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Philosophy A-Level

Heya:smile:

I am currently in year 11 completing my GCSE's and I have just finished my applications for college. One of the subjects I wish to study is Philosophy, along with English Literature, Maths and Economics. However, the only reason to why I had picked Philosophy is because is it a topic full of controversy and thought. Apparently, I heard that Philosophy is a hard topic conceptually, and is one of the most oldest taught subjects in the world. For those who study Philosophy, how is the subject as a whole, and what philosophers do you study? etc...

Thanks a lot:wink:

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Reply 1
Avatar for #Bi-Winning
#Bi-Winning
I've picked Philosophy for my 5th A-Level and have been studying it since September.
Personally I enjoy it so far, there are times when I find it challenging and other times where I find it relatively easy; It's nice to ask and think about the questions posed in the subject. Philosophers we've studied include British ones like Hume, Locke, and others like Des Cartes and Plato.

Though you study many,many more...In my sixth form we're only focusing on specific topics because of lack of allotted time.

But good choice! :wink:
(edited 12 years ago)
Reply 2
Avatar for Picnic1
Picnic1
19
I found Philosophy really enjoyable and I didn't find it hard - at A-Level that is.
It's Maths that I personally would be worried about. I got an A at GCSE but only a D at A-level. If you're not intending to study a maths/science related subject at university I'd take an arts subject in its place.
(edited 12 years ago)
Reply 3
Avatar for cberry
cberry
13
Philosophy is brilliant, I have an A Level, plus a separate AS, plus my undergrad degree was combined Philosophy and Psychology.

Now I work just in Psychology and I really miss Philosophy- it really helps you develop your ability to think critically, to write and to debate.

It isn't easy, but there's a lot of variation within different areas; I liked ethics, philosophy of religion and philosophy of mind- which are maybe not as conceptually difficult as something like logic.
Reply 4
Avatar for RawJoh1
RawJoh1
14
Original post by justanotherindigo
Heya:smile:

I am currently in year 11 completing my GCSE's and I have just finished my applications for college. One of the subjects I wish to study is Philosophy, along with English Literature, Maths and Economics. However, the only reason to why I had picked Philosophy is because is it a topic full of controversy and thought. Apparently, I heard that Philosophy is a hard topic conceptually, and is one of the most oldest taught subjects in the world. For those who study Philosophy, how is the subject as a whole, and what philosophers do you study? etc...

Thanks a lot:wink:

I did Philosophy A-level a long time ago (finished my A-levels Summer 2006). Philosophy was by far the most fun subject I did (others were Govt & Politics, History, Economics). Studied a wide variety, with the textual modules being Plato's Republic and Nietzsche's Beyond Good and Evil. Went on to do a degree that was mostly philosophy at Finals.

Not everyone enjoys philosophy, but those that do enjoy it enjoy it a lot. Give it a go, and if you hate it you will probably be able to switch courses in the first 2 weeks or whatever (I switched from English Language to Philosophy).
(edited 12 years ago)
Reply 5
Avatar for sophia_
sophia_
16
It's a great A-Level to do!

You study many philosophers, off the top of my head.. Kant, Leibniz, wow I'm tired maybe this isn't the best time to start remembering, uhm, Hume, Descartes, okay I'm brain dead.

But it's a great course!
Reply 6
Avatar for poogly
poogly
and what kind of format do your examinations follow?
.p
Just curious about how it's taught in England. Here, in Spain, it is even compusory. :P
Original post by Picnic1
I found Philosophy really enjoyable and I didn't find it hard - at A-Level that is.
It's Maths that I personally would be worried about. I got an A at GCSE but only a D at A-level. If you're not intending to study a maths/science related subject at university I'd take an arts subject in its place.


I chose maths because I enjoy it, and I am thinking of taking Economics at a degree level, maths a-level being a requirement. I'm glad that you have found Philosophy enjoyable, and I love writing essays about opinionated topics. Thnx for your response:wink:
Original post by RawJoh1
I did Philosophy A-level a long time ago (finished my A-levels Summer 2006). Philosophy was by far the most fun subject I did (others were Govt & Politics, History, Economics). Studied a wide variety, with the textual modules being Plato's Republic and Nietzsche's Beyond Good and Evil. Went on to do a degree that was mostly philosophy at Finals.

Not everyone enjoys philosophy, but those that do enjoy it enjoy it a lot. Give it a go, and if you hate it you will probably be able to switch courses in the first 2 weeks or whatever (I switched from English Language to Philosophy).


Thanks a lot:smile: I am thinking of taking Philosophy at a degree level aswell:cool:
Reply 9
Avatar for CMorgan15
CMorgan15
Do you study Karl Marx at any point?
Original post by CMorgan15
Do you study Karl Marx at any point?

I am currently doing A2 Philosophy (AQA) and Karl Marx hasn't come up it, now we are doing Sexual Ethics Module after doing Freewill and Libertarianism and Virtue Ethics and last one for this unit would be Science and Technology module.
Already there has been debates during class on the current module as lots of people have their own input for it, Philosophy allows opinions to be voiced without being scared on being unaccepted as people are more willing to listen. Well some are whilst some are not.
Original post by CMorgan15
Do you study Karl Marx at any point?


