A-Level advice

Hello! So I’m going into sixth form to study biology, chemistry, maths and English literature and would really appreciate any advice from past or current sixth form students.

Thank you!

ah well, would it be okay if I asked for ur gcse grades in those subjects (itll help clarify)

Hello! So I’m going into sixth form to study biology, chemistry, maths and English literature and would really appreciate any advice from past or current sixth form students.

Thank you!

Yes that’s fine! I got an 8 in biology, 8 in chemistry, 7 in maths and a 9 in English Literature. In regards to maths, I didn’t have a teacher all year so it was all self-taught. The science teacher changed half year and she wasn’t very good at teaching the remaining paper 2 with the exception of one topic (Alkanes and alkenes). That worries me a bit as I might be really behind others at sixth form due to the lack of teaching facilities at my old school.

Seeing your GCSE grades below, it would seem like you're going to excel at A Levels.

In general, the best way to tackle A Level is to work hard and consistently. This way you will stay slightly ahead of your classes, and you will have time to spare if you need it for especially hard subject areas.

Bear in mind that many people who take STEM subjects at A Level remark on how they are much trickier than they are at GCSE. The algebra in maths alone is 70 times harder than GCSE! The thing here is to just bear it in mind. Don't think too much about how they are harder - you'll only stress. Take each topic at a time and just make sure you really get it. Do this and you will find you will follow a learning curve, especially given the objective nature of sciences.

English Literature for many is a very fulfilling A Level, and will certainly give you a broader range of skills than your STEM subjects would on their own. If you can, read criticism of the books you're reading. Most books will have a plethora of available articles online; not only will these give you new ideas for your writing, you are even able to quote them on many exam boards. Further to this, make sure you are getting the essay style correct from the outset: if your teacher gives you a structure, follow it, at least for the first couple of terms, and in this way you will reach the higher boundaries.

Finally, I would recommend having a route to drop one of your subjects if at all possible. Just in case. Four A Levels, as I assume you realise, is a lot of work, and you don't want to get burned out. You are better off getting three excellent ones than four 'alright' ones, and universities normally only give offers based on three anyway, so if you do take four, make the fourth something that you really genuinely enjoy for the sake of learning it.

I hope this helps, and wish you every success in your academic future.

O

I feel like these are a great set of subjects however they're all really heavy on content, see how it goes within the first term and you can always drop one of them, youll probably end up dropping maths ngl (its a difficult subject to get your head round) but if your willing to go the extra mile, then go for it! no one can tell you otherwise

Thank you so much for your advice! It’s been really helpful and it’s definitely put my mind at ease.

I agree with the four a-levels. I’ve decided to see how they go and drop one if I’m finding it too much work. English literature is a subject that I really enjoy so I decided to choose it for that reason.

Thank you so much!

Good luck.

Any experience with English Lit was that I enjoyed it and found it easy at GCSE (only dropping two marks across the whole thing), but then it got harder at A Level and I absolutely hated it. Safe to say I dropped it later on.

Good luck!

O

Thank you so much! I’ll definitely stay prepared for that!

I hope to hear how you progress through the year good luck mate!!!