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Is this a respectable balance of A levels subjects for Russell group unis?

GCSE: A*A*AAAAAAAC

History A
Englis Lit A
English language A
RE A*
Geography A*
Science AA
DT A
IT A
Maths C

AS Options:

Religious studies (Philosophy and Ethics)
English Literature
Sociology
EPQ

Is this a respectable set of A levels?

Is the fact I am only doing 3 going to be a hindrance?

I an considering Liverpool,Manchester and Leeds, will this be okay for subjects such as Law and politics?

Is sociology going to be a major issue when it comes to my application?

I tried to pick 2 highly regarded A levels, and one that I enjoy the look of, I cant do any other subjects due to option clashes, Geography clashes with Literature, and similar to History.

I love politics and debating a point, so I really looked into Sociology. My friend has done Sociology,Psychology and Law, and been accepted to Manchester, so I am curious to know if this "Facilitating subject" rule of thumb still applies. Because a number of my friends are at leading universities, and they have not done any facilitating subjects at all.

So, what does everyone think?

Should I do 4 AS levels, or put all my energy into 3 that I enjoy and come out with decent grades?
For politics it should be fine. (Source: myself being a politics student)

However, I've heard that it's better to have two 'traditional subjects', one of which is English Literature. Honestly, I would switch your RE for History.
mickey mouse subjects
Reply 3
Your subjects are more than fine, dw. The grades matter more.
Original post by BanterClaus28
GCSE: A*A*AAAAAAAC

History A
Englis Lit A
English language A
RE A*
Geography A*
Science AA
DT A
IT A
Maths C

AS Options:

Religious studies (Philosophy and Ethics)
English Literature
Sociology
EPQ

Is this a respectable set of A levels?

Is the fact I am only doing 3 going to be a hindrance?

I an considering Liverpool,Manchester and Leeds, will this be okay for subjects such as Law and politics?

Is sociology going to be a major issue when it comes to my application?

I tried to pick 2 highly regarded A levels, and one that I enjoy the look of, I cant do any other subjects due to option clashes, Geography clashes with Literature, and similar to History.

I love politics and debating a point, so I really looked into Sociology. My friend has done Sociology,Psychology and Law, and been accepted to Manchester, so I am curious to know if this "Facilitating subject" rule of thumb still applies. Because a number of my friends are at leading universities, and they have not done any facilitating subjects at all.

So, what does everyone think?

Should I do 4 AS levels, or put all my energy into 3 that I enjoy and come out with decent grades?


It's better to do 3 A levels and an EPQ and come out with AAAA than do 4 or 5 and get CCDDD

By doing 3 subjects and an EPQ at yr 12 you will be able to devote more time to each of your subjects and you will have more free periods which you can use for independent study or to catch up with your EPQ. 4 a levels is not necessary at all.
(edited 7 years ago)
Original post by BanterClaus28
GCSE: A*A*AAAAAAAC

History A
Englis Lit A
English language A
RE A*
Geography A*
Science AA
DT A
IT A
Maths C

AS Options:

Religious studies (Philosophy and Ethics)
English Literature
Sociology
EPQ

Is this a respectable set of A levels?

Is the fact I am only doing 3 going to be a hindrance?

I an considering Liverpool,Manchester and Leeds, will this be okay for subjects such as Law and politics?

Is sociology going to be a major issue when it comes to my application?

I tried to pick 2 highly regarded A levels, and one that I enjoy the look of, I cant do any other subjects due to option clashes, Geography clashes with Literature, and similar to History.

I love politics and debating a point, so I really looked into Sociology. My friend has done Sociology,Psychology and Law, and been accepted to Manchester, so I am curious to know if this "Facilitating subject" rule of thumb still applies. Because a number of my friends are at leading universities, and they have not done any facilitating subjects at all.

So, what does everyone think?

Should I do 4 AS levels, or put all my energy into 3 that I enjoy and come out with decent grades?


3 A Levels is all that's required and won't disadvantage you.

English Lit is the only facilitating subject you've chosen. Consider geography or history.
sociology and rs are **** subjects but you should be fine.
Reply 7
They are fine. To be honest, facilitating subjects aren't the most important thing, it is your grades! I know people quite a lot of people who did no facilitating subjects at all and were accepted into Russell Group unis (including Leeds and Manchester). Some might state they want certain facilitating subjects, but if they don't, it isn't as important as people make it out to be.
Original post by GradeA*UnderA
3 A Levels is all that's required and won't disadvantage you.

English Lit is the only facilitating subject you've chosen. Consider geography or history.


Is Religious studies not held to a similar prestige?
Original post by BanterClaus28
Is Religious studies not held to a similar prestige?


No
Changed them:

History
Literature
Religious studies
Sociology
EPQ
Original post by hopefuldentist10
mickey mouse subjects


History,Literature,RE,Sociology and EPQ?
RS has the same prestige as Economics and Computer Science in that they are not facilitating subjects but they are thought of well.
Many people think RS is 'soft' (it's not believe me!!) for two reasons, first it has 'studies' at the end, second it was piss easy at GCSE - that is not the case for A Level.

Your subjects are fine, dw.

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