What A level's should i pick for Computing.

Hello,

I have been searching on the net for Jobs based on computing like : Graphic design, Web developer...

I feel Web developer sounds like a good job. Could someone help me to pick what A level courses i need?? Please could you explain in detail (if you dont mind)

Reply 1

Jkizer

Original post by rvallo

Maths is the most obvious subject and probably most important - Computing is basically logic & so taking maths will be logical too ^^ (Some stuff like algorithms i imagine you will study a lot)

Computing (obvious)

From there you have free choice really. You could take subjects with more logical elements in such as further maths, physics, chemistry etc. But they are not REQUIRED (though they can be helpful). Social sciences and essay subjects in general are also very good. Perhaps add 1 subject you WANT to study?

Reply 2

rvallo

what if i take 'I.T' instead of computing?

Reply 3

Emma:-)

Entertainment Forum Helper

Original post by rvallo

Id definitely suggest doing the following subjects:
maths
ICT
art

Then for a 4th subject, id pick something you enjoy and are good at.

Reply 4

Jkizer

Original post by rvallo

what if i take 'I.T' instead of computing?

Its fine i guess. Universities wont penalise you necessarily because computing isnt a universal subject offered by schools. As long as you have maths, you will be fine.
I would just be weary as i did ICT at AS and it was FREAKING HORRIFIC! But maybe you will pay attention in class better than me :smile:

Whats your thoughts of subjects at the moment?

Reply 5

rvallo

Original post by Emma:-)

Id definitely suggest doing the following subjects:
maths
ICT
art

Then for a 4th subject, id pick something you enjoy and are good at.

If i do pick those subjects will i have more options to pick or just Web developer?

Reply 6

rvallo

Original post by Jkizer

Whats your thoughts of subjects at the moment?

To be honest i haven't decided yet, I need advice because i'm filling in applications for sixth form.

Reply 7

Emma:-)

Entertainment Forum Helper

Original post by rvallo

If i do pick those subjects will i have more options to pick or just Web developer?

You will still have a range of options open even if you change your mind about your career path.
For your 4th subject, id pick something more essay based, such as history, english literature etc, so you still have a bit of everything, but you are doing subjects that are beneficial for your chosen career.

Reply 8

prafto

I'd say definitely do Maths, if your school has Computing then do that too ofc, if not, maybe consider ICR- but of all the 15 people who took ICT in my sixth form.. everyone hated it lol, but if you enjoy it then obviously that's not a problem.

Maybe consider Further Maths, only if you fancy it though, I think the others you can choose what you want/are good at.
My friend who has applied for Comp Sci, don't know how relevant that is to Computing, but just for an idea, he took Maths, Further Maths, Physics and Economics as a subject he liked. Obviously you can tell he was quite into the science side so he took those choices, but I think as long as you have Maths you should be fine at most places :smile:

Reply 9

Jkizer

Original post by rvallo

To be honest i haven't decided yet, I need advice because i'm filling in applications for sixth form.

Any subjects in gcse which you are pretty good at?

Being an aspiring economics undergrad, an economics a level will do nicely :biggrin:

But you could add other subjects like religious studies, philosophy or sciences like physics to open up doors to fields such as politics, engineering, law, economics etc.

Reply 10

rich1334

It depends what you define as a web developer.

In a team of two you would usually have one front-end designer and the other would work on programming the back-end. Web designers should be creative and are often expected to know client-side languages such as HTML and CSS, both of which have basic syntax that most, if not all, people can easily pick up. A back-end developer usually works on the server-side with languages such as PHP, ASP.NET or Ruby. This is where all of the maths comes in to play as this is where all the "magic" happens with logic.

Reply 11

rvallo

if i take a Btec course for A Levels will it change my range of options?

(edited 10 years ago)

Reply 12

Upr1s1ng

Original post by rvallo

if i take a Btec course for A Levels will it change my range of options?

It may do. You'll want to research your prospective universities and find out first of all whether they accept a BTEC qualification for your course and, if they do, what grades you need to get in.

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Reply 13

thotproduct

I'm planning to go into CompSci as a degree, and I'm gonna take:
Maths
Further Maths
Physics
Chemistry
Computer Science

Whilst Further Maths isn't CRUCIAL for a CompSci course, Maths on it's own does. From there, after taking CompSci or IT, Pick subjects that compliment those. So one way to go around this is Sciences. Physics in particular, which goes hand in hand with Mathematics.