HISTORY OR MATHS A LEVEL HARDER??? a level choices

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=18tZswvlLr4&t=0s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dXfMdltzi2c&t=0s

Reply 2

computernerd1001

15

Seeing your other options I'd think that history links more into your chosen A Levels than maths, but it's whatever you want to do, after all. If you feel like four essay subjects would be too much, or that maths would be too far out of left field to keep up with, then base your decisions on those. Maybe talk to your teachers as well?

And yes, maths is harder than GCSE, and you won't have the advantage of doing AS exams like I did, but that's the same for all subjects now, so something to bear in mind. We haven't done the same specification for maths as you will be doing.

(edited 6 years ago)

Reply 3

OP

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=18tzswvllr4&t=0s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dxfmdltzi2c&t=0s

Original post by jasaron

thank you so so so much!!! This is the most helpful thing ive found so far on the internet to help me make my decision!

Reply 4

Original post by Idku

thank you so so so much!!! This is the most helpful thing ive found so far on the internet to help me make my decision!

I'm glad I could help.

Reply 5

OP

Original post by Jasaron

I'm glad I could help.

i was meant to tell my school today and i chose maths, however i am now very upset and hve realized that history might be the better option for me. i wanted to ask you:

1. which one out of the two did you prefer the most?
2. would history be more useful for a law/languages degree?
3. is maths really as hard as everyone says it is? did you find history or maths a level easier?
4. is the essay structure for history hard to grasp?
5. do u have any other useful tips/info etc about any of the subjects

Reply 6

iElvendork

18

I did both subjects, and despite getting an A* in maths and a B in history, maths is definitely harder
History would probably be a better option as you use similar skills in each subject, but make sure the modules your school teaches are ones you are interested in

Reply 7

OP

Original post by iElvendork

I did both subjects, and despite getting an A* in maths and a B in history, maths is definitely harder
History would probably be a better option as you use similar skills in each subject, but make sure the modules your school teaches are ones you are interested in

thanks for you reply! our school is doing the edexcel spec
britain transformed 1918-1997
america; boom , bust and recovery
coursework - i think russia
and britain; losing and gaining an empire

with history the only thing im really concerned about is the essays, apparently the essay structure is quite hard to grasp?

also why do you think maths is harder ? and how come up you ended with a higher grade for maths?

thanks

Reply 8

ForeverYoungx

14

Original post by Idku

Hey guys im stuck between choosing either maths or history a level

i have picked french and government&politics and im doing as sociology

i wanted to know which one is harder at a level (i got the same gcse grade for both and enjoy them both as much)
which one has a bigger workload
does history really have as much content as everyone says
also is maths very difficult compared to gcse
would i be able to cope doing 4 essay subjects if i was to pick maths?

thanks in advance!

I was on the exact same boat as you, choosing between maths and history. I've performed better in GCSE history than maths. But, I ended up choosing maths because it would keep my options open. Like you, I've also picked sociology and politics. I felt lyk I may struggle too much with all 4 subjects being essay subjects. But, if I think it's not for me I will definitely change in to history within 2wks. Let me know what you decide to chose and your reasons being! 😊

Reply 9

iElvendork

18

Original post by Idku

thanks for you reply! our school is doing the edexcel spec
britain transformed 1918-1997
america; boom , bust and recovery
coursework - i think russia
and britain; losing and gaining an empire

with history the only thing im really concerned about is the essays, apparently the essay structure is quite hard to grasp?

also why do you think maths is harder ? and how come up you ended with a higher grade for maths?

thanks

I'm just really good at Maths in general but it was still a challenging subject
I did Britain and its empire as my coursework, that's a really interesting subject
The essay's aren't that difficult to get the grasp of, unfortunately I did AQA so i'm not sure if the exams are similar but AS and A2 are very different, for AS you answered 4 questions for each topic, two 12 marks and two 24 marks, but then for A2 its 2 45 mark questions (actually easier to write for as it's just argument writing)
Questions are usually based on "to what extent was x more important than y in an event" so you bring in knowledge you've learnt and form an opinion rather than just spouting off facts

Reply 10

OP

Original post by iElvendork

I'm just really good at Maths in general but it was still a challenging subject
I did Britain and its empire as my coursework, that's a really interesting subject
The essay's aren't that difficult to get the grasp of, unfortunately I did AQA so i'm not sure if the exams are similar but AS and A2 are very different, for AS you answered 4 questions for each topic, two 12 marks and two 24 marks, but then for A2 its 2 45 mark questions (actually easier to write for as it's just argument writing)
Questions are usually based on "to what extent was x more important than y in an event" so you bring in knowledge you've learnt and form an opinion rather than just spouting off facts

how hard is the history coursework compared to gcse? and would u recommend maths a level to someone who doesnt really enjoy drawing graphs and stuff but still likes the other parts of maths? is history really content based and is it possible to learn it all

thanks for your reply again!!!!

Reply 11

Student1191

21

Original post by Idku

Hey guys im stuck between choosing either maths or history a level

i have picked french and government&politics and im doing as sociology

i wanted to know which one is harder at a level (i got the same gcse grade for both and enjoy them both as much)
which one has a bigger workload
does history really have as much content as everyone says
also is maths very difficult compared to gcse
would i be able to cope doing 4 essay subjects if i was to pick maths?

thanks in advance!

