generally better "respected". It depends obviously, if you're talking to historians and poets vs scientists and doctors. Also, you should prioritise how useful they are i.e. how many doors they open or keep open for you, rather than on kudos/prestige/respect. That said, the two are often closely related. So here's my opinion.

1) Maths - probably the hardest, but that's why it's top. Very useful A-level to have, depite the fact we all whine about how useless GCSE maths is.

2) Chemistry - generally regarded as harder than biology, as it is closer to maths and physics on the 'sciences' spectrum. Therefore more respected and useful e.g. medicine always requires chemistry A-level, but not all require biology.

3) Biology - it's a science

4) History or English Literature - both well regarded arts/humanities subjects.

5) Economics - not really sure about this, but I'm pretty sure it's not that well regarded. You certainly don't need it to go into business, banking, etc.

6) Law - definitely lowest, you always hear about how law at A-level is not required to do law at uni.

Reply 6

Biscuitmuncher

Original post by uncommonsensing

My mum said the same about Law despite her having a degree in it. However all my teachers have been saying that economics is very good and well respected so I really don't know! ahhhhhhhhhhhh

Reply 7

Biscuitmuncher

Original post by ahf

Bio, chem, maths, eng lit, history well respected. Maybe maths top. Then economics then law. Obviously it depends on the uni course.

Thank you!

Reply 8

Biscuitmuncher

Original post by Clai

Thank you so much that is so helpful! :biggrin:

I am considering the sciences! My teacher at the A Level evening said that I could not take one science without another as I would find it hard to understand and I would probably drop it after AS due to lack of understanding? :confused:

Reply 9

Chief Wiggum

Original post by Biscuitmuncher

I have to choose 4 by the way and possibly drop down to 3 after AS!

Thank for your time,

Biscuitmuncher

Apart from Law, they are all very respected subjects. It would depend what you want to study at university.

Reply 10

NikolaT

You're not going to enjoy economics unless you're interested in it already - how regularly do you check the news? Current affairs?

Maths at AS was actually alright, though it depends if you're willing to put in work into it - if you're scraping a B that's different to a solid B/aiming for an A.

The obvious question with History and English Lit, do you like writing essays?

Reply 11

himynameiswill

Honestly, it's just something you have to decide yourself. I wouldn't choose just going by which is most respected. You have to have a passion for it. A friend of mine is seriously regretting taking chemistry and physics, and he said he took them because he thought they would look good.

The sciences are the most respected though in my opinion

Reply 12

Rhetorical Hips

Original post by Biscuitmuncher

Thank you so much that is so helpful! :biggrin:

Yeah I do all four sciences and you'll see quite a bit of crossover between them which is always nice (and also some stuff already covered in GCSE, but that's probably because I did different boards for GCSE and A-level).

In case you didn't know, the 'spectrum' I'm referring to is:
Maths -> Physics -> Chemistry -> Biology (-> Social Sciences, Humanities, Languages, other arts subjects, etc.)
So to cut a long story short you'll see crossover between the subjects next to each other in the spectrum. For example there's a guy in my physics class that didn't do maths, which puts him at a real disadvantage.

The reason I say maths is useful is that it is the fundamental science. It doesn't get more basic than numbers, all the other sciences are built up from this. So I would strongly advise doing maths - but ultimately it's your decision, not everyone wants to do science - would be a very boring world if everyone did!

Reply 13

tcameron

Original post by Biscuitmuncher

I have to choose 4 by the way and possibly drop down to 3 after AS!

Thank for your time,

Biscuitmuncher

1.Maths, Chemistry Biology, English Lit are probably the most respected
2.History
3.Economics
4.Law (considered quite a soft subject)

Reply 14

Frantica

Original post by Biscuitmuncher

There is quite a step up from GCSE maths to AS, many colleges will insist that you have an A/A* at GCSE to start the course at AS level. To be honest I'd advise you to take something you'd be more comfortable doing and be more interested in rather than struggling with a subject that you probably won't get a great result in because it is considered more prestigious.

Reply 15

Bustamove

Hey, please please please think carefully about this... Don't make the same mistake as me...

At the time, I thought i wanted to do medicine so i took Maths statistics, Chemistry, Biology and Economics... but after doing a few work placements, I hated it.. I hated medicine and I hated my subjects.... Ever since then, everything has gone down hill for me... I ended up with C,D,D and B in AS economics, I was a average student at gcse level, and got 1 A*, 3As, 4Bs, 3Cs.
It's honestly a massive step up, from gcse to A-level

I should have just picked subjects that I was good at and enjoyed... Now I'm paying for it and taking a gap year, doing retakes... I dropped chemistry and decided to go down the financial route, im gonna do A2 economics in my gap year as well as maths retakes and biology...

Seriously, only pick subjects that you genuinely enjoy, and don't be pressured into taking subjects you don't like... don't make the same mistake as me... You may think you want something but people change over time, even you...
so my advice is to pick atleast 1 subject that you're good at and enjoy.... and make sure your subjects are open and not narrowed down to one particular field...

If i could go back in time, i would have taken maths stats, Econ, music and business studies....

Reply 16

emdoesalevels

Forget the reputation of Alevels when deciding on which to take!

If you're not enjoying maths at the minute, theres no need to consider it now. You want to make sure that you pick subject youre going to enjoy, because theres nothing worse than having to force yourself to revise something youre not bothered about. Think about what subjects you enjoy now. For a lot of subjects its a big jump up from GCSEs, youre more likely to have the determination and commitment to keep up with the new level of education if youre interested.

Think about what youre wanting to study at university. If youre wanting to study law or history, then essay based subjects would be best. However, if youre wanting to study medicine for example some subjects (bio/chem) are frequently required. Have a look through university prospectuses and have a look at recommended Alevel courses.

Ignore the whole "X has a really rubbish subject, universities wont accept that". Law seems to have a lot of stigma surrounding it, but I know 2 people who have gone on to study Law and History at Oxford and Cambridge respectively having studied Law at Alevel. As long as you put in the time and get reasonable grades ('good' is subjective, to one person that might be an A and to another a C), youll be fine. Reputation of Alevels is nothing depending upon the effort you put into them and your intentions after Alevels.

I personally studied maths at AS and recently took full Alevels in biology, chemistry and physics. I didnt find biology to be too much of a step up, however, there is a lot of content to learn and remember, and the questions arent wrote as simply as they are at GCSE - but I think once youve got your head around it all youre fine. Chemistry is a big step up, but put in the effort and youll be fine again. I found maths tricky, which is why I decided to drop it after AS, but I think one big reason I found it so hard was because I wasnt overly interested and didnt show the commitment I should have!

Hope your GCSEs went okay, good luck and dont worry too much! A lot of colleges are flexible and will allow a bit of change within the first few weeks! X