Should I take a language for A Level?

I had previously decided upon taking:

Maths, Further Maths, Economics, Modern History, Physics.

But now I'm thinking of taking a language instead of history or physics. My aim is to take economics or maths at university. Is there any point in me taking a language?

Reply 1

chronic_fatigue

13

languages are the way to go.....i take a level german, if you think you are capable then why not?

Reply 2

chebanana

1

I don't see how it would be especially useful if you want to take an economics or maths degree, languages are difficult, and you already have a nice line-up of challenging subjects. However, if you're confident enough, learning a language can be very valuable in various ways, so if you think you could deal with yet another hard subject, then there's no reason why you shouldn't.

Reply 3

MathsHamster

10

I wouldn't drop physics (although if your GCSE course is anything like mine was I can see why you would want to), it is not essential to do maths, but it is useful and you will find both maths and physics easier because there is a certain amount of overlap. Some universities might like you better if you have physics, although not having it should not disadvantage you significantly.
You could drop History for a language, it depends on what you enjoy more. It shouldn't make too much difference to an application, as long as you are going to pass whatever you take!

Reply 4

Raddi

Well I'm being pressured to take German because I'm good at it, but I hate it sooo much.I think you should consider whether you enjoy it,because that's what's important,really.

I'm doing an AS Oral along with my GCSE one,and the oral has a shelf life of 3 years or so..So I'm planning of maybe taking German lessons as an extra option in my spare time.
The way I picked is by considering this: These subjects will pretty much make up a 1/5th of your daily life,so only pick the ones that you can really live with.

Reply 5

dannylj

OP

10

Im getting A/A* in history and A in french. I'm better at history so I guess its better to get an A in history as opposed to a B in french.

Reply 6

LondonDreamer

10

I'm facing a similar decision myself (French vs. Politics for me). I'm starting to come to the conclusion that languages actually aren't all that useful. I'm sure I've heard (although don't ask for the reference) that modern language graduates have the lowest employment rates of all. Plus you can easily pick up a language later through evening classes or whatever if you ever need it (more easily than you could pick up a lot other A-level subjects) and it's something you're likely to lose if you don't use iyswim.

Something you may want to consider is that languages become very literature-based at A-level, unlike at GCSE where the focus is simply on learning the language and communicating.

I'll be interested to read what others have to say...

Reply 7

MDEH8176

13

chronic_fatigue

languages are the way to go.....i take a level German, if you think you are capable then why not?

I wanted to take German at A-level. Our school allowed us to take our German GCSE a year early, which I ended up getting a B in. :smile:

However, because I fast-tracked the language our teacher and my classmates spent much of the final year not really learning German in our 'German' classes. I just revised history in it!

OP: I would recommend a language at A-level, but only if you feel confident that you are good enough at it and that you will remain committed to the subject (unlike my German class :wink:

). I can imagine learning a language (especially to A-level) requires a lot of hard work. I think I'll take up German again later in life as more of an interest/hobby or I could take a module in it as part of my course at King's next year.

Reply 8

GottaLovePhysics! :)

17

Sacrifice history or physics for a language???
Suicide much?
Unis will want the academic subject much more than any language.

Reply 9

dannylj

OP

10

Yeah, I am pretty sure I will do History instead of French now. Thanks for your help everyone :biggrin:

Reply 10

jpatel10

12

DO IT, windows of opportunity will be opened that won't be for other students. Take this chance to stand out from the crowd

Reply 11

Misteryom

11

Universities value languages highly, if you can, do! I do french and german Alevel w00t.

Reply 12

TheMeister

15

LondonDreamer

I'm facing a similar decision myself (French vs. Politics for me). I'm starting to come to the conclusion that languages actually aren't all that useful. I'm sure I've heard (although don't ask for the reference) that modern language graduates have the lowest employment rates of all. Plus you can easily pick up a language later through evening classes or whatever if you ever need it (more easily than you could pick up a lot other A-level subjects) and it's something you're likely to lose if you don't use iyswim.

