Psychology or biology?

Hi, so I'm currently applying for 6th form and I've already picked chemistry and fine art but I don't really know what I want to pick for my 3rd subject. I would like to be a concept illustrator and I was going to pick psychology for my 3rd one but since we've started biology this year, I'm liking it a lot- even though we are on B1 (Edexcel) and I'm possibly thinking of being a doctor or something medicine related now even though that path is very 'fuzzy'. I would want to do psychology because learning how people think and all that seems interesting and if I do choose biology, I may not like it. So I'm really confused as to what I want to do for my 3rd subject. Any input would be nice, even if it's what the lessons are like. Thank you :smile:

Reply 1

Adenine9

Biology and Chemistry A-Level complement each other pretty well but they are both very challenging. Biology A-Level is completely different to GCSE as the sheer breadth and depth of knowledge you need to memorise is insane (not to mention the mark schemes become super picky!) To put this into perspective, your B1 topic is around 13/14 pages long whereas my AS Biology textbook is about 300 pages long and I need to absorb pretty much all of the info on those pages AS WELL AS my 320 page long A2 textbook if I want to get my A/A*.

I managed A*'s in the sciences at GCSE (edexcel) with little trouble and I got quite a shock when I got to A-Level - there is so much to remember! However, if you put the hard work in, revise for a few hours a week (even when you first start in September) by doing tons of past papers and pin-pointing topics on the specification that you struggle with and ask your teacher for extra support on those, there is no reason you can't do well!

As for chemistry, I love it. I find it so logical and there is far less content to cram into your brain than there is for Biology - you just need to make sure you fully grasp all of the concepts and practice using past papers!

I can't speak for Psychology sadly but I'd strongly recommend choosing Biology purely because it will open more doors for you and some courses require it (Med, Dent, Bio-Med). I don't think that there is a course that absolutely requires Psychology A Level (not even a psychology degree!) It will be hard work but if you have a passion for it then that will help you through :-)

Reply 2

pinkypaz123

Thank you! After a little bit of thinking, I've decided to do fine art, chemistry and biology ☺. Now all that's left is to write my personal statement and my hobbies..