I'm a year 11 student, and planning to take maths, fm, economics

I can't decide the last subject, as I know further maths and econ is going to require a lot for extensive effort. And I don't want to do things like physics, chem or bio, I hate the sciences. But I do have a little I interest in physics from Oppenheimer tho😭. I contemplated doing business, however I heard a lot of universities group those 2, as the same.
I want to go to bath, Cambridge,oxford, Warwick or somewhere further in America like Uchicago, pensilvania.
Should I just take econ, maths, fm without taking a 4th a level? What are your suggestions?

Reply 1

Nk110

3

Original post by Kkkaiii

I can't decide the last subject, as I know further maths and econ is going to require a lot for extensive effort. And I don't want to do things like physics, chem or bio, I hate the sciences. But I do have a little I interest in physics from Oppenheimer tho*. I contemplated doing business, however I heard a lot of universities group those 2, as the same.
I want to go to bath, Cambridge,oxford, Warwick or somewhere further in America like Uchicago, pensilvania.
Should I just take econ, maths, fm without taking a 4th a level? What are your suggestions?

Completely avoid doing fm as a third
Many unis look down on it
I suggest taking a “lighter” subject,

Reply 2

swanseajack1

19

Original post by Nk110

Completely avoid doing fm as a third
Many unis look down on it
I suggest taking a “lighter” subject,

This is absolute nonsense. Top universities prefer FM. The only time they dont accept it is for Medicine. For courses like Economics it is a hugely respected course. Somewhere like LSE you are highly unlikely to get into Economics without FM.

Reply 3

swanseajack1

19

Original post by Kkkaiii

I can't decide the last subject, as I know further maths and econ is going to require a lot for extensive effort. And I don't want to do things like physics, chem or bio, I hate the sciences. But I do have a little I interest in physics from Oppenheimer tho😭. I contemplated doing business, however I heard a lot of universities group those 2, as the same.
I want to go to bath, Cambridge,oxford, Warwick or somewhere further in America like Uchicago, pensilvania.
Should I just take econ, maths, fm without taking a 4th a level? What are your suggestions?

If you want to take a 4th subject how about Politics. It would fit well with your choices. Check the requirements for courses you are interested in at your preferred university and decide whether a 4th subject is necessary.

Reply 4

Actuallyhelp:(

2

Original post by Kkkaiii

I can't decide the last subject, as I know further maths and econ is going to require a lot for extensive effort. And I don't want to do things like physics, chem or bio, I hate the sciences. But I do have a little I interest in physics from Oppenheimer tho😭. I contemplated doing business, however I heard a lot of universities group those 2, as the same.
I want to go to bath, Cambridge,oxford, Warwick or somewhere further in America like Uchicago, pensilvania.
Should I just take econ, maths, fm without taking a 4th a level? What are your suggestions?

I mean honestly, it depends on what you want to do at university (though this is a big question for someone already in sixth form, let alone yr11). Also keep in mind that some universities only consider your best 3 Alevels during the admissions process. (this is true for bath, warwick, etc. - even so, you should not be at a disadvantage for only taking 3, as most people in the country do)

Assuming you want to do an economics course, universities tend to be perfectly happy with your current combination. If you do want to keep your options open, perhaps (like I saw someone else recommend) politics could be a good fit for that too (though this would also be a lot of work, especially if you're not the biggest fan of essays).

I'm not sure how your Alevel school will work but at my sixth form we were able to drop our fourth at any point during year 12. If you aren't certain about that 4th Alevel, if you do end up taking one, then you could always drop it.