I think history would sit better with your other results

Reply 12

bpn365

7

Original post by Idku

Hey guys im stuck between choosing either maths or history a level

i have picked french and government&politics and im doing as sociology

i wanted to know which one is harder at a level (i got the same gcse grade for both and enjoy them both as much)
which one has a bigger workload
does history really have as much content as everyone says
also is maths very difficult compared to gcse
would i be able to cope doing 4 essay subjects if i was to pick maths?

thanks in advance!

Having done both, I feel well qualified to answer this question. I would say that both are a sizeable jump from GCSE. Maths may feel harder as you learn it cause you may come across concepts you find difficult at first, however the constant need to master and improve essay technique is difficult as well.
As for workload, maths has a greater workload throughout the year however history has a much larger workload in the build up to exams - this is due to trying to remember a large amount of content in the lead up to history exams whereas with maths you'll have often mastered the concepts, it will just be the case of making sure you've finished doing the past papers.
History has a lot of content (particularly over two years - I only did the AS). This can get stressful in the run up to exams, however it is definitely manageable. Maths A level leads on very nicely from GCSE in my opinion and there isn't too much of a jump yet it's important to keep practising to get on top of everything. I'd say the jump for both maths and history is similar as the essay technique for history gets quite a bit harder.
I know people who have done four essay subjects and been fine, however I also know people who have done four essay subjects and dropped one quickly because over the overload of essay writing. It may be very nice to have maths to give you variation amongst your four subjects, as I know people who have valued having a fourth subject that is different to their other three.
I'd probably recommend that you pick maths just to give you this variation so you don't have four essay subjects however history is a good, valued subject that goes well with your other subjects and it's up to you which subject you feel most comfortable with.

Reply 13

iElvendork

18

Original post by Idku

how hard is the history coursework compared to gcse? and would u recommend maths a level to someone who doesnt really enjoy drawing graphs and stuff but still likes the other parts of maths? is history really content based and is it possible to learn it all

thanks for your reply again!!!!

It's hard to compare coursework as its very different, we were taught on the content for half a year, then given from January to Easter to write it (5000 words) with access to books and other resources

Maths is includes a lot of graphs, because the principles of differentiation and integration comes from graphs, there's also vectors and mechanics which involves being able to visualise and draw out questions

There's obviously a lot of content in history, and you do get marks for specific evidence, but it's totally possible to remember it as it all links together, after 3 years I can still remember that Louis XIV gave Charles 2 £300,000 to help in the dutch war

Reply 14

Brendanjbs97

5

Original post by Idku

Hey guys im stuck between choosing either maths or history a level

i have picked french and government&politics and im doing as sociology

i wanted to know which one is harder at a level (i got the same gcse grade for both and enjoy them both as much)
which one has a bigger workload
does history really have as much content as everyone says
also is maths very difficult compared to gcse
would i be able to cope doing 4 essay subjects if i was to pick maths?

thanks in advance!

I did History as an A Level. I actually thoroughly enjoyed it! Wasn't very hard and passed with ease.
The question is, do you mind writing essays constantly? History requires a lot of that. You say you're also choosing Government & Politics (I also did and have the same view on it as I have with History) which is another essay based type subject. If you enjoy that, or you don't mind doing essay based subjects which will indeed make your hands very tired then go for History, if not then go for Maths

Reply 15

Original post by Idku

i was meant to tell my school today and i chose maths, however i am now very upset and hve realized that history might be the better option for me. i wanted to ask you:

1. which one out of the two did you prefer the most?
2. would history be more useful for a law/languages degree?
3. is maths really as hard as everyone says it is? did you find history or maths a level easier?
4. is the essay structure for history hard to grasp?
5. do u have any other useful tips/info etc about any of the subjects

Spoiler

Reply 16

OP

Original post by Jasaron

Spoiler

Thank you so much for your reply.

At the moment, I'm thinking of picking History instead of Maths, as History looks more enjoyable to me than Maths does. Also, why did you find History harder than Maths? Do you think I would find History slightly easier seeing I'm picking Politics a level too or not? What advice do you have if I was to pick History ? Thank you

Reply 17

username3046368

12

Just FYI in terms of difficulty, maths has the highest A*/A of any subject at A Level, while history one of the lowest. History is a lot of work. But pick whats right for you

Reply 18

Original post by Idku

Thank you so much for your reply.

At the moment, I'm thinking of picking History instead of Maths, as History looks more enjoyable to me than Maths does. Also, why did you find History harder than Maths? Do you think I would find History slightly easier seeing I'm picking Politics a level too or not? What advice do you have if I was to pick History ? Thank you

History is marked somewhat subjectively, so you can write an excellent - in your and your teachers' opinions - essay, only for it to be disliked by the examiner. There's a lot to learn for history. It's not that history is incredibly hard, it's just that maths is really quite easy if you're good at it.

Picking politics is both helpful and unhelpful for you. It's helpful because you'll get lots of essay practise, but it's unhelpful because you'll have a lot of essays to do, meaning that you have to spend more time working. Maths practise is much quicker than essay practise, for obvious reasons.

My tips for history would be to avoid writing practise essays on your computer, and starting to time yourself early on. In addition to this, try to think about history in a variety of ways; use timelines, read recounts, and draw causation diagrams. Read outside of your textbook/spec not because it will give you useful information but because it will help you to understand how academic debates are carried out. It's useful to have verbal debates with your peers about what you're studying. If you can debate with your voice, you can debate on paper. It's this grasp of debate which makes a great historian.

Good luck. Let me know if you've any more questions.

Reply 19

OP