The Student Room Group

Picking a levels help? :) VERY STUCK

Hiya, I'm am currently a GCSE student in year 11, I've got to pick my a level options within 2weeks but I'm simply not sure
I am thinking of taking the following bio and Chem r absolute
Bio, Chem and history
Bio, Chem and religious studies
Bio, Chem and phycology
Bio, Chem and geography
I don't know which ones to pick
I'm definitely not taking maths although I'm predicted a 7 I hate it
For the rest of the subjects I'm pretty good in with betting 8s I do find geo quite boring tho I'm simply not sure
Anyone who helps I thank u sm

Scroll to see replies

Original post by saf_k
Hiya, I'm am currently a GCSE student in year 11, I've got to pick my a level options within 2weeks but I'm simply not sure
I am thinking of taking the following bio and Chem r absolute
Bio, Chem and history
Bio, Chem and religious studies
Bio, Chem and phycology
Bio, Chem and geography
I don't know which ones to pick
I'm definitely not taking maths although I'm predicted a 7 I hate it
For the rest of the subjects I'm pretty good in with betting 8s I do find geo quite boring tho I'm simply not sure
Anyone who helps I thank u sm

take whichever one is gunna help u most in future n which one u find most interesting - if ur not sure tho then history is a facilitating subject so that wld be good x
Original post by saf_k
Hiya, I'm am currently a GCSE student in year 11, I've got to pick my a level options within 2weeks but I'm simply not sure
I am thinking of taking the following bio and Chem r absolute
Bio, Chem and history
Bio, Chem and religious studies
Bio, Chem and phycology
Bio, Chem and geography
I don't know which ones to pick
I'm definitely not taking maths although I'm predicted a 7 I hate it
For the rest of the subjects I'm pretty good in with betting 8s I do find geo quite boring tho I'm simply not sure
Anyone who helps I thank u sm

I take geography A level and I find it fairly interesting- definitely the human side more than the physical. If your unsure I suggest looking up the subject specification (on the exam board's website) to see what you will be learning. But its important to chose a subject you genuinely find interesting because you will be learning it for another 2 years and in a lot more depth than at GCSE.
Reply 3
Thanks u both sm for replying I shall definitely take into account what u have said I do think I might take history but I'm afraid of the high amount of content
Reply 4
Original post by M_Zara
take whichever one is gunna help u most in future n which one u find most interesting - if ur not sure tho then history is a facilitating subject so that wld be good x


thank u smmmm I do think history is interesting so I might take that
Reply 5
Original post by alisha.h
I take geography A level and I find it fairly interesting- definitely the human side more than the physical. If your unsure I suggest looking up the subject specification (on the exam board's website) to see what you will be learning. But its important to chose a subject you genuinely find interesting because you will be learning it for another 2 years and in a lot more depth than at GCSE.


I seeee I'm the complete opposite but thank u smmm
Original post by saf_k
thank u smmmm I do think history is interesting so I might take that

aha np x
Original post by saf_k
I seeee I'm the complete opposite but thank u smmm

ur welcome :smile:x
I think what you ought to do is read through the spec for each of the possible subject choices + see what each course entails. Immediately you may be able to see that the subject isn’t for you, or whether only aspects of it thrill you. Do this for each subject. I think choosing subjects that you have interest in is vital, as A-Level will be (haha, rate how I speak like I have experience lolll, I’m year11 too) a lot more intense than GCSE, so actually liking + enjoying your subjects is definitely an advantage you want to get behind.
A lot of colleges/sixth form are quite flexible in letting you choose. e.g. when I applied to my sixth form I had three different a levels than the ones I currently take. At mine they also allowed us to try out and move around for the first month being there.
My key advice is that there has to be an equal balance of enjoying the subject and being good at it. It's not enough to just like it because the work can get quite hard and you'll need to be good at the subject to have a high chance of succeeding, but it's not good enough to just be good at it because it's a heavy workload and you need to like it to be motivated.
Like alisha.h said definitely look at the specifications, and also if you know what you want to do at university, tailor it to that. You can look at uni websites and see if the course requires any specific a levels.
(edited 3 years ago)
Reply 10
Original post by Ellamayooo
I think what you ought to do is read through the spec for each of the possible subject choices + see what each course entails. Immediately you may be able to see that the subject isn’t for you, or whether only aspects of it thrill you. Do this for each subject. I think choosing subjects that you have interest in is vital, as A-Level will be (haha, rate how I speak like I have experience lolll, I’m year11 too) a lot more intense than GCSE, so actually liking + enjoying your subjects is definitely an advantage you want to get behind.


ahahahah thank u for replying we r in the same boat I guess ahaha I see I've done that and so far history is the only one that appeals to me so far so I think I shall be taken that X MAYBE watch me change my mind tmrw
Reply 11
Original post by diana_rita
A lot of colleges/sixth form are quite flexible in letting you choose. e.g. when I applied to my sixth form I had three different a levels than the ones I currently take. At mine they also allowed us to try out and move around for the first month being there.
My key advice is that there has to be an equal balance of enjoying the subject and being good at it. It's not enough to just like it because the work can get quite hard and you'll need to be good at the subject to have a high chance of succeeding, but it's not good enough to just be good at it because it's a heavy workload and you need to like it to be motivated.
Like alisha.h said definitely look at the specifications, and also if you know what you want to do at university, tailor it to that. You can look at uni websites and see if the course requires any specific a levels.


