The Student Room Group

a-level subjects

hey so i was wondering if anyone on here has taken history and eng lit alevels?

i really dont know what i want to do yet at uni so ive decided to try and keep as much open as possible (right now i'm thinking of chemistry, maths and economics) but i want a humanity for my 4th alevel and im not sure whether to pick history or english literature, so i'd appreciate some insight into what alevel studying looks like for both?

ive been getting 9s in eng lit with very high test boundaries (usually 27-29/30 being a 9) since beginning of yr10 and 9s since the beginning of yr10 too (2019 edexcel boundaries) but im fairly impartial because i dont mind the course content for either and dont revise for both.

could anyone tell me what the coursework for both looks like (roughly)? what the grade boundaries are like? which subject is "harder" or "easier"? which one has harder content/takes more time?

obviously all exam boards are appreciated but the school im applying to right now does Eduqas Eng Lit and OCR History (not Ancient) GCE
(edited 7 months ago)
Reply 1
I took both subjects at A-level and would definitely recommend taking English over History as a fourth subject. However, I am hugely biased (doing an English Lit degree), so here are some observations:

- English has high grade boundaries but easier content (on our course you needed at least a 28/30 for an A* but this was reasonably easy to get) whereas History has much lower grade boundaries by comparison (more in the 20/30 for an A* range) but this can be a lot harder to achieve (I spent all of year 12 trying to get above a 16 and often failed woefully (skill issue though tbh.))

- History requires a lot of memorisation while in English you can get by with good critical thinking skills. You will need to memorise quotes and stuff, but its nothing in comparison to the huge amount of dates you'll need to get down for History. If you're good at that sort of thing, you'll do well, but if you struggle to retain large amounts of info would Not recommend

- In terms of coursework, it varies hugely depending on exam board, but English coursework tends to be more similar to an essay you'd do in class while History coursework is more similar to a research project (EPQ adjacent in some cases)

Hope this helps and good luck with your choices!
Original post by hermita
hey so i was wondering if anyone on here has taken history and eng lit alevels?
i really dont know what i want to do yet at uni so ive decided to try and keep as much open as possible (right now i'm thinking of chemistry, maths and economics) but i want a humanity for my 4th alevel and im not sure whether to pick history or english literature, so i'd appreciate some insight into what alevel studying looks like for both?
ive been getting 9s in eng lit with very high test boundaries (usually 27-29/30 being a 9) since beginning of yr10 and 9s since the beginning of yr10 too (2019 edexcel boundaries) but im fairly impartial because i dont mind the course content for either and dont revise for both.
could anyone tell me what the coursework for both looks like (roughly)? what the grade boundaries are like? which subject is "harder" or "easier"? which one has harder content/takes more time?
obviously all exam boards are appreciated but the school im applying to right now does Eduqas Eng Lit and OCR History (not Ancient) GCE
Hi! I took English A Level and would say the level is pretty similar from GCSE to A level (in Maths for example, people say there is quite a jump, but for English not so much)
They're both essay based subjects, but English would be more remembering quotes whereas History would be more about remembering dates and rulers names and such! If you really have no lean towards either, it might be worth visiting your future sixth form/college and seeing what the teachers for either are like then going off that! Best of luck with everything :smile:
Original post by s0rrel
I took both subjects at A-level and would definitely recommend taking English over History as a fourth subject. However, I am hugely biased (doing an English Lit degree), so here are some observations:
- English has high grade boundaries but easier content (on our course you needed at least a 28/30 for an A* but this was reasonably easy to get) whereas History has much lower grade boundaries by comparison (more in the 20/30 for an A* range) but this can be a lot harder to achieve (I spent all of year 12 trying to get above a 16 and often failed woefully (skill issue though tbh.))
- History requires a lot of memorisation while in English you can get by with good critical thinking skills. You will need to memorise quotes and stuff, but its nothing in comparison to the huge amount of dates you'll need to get down for History. If you're good at that sort of thing, you'll do well, but if you struggle to retain large amounts of info would Not recommend
- In terms of coursework, it varies hugely depending on exam board, but English coursework tends to be more similar to an essay you'd do in class while History coursework is more similar to a research project (EPQ adjacent in some cases)
Hope this helps and good luck with your choices!

Is getting an A* impossible ? I’m doing ocr English lit and I’m rlly scared I’m not going to be able to get that ( I’m doing gcse atm)

Quick Reply

Latest