Help me pick a levels!!!

Are combined English, history and politics a good combo? Are they manageable? Are they enjoyable? Are they well respected?

(edited 4 years ago)

Reply 1

Ðeggs

22

Combined English? Goodness no English Literature is better. But do you want to do 3 humanity / essay subjects? That doesn’t really diversify your skill set, I do two humanities and a science which I like to be able to contrast what I do and make my a levels a bit more interesting and diverse.

Reply 2

redmeercat

15

It really depends on you whether or not they're enjoyable, but as someone who takes Eng lit, History and French, I'd err towards yes. Research the specifications and ensure that you like the contents. Also, remember that all three involves heavy amounts of writing and researching. In terms of respect from unis, English lit is a facilitating subject, but I don't know about combined. Many unis say that it's useful to have at least 2 facilitating subject A levels, but it really isn't always necessary. Take what you enjoy now, but remember that whatever you take, there will be times when it just isn't fun - no subject's perfect!

Reply 3

username4878650

15

my friend takes english lit, history, politics, and film studies. it's a great combo of a levels if you want to do something like law or english at uni! i would say that unis respect english lit more than english combined, but if you're not aiming for oxbridge/top unis, just take the one u like the most :smile:

and i dont think it matters if ur a levels arent diverse if you know what u want to do at uni - if you want to keep your options open however, consider maths or a science :smile:

Reply 4

InJailOutSoon

15

Don't do combined English, do English literature. it's manageable, more respected and kinda fun. Also, be aware that politics is a soft subject so if you wanna get into a good uni do something harder. I do bio, chem and eng lit and I'm dying lmao but ik it'll be worth it in the end!

Reply 5

redmeercat

15

Original post by Deggs_14

Combined English? Goodness no English Literature is better. But do you want to do 3 humanity / essay subjects? That doesn’t really diversify your skill set, I do two humanities and a science which I like to be able to contrast what I do and make my a levels a bit more interesting and diverse.

But then, a range of subjects isn't really helpful unless you have a range of interests... although writing essays can get a bit samey, the essays for all of the three are so different that it's not really such a big deal. But I'd agree that if you don't know what you want to do in the future, a broader range might help.

Reply 6

Funnnn

OP

7

Original post by InJailOutSoon

Don't do combined English, do English literature. it's manageable, more respected and kinda fun. Also, be aware that politics is a soft subject so if you wanna get into a good uni do something harder. I do bio, chem and eng lit and I'm dying lmao but ik it'll be worth it in the end!

Really? I heard politics was quite well respected?

Reply 7

Funnnn

OP

7

Original post by casabonita

my friend takes english lit, history, politics, and film studies. it's a great combo of a levels if you want to do something like law or english at uni! i would say that unis respect english lit more than english combined, but if you're not aiming for oxbridge/top unis, just take the one u like the most :smile:

and i dont think it matters if ur a levels arent diverse if you know what u want to do at uni - if you want to keep your options open however, consider maths or a science :smile:

Are you saying that I won’t get into a top uni with combined English?

Reply 8

vicvic38

19

It sounds like a cracking assortment, honestly. I personally would err away from combined English, as you get only a surface understanding of Literature and Language. However, if you are not interested in degree level English, then I suppose it's fine. You could always see if you can do both lang and lit and then drop the one you like less?

@Deggs_14 @redmeercat
Stop talking about facilitating subjects. Those, on the whole, are not used by the Russel Group anymore. You are spreading misinformation.

OP, so long as you don't want to take STEM, economics/finance or art/music at university, your combination is great and will get you onto most courses.