I see thank u for replying I have done that and history and religious studies seem the most like nice and appealing to me (gosh that sounds awfully weird ahaha) but I kinda and split cuz I want to do med but another side of me wants to do like idek what the job is called tbh like for an example an "egyptionologt" (wow I rlly can't spell)
Original post by saf_k
Hiya, I'm am currently a GCSE student in year 11, I've got to pick my a level options within 2weeks but I'm simply not sure
I am thinking of taking the following bio and Chem r absolute
Bio, Chem and history
Bio, Chem and religious studies
Bio, Chem and phycology
Bio, Chem and geography
I don't know which ones to pick
I'm definitely not taking maths although I'm predicted a 7 I hate it
For the rest of the subjects I'm pretty good in with betting 8s I do find geo quite boring tho I'm simply not sure
Anyone who helps I thank u sm

Pick the subject you will enjoy most and will do best in. Most science type courses only require 2 sciences. Psychology might fit better with your other 2 subjects but the key is to subjects you will excel in.
Reply 13
Original post by swanseajack1
Pick the subject you will enjoy most and will do best in. Most science type courses only require 2 sciences. Psychology might fit better with your other 2 subjects but the key is to subjects you will excel in.


I see thank u for replying, I swear psychology is just bio 2.0 tho
(edited 3 years ago)
Original post by saf_k
ahahahah thank u for replying we r in the same boat I guess ahaha I see I've done that and so far history is the only one that appeals to me so far so I think I shall be taken that X MAYBE watch me change my mind tmrw

Your welcome!
Okay then, that’s great! It’s great to know what to expect rather than stumble into a random course you ‘liked the sound of’ or chose because your friends have if you know what I mean. If history’s the one that’s taking your fancy most - go for it!
Ahaha, I was changing my mind over which ones I wanted to take every other day as well to begin with. I’m pretty sure I’ve got my choices settled now, and I’m sure you will too soon (:
Original post by saf_k
Hiya, I'm am currently a GCSE student in year 11, I've got to pick my a level options within 2weeks but I'm simply not sure
I am thinking of taking the following bio and Chem r absolute
Bio, Chem and history
Bio, Chem and religious studies
Bio, Chem and phycology
Bio, Chem and geography
I don't know which ones to pick
I'm definitely not taking maths although I'm predicted a 7 I hate it
For the rest of the subjects I'm pretty good in with betting 8s I do find geo quite boring tho I'm simply not sure
Anyone who helps I thank u sm


Hi! I'm in year 13, taking history and religious studies.

History is interesting, but its a lot of content - definitely only take it if you're willing to put in a lot of work and revision. 20% of your final grade is coursework based with most exam boards, which is definitely an advantage as you can guarantee 20% of your grade is gonna be good as you can get lots of feedback and put a lot of work in.

Religious studies is really interesting, and COMPLETELY different from any RE you might have done at GCSE. Lots of room for debates and forming your own opinion.

I recommend either of those :smile:
Reply 16
Original post by Ellamayooo
Your welcome!
Okay then, that’s great! It’s great to know what to expect rather than stumble into a random course you ‘liked the sound of’ or chose because your friends have if you know what I mean. If history’s the one that’s taking your fancy most - go for it!
Ahaha, I was changing my mind over which ones I wanted to take every other day as well to begin with. I’m pretty sure I’ve got my choices settled now, and I’m sure you will too soon (:

awwhh thank uuuu what do u think of taking then .I'm so indecisive watch me literally take german when it comes to acc submitting the admissions ahahaha
Original post by saf_k
I see thank u for replying, I swear psychology is just bio 2.0 tho

Probably Chem, Bio, Psych is one of the most popular A level combinations after Chem, Bio, Maths or Physics. Nearly every medical school require Chemistry and some also Biology as well. A few require Maths but you should find many places without Maths. Other than that the 3rd subject doesnt really matter. Have a look at the entry requirements for some Medical Schools
Reply 18
Original post by daisyr03
Hi! I'm in year 13, taking history and religious studies.

History is interesting, but its a lot of content - definitely only take it if you're willing to put in a lot of work and revision. 20% of your final grade is coursework based with most exam boards, which is definitely an advantage as you can guarantee 20% of your grade is gonna be good as you can get lots of feedback and put a lot of work in.

Religious studies is really interesting, and COMPLETELY different from any RE you might have done at GCSE. Lots of room for debates and forming your own opinion.

I recommend either of those :smile:


thank u for replyinnnnngg aahhh ppl r so nice to help gosh ahahah andd mmhhmm I thought that about history and it having a lot of content and with having it alongside bio and chem it might be a bit too much to bear uno
but having said that religious studies is supposed to be easy but I feel like it can be hard for someone who doesn't have enough backing with one argument which is me although I'm alright at it in gcse I'm also quite indecisive so I feel like it might be hard
wow u didn't ask for my life story ahahah ill shut up now
Reply 19
Original post by swanseajack1
Probably Chem, Bio, Psych is one of the most popular A level combinations after Chem, Bio, Maths or Physics. Nearly every medical school require Chemistry and some also Biology as well. A few require Maths but you should find many places without Maths. Other than that the 3rd subject doesnt really matter. Have a look at the entry requirements for some Medical Schools


I seee thank u smmm for helping me is means a lot x

Quick Reply

Latest