I'm pretty sure they've cut political philosophy out of the AQA specification, sorry. :frown: But, to address the thread's original point: yes, it's a wonderful A-level! I'm doing AS Philosophy right now, and it's my favourite class, probably. The curriculum is really interesting (even though they've sadly cut quite a few things, like political philosophy, out), you're bound to share a class with at least a few really interesting people, and the practice of philosophy teaches you to approach thinking as a discipline - to consider things from different angles, to confront your prejudices, to become more thoughtful in your everyday life. So yeah, couldn't reccomend it enough.
I am thinking about self studying the whole of Alevel Philosophy as my fifth Alevel and I need to get an A/A* in it if I am to do it. I haven't looked at any it yet but I'm guessing its easier than maths but of similar nature, its fundamental thinking. Does anyone know if it is easy to get an A/A* if I achieved an A* in A2 Maths? if someone answers this then depending on their answer you will know if its suitable for you.
Reply 13
Avatar for SaffHF
SaffHF
Original post by PVonShroeder
I am thinking about self studying the whole of Alevel Philosophy as my fifth Alevel and I need to get an A/A* in it if I am to do it. I haven't looked at any it yet but I'm guessing its easier than maths but of similar nature, its fundamental thinking. Does anyone know if it is easy to get an A/A* if I achieved an A* in A2 Maths? if someone answers this then depending on their answer you will know if its suitable for you.


Philosophy is very different to maths in basically all respects - one is an arts subject and one is a science. Philosophy is essentially you voicing and arguing your own opinion, or discussing other's opinions on matters in the world (ethics, religion, the mind, epistemology etc) Maths is much more there is a right or wrong answer, philosophy is that there is no right answer. It is a very different subject to maths so whether you have an A* in Maths will not contribute to how good you are at Philisophy. However, it is a very interesting and enjoyable subject, and if you like debating some of the topics I listed above, then you will enjoy Philisophy. It isn't an easy subject to do for A level, it's can be very challenging at times! but it's not one of the hardest. Hope that helps :smile: sorry if it was kind of long...
Original post by SaffHF
Philosophy is very different to maths in basically all respects - one is an arts subject and one is a science. Philosophy is essentially you voicing and arguing your own opinion, or discussing other's opinions on matters in the world (ethics, religion, the mind, epistemology etc) Maths is much more there is a right or wrong answer, philosophy is that there is no right answer. It is a very different subject to maths so whether you have an A* in Maths will not contribute to how good you are at Philisophy. However, it is a very interesting and enjoyable subject, and if you like debating some of the topics I listed above, then you will enjoy Philisophy. It isn't an easy subject to do for A level, it's can be very challenging at times! but it's not one of the hardest. Hope that helps :smile: sorry if it was kind of long...


Lol. You couldn't be more wrong.
[QUOTE="justanotherindigo;35885457"]Heya:smile:

I am currently in year 11 completing my GCSE's and I have just finished my applications for college. One of the subjects I wish to study is Philosophy, along with English Literature, Maths and Economics. However, the only reason to why I had picked Philosophy is because is it a topic full of controversy and thought. Apparently, I heard that Philosophy is a hard topic conceptually, and is one of the most oldest taught subjects in the world. For those who study Philosophy, how is the subject as a whole, and what philosophers do you study? etc...

Thanks a lot:wink:[/QUOTE

I have absolutely loved studying philosophy but would definitely say you need to remember a lot of subject content. This being said, most essays you can do with little revision yet you have to revise philosophers background like St anselm 11th centaury philosopher and information as such.
Original post by RawJoh1
I did Philosophy A-level a long time ago (finished my A-levels Summer 2006). Philosophy was by far the most fun subject I did (others were Govt & Politics, History, Economics). Studied a wide variety, with the textual modules being Plato's Republic and Nietzsche's Beyond Good and Evil. Went on to do a degree that was mostly philosophy at Finals.

Not everyone enjoys philosophy, but those that do enjoy it enjoy it a lot. Give it a go, and if you hate it you will probably be able to switch courses in the first 2 weeks or whatever (I switched from English Language to Philosophy).


Did you find gov and politics easier and more enjoyable than philosophy or the other way round ?
Word of warning - philosophy at degree level requires learning mathematical notation on some (all?) courses. If you are considering it,see if you understand Kant first. German philosophers except Nietzsche arguably equals nightmare.
It is a night and day difference from the fun of A-Level Philosophy. Many people, no matter how intelligent, might prefer philosophy after A-Level as hobby.
(edited 7 years ago)
Philosophy is, arguably, split into two disciplines.
Continental philosophy is what you would except: 'what is the meaning of life', 'is there a God', and those sort of big and conceptual questions.
The other is applied philosophy, which looks at logic a lot: it could talk about time travel, euthanasia, knowledge and free will.

It depends on which university the focus you'll have. I study philosophy at the LSE and our approach is very much applied, we do NO continental philosophy! Which I like.

If you want to get an idea about applied philosophy more, I did a video on the philosophy of time travel so it show you what sort of thing we do:
https://youtu.be/uIzVhOC30uA
Reply 19
Avatar for watt056
watt056
5
I know you wrote this a long time ago, but I am currently debating between philosophy and psychology and which to take at a-level. I know that they are quite different but apart from that I don't really know anything else about the subjects. I am also taking Double maths and Physics so I don't want a subject that will bombard me with work but won't be easy either. Would you recommend one over the other?

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