Something you may want to consider is that languages become very literature-based at A-level, unlike at GCSE where the focus is simply on learning the language and communicating.

I'll be interested to read what others have to say...

Politics is a great subject to learn during term-time; it's not that great when it comes to revision season though. :frown:

Reply 13

mimimimi

14

GottaLovePhysics! :)

Sacrifice history or physics for a language???
Suicide much?
Unis will want the academic subject much more than any language.

Wow, you really seem to know what you're talking about. Not.

Reply 14

xmarilynx

18

LondonDreamer

I'm facing a similar decision myself (French vs. Politics for me). I'm starting to come to the conclusion that languages actually aren't all that useful. I'm sure I've heard (although don't ask for the reference) that modern language graduates have the lowest employment rates of all. Plus you can easily pick up a language later through evening classes or whatever if you ever need it (more easily than you could pick up a lot other A-level subjects) and it's something you're likely to lose if you don't use iyswim.

Something you may want to consider is that languages become very literature-based at A-level, unlike at GCSE where the focus is simply on learning the language and communicating.

I'll be interested to read what others have to say...

I doubt you will be able to find a reference for that, because it's complete crap.

Apart from the fact that the OP is applying for Economics and therefore information about languages degrees is completely irrelevant, modern languages graduates actually have excellent career prospects and far from the lowest employment rate.

Furthermore, languages A Levels aren't necessarily more literature based - with the AQA French course there's no literature at all (unless you specifically choose it).

At A Level, languages are highly respected - the Guardian ran a recent article encouraging students to take tougher subjects, giving "the sciences and modern languages" as examples. More information concerning the relative difficulty of A Level subjects and university admissions selection criteria can be found here. History and German are both well respected subjects, and OP I would advise taking whichever you enjoy the most and/or have the most ability in.

Reply 15

VoodooCharles

Yes, if your prepared for alot of hard work, and have good memory

Reply 16

Livi_510

10

LondonDreamer

I'm facing a similar decision myself (French vs. Politics for me). I'm starting to come to the conclusion that languages actually aren't all that useful. I'm sure I've heard (although don't ask for the reference) that modern language graduates have the lowest employment rates of all. Plus you can easily pick up a language later through evening classes or whatever if you ever need it (more easily than you could pick up a lot other A-level subjects) and it's something you're likely to lose if you don't use iyswim.

Something you may want to consider is that languages become very literature-based at A-level, unlike at GCSE where the focus is simply on learning the language and communicating.

I'll be interested to read what others have to say...

http://www.prospects.ac.uk/cms/ShowPage/Home_page/What_do_graduates_do_/Arts__creative_arts___humanities__overview/p!ebXfmmm says not.

And I disagree with the literature comment..I could've gone through my whole German A-level without ever reading any literature (though I did), and the same for French.

And picking up a language is a lotttt harder at say 30 compared to when you're 16. Your mind picks things up and retains new vocab a lot quicker.

Reply 17

jk4q

5

I second what xmarilynx says. It is proven that if you have a language at the back of you, you will be more successful in getting a job. I know someone who applied for a job as a lawyer and she was unsuccessful. When she asked the interviewer/employer why she was unsuccessful he said it was simply because the successful applicant had an A-level in a language.

Plus, at most universities you can take electives in a language, so imho it would be a nice hobby to continue which would also be contributing to your grades and employability in the future.

Reply 18

helz_91

I would. If you think you are capable then definitely, it will make you more saleable in the job market, makes you a bit different and I think that that is essential if you want to increase your chances of finding a job.
It won't exactly close any doors for you either, it shows you have another skill and will let you work in other countries potentially too!
I'd definitely go for it, I'm doing A level french, it's not the easiest thing but probably well worth it :smile:

xxx

Reply 19

SaveItForTheMorning

GottaLovePhysics! :)

Sacrifice history or physics for a language???
Suicide much?
Unis will want the academic subject much more than any language.