It's probably not the best idea to listen to people on forums, which is a bit ironic I know, so I would recommend either looking at university's course websites or emailing admissions if you're really stuck. For example, Cambridge has a section under 'Entry Requirements' outlining the alevels typically taken by students accepted onto that course. Webinars providing guidance on post-yr11 options are also a good idea and in some cases, you have the ability to send questions that can be directly answered (though this is difficult due to large numbers of attendees)

here are some links:
https://www.undergraduate.study.cam.ac.uk/apply/before/choosing-high-school-subjects - 'Are you 14 years old, or older, and starting to think about university? We‘re here to help you choose the subjects you should study at school to prepare for studying at Cambridge.'
https://www.bath.ac.uk/guides/uk-qualification-guidance/#a-levels - 'Some of our courses will have preferred subjects or subject combinations. You do not need to study a preferred subject to be considered for entry, however, for competitive courses you may be less likely to receive an offer.'
https://youtu.be/p9zjJjA8h1g?si=qQ3xc-Nurig-hR-9 - This is a recording of Magdalene College's (Cambridge) The Subject Matters: A Level Choices Webinars

Reply 5

rysua

13

Original post by Kkkaiii

I can't decide the last subject, as I know further maths and econ is going to require a lot for extensive effort. And I don't want to do things like physics, chem or bio, I hate the sciences. But I do have a little I interest in physics from Oppenheimer tho😭. I contemplated doing business, however I heard a lot of universities group those 2, as the same.
I want to go to bath, Cambridge,oxford, Warwick or somewhere further in America like Uchicago, pensilvania.
Should I just take econ, maths, fm without taking a 4th a level? What are your suggestions?

Only take physics if you really are going to enjoy it. I think you should look at the specifications for each subject so you know what you are going to learn. Also, if you have an idea what uni course you might wanna do, see what subjects they require, so you know you're not limiting your post-18 options with the alevel subjects you pick.

Reply 6

mrman122

1

I've always been told that you should take a humanity so you have a wide range of subject area and can prove to uni admissions you're good at essay writing. I'm Y11 and taking Maths, FM, Econ, and Politics next year. I think a science would be too much with the other three.

Assuming you want to do Econ at uni, politics or history seem like a good pick, I chose politics simply because I'm more interested in it and wasn't too happy about history needing coursework.

Reply 7

lalexm

16

Original post by Kkkaiii

I can't decide the last subject, as I know further maths and econ is going to require a lot for extensive effort. And I don't want to do things like physics, chem or bio, I hate the sciences. But I do have a little I interest in physics from Oppenheimer tho😭. I contemplated doing business, however I heard a lot of universities group those 2, as the same.
I want to go to bath, Cambridge,oxford, Warwick or somewhere further in America like Uchicago, pensilvania.
Should I just take econ, maths, fm without taking a 4th a level? What are your suggestions?

If you are doing FM, it would prob make sense to do it as part of a 4 subject program. As long as you are good at maths, doing maths and FM is less work than doing 2 others subjects. Give it a go, and if it does not work out, you can drop one subject, and maybe do an EPQ instead.

Reply 8

lalexm

16

Original post by mrman122

I've always been told that you should take a humanity so you have a wide range of subject area and can prove to uni admissions you're good at essay writing. I'm Y11 and taking Maths, FM, Econ, and Politics next year. I think a science would be too much with the other three.
Assuming you want to do Econ at uni, politics or history seem like a good pick, I chose politics simply because I'm more interested in it and wasn't too happy about history needing coursework.

I’d agree with this. Good advice.

Reply 9

carnaldrax

10

Original post by Nk110

Completely avoid doing fm as a third
Many unis look down on it
I suggest taking a “lighter” subject,

Hey, this is a random question but i was wondering what you got for maths in your gcse? if you did them.

Reply 10

Kkkaiii

OP

2

should i take psychology as my 4th??

Reply 11

username6111128

8

in my personal opinion, you could do well in a language or humanity (maybe politics or religious studies) just to broaden your scope. languages are really well regarded by universities. do you have an idea what you want to study? psychology could be a decent option but i didn’t do it because i didn’t want to be in a group that i wouldn’t get on with 🤷

Reply 12

hobba

9

I would do computing since any degree that FM is a good choice will have a programming subject.

Reply 13

basefour4

1

Check what modules you would do in Further Maths, usually the school decides. We were doing FM1 and FM2 - if you're doing either module, taking physics for your fourth would make lots of sense. Honestly, 60-70% of the further mechanics is just the same as what is taught in physics, maybe a little more advanced, especially FM2. + Physics is a very versatile A-level, if you look past how painful it can be sometimes 🥲

I'm a year 11 student, and planning to take maths, fm, economics

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