3 or 4 a-levels for maths at Cambridge imperial or Warwick

I recently just got my GCSE results and they have been very good ( 9in maths , triple science, geography,German, both englishes, 8 in computer science) and my plan has always been to study maths at a good university. My sixth form encourages people to do 3 a levels but considering most applicants to Cambridge and imperial do four and the fact that maths, FM and physics overlap a lot , is it potentially advantageous to do 4 a levels which my sixth form allows but discourages

Reply 1

Zxsr5667

5

If you think you can handle 4, then do 4. You're sixth form is just trying to make sure you can handle the workload as a 4th subject adds a significant amount of workload. Also, if you're doing maths at a top uni then FM is basically essential, I'm pretty sure Imperial requires students to take FM if their college allows them to do so even for non-maths related courses. As well as that, FM is only going to help ease your uni experience, it's not like you're taking an extra a level that you're not sure you're going to use.

Reply 2

Interea

19

4 A levels can be risky, particularly when applying for courses with such high requirements, as the extra workload can cause all your grades to slip. It's more doable (and more common) when you have maths and further maths in there, but since they're counted as separate A levels for maths degrees you still don't need the 4th.

For Warwick the only small advantage is being able to get an A*A*AA alternative offer rather than A*A*A*, which is helpful if you have subjects you don't think you could get the A* in but really want to do. This advantage is kind of irrelevant if you're planning to apply to other unis that require entrance exams though, since doing well in them will get you an A*A*A Warwick offer anyway. (They also temporarily got rid of some of the alternative offers a couple of years ago, so I wouldn't necessarily rely on them still existing by the time you're applying.)

Reply 3

lanky_giraffe

14

I would recommend just doing Further maths, math and physics

Doing 4 isn’t advantageous.

Reply 4

fkdkxkdjskd

OP

2

Original post by Zxsr5667

If you think you can handle 4, then do 4. You're sixth form is just trying to make sure you can handle the workload as a 4th subject adds a significant amount of workload. Also, if you're doing maths at a top uni then FM is basically essential, I'm pretty sure Imperial requires students to take FM if their college allows them to do so even for non-maths related courses. As well as that, FM is only going to help ease your uni experience, it's not like you're taking an extra a level that you're not sure you're going to use.

I think you misunderstood what I meant ( I dont blame you , the post is slightly vague). I am definetly taking fm maths and physics but I do not know whether I should take chemistry too

Reply 5

lanky_giraffe

14

Original post by fkdkxkdjskd

I think you misunderstood what I meant ( I dont blame you , the post is slightly vague). I am definetly taking fm maths and physics but I do not know whether I should take chemistry too

3 of my mates did 4 (FM, Maths, Chemistry and Physics).

2 out of 3 got an A in chem, and the other got an A* (2 got A*A*A*A and 1 got 4xA*). And it didn't help them at all in getting a place, and they sort of regret taking chemistry, and they said chemistry was the hardest.

If you want to do maths at uni it won't help, if anything it may decrease your chances of getting in because you're more likely to drop grades in the other 3 subjects.

Reply 6

Sorcerer's Storm

20

Don't do 4, too much work and it won't give your application an advantage.

Reply 7

RichE

15

Should you be thinking of applying for maths at Cambridge then another thing to remember is that you'll need to prepare for STEP in the next two years, and might want to in any case. That's definitely a fair bit of extra work.

Reply 8

fkdkxkdjskd

OP

2

I have decided that I am only going to do 3 A-Levels (maths fm and physics) after talking to some more teachers and some former pupils of the sixth form at these universities

Reply 9

spontycat

3

Original post by fkdkxkdjskd

I recently just got my GCSE results and they have been very good ( 9in maths , triple science, geography,German, both englishes, 8 in computer science) and my plan has always been to study maths at a good university. My sixth form encourages people to do 3 a levels but considering most applicants to Cambridge and imperial do four and the fact that maths, FM and physics overlap a lot , is it potentially advantageous to do 4 a levels which my sixth form allows but discourages

My son went to Cambridge to read maths, he did 4 A levels, maths, further maths, physics & chemistry, but remember if you want to do maths at Cambridge or Warwick you will also need to do STEP exams

3 or 4 a-levels for maths at Cambridge imperial or Warwick

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