The Student Room Group

RE or Sociology ?

I'm taking German, ICT, Business Studies and need to before Monday confirm my options for A-Levels, but I still haven't decided on the fourth subject. I've been going to both RE and Sociology lessons for the past 2 weeks but I still don't know which one I prefer.

Sociology seems the most interesting, and I didn't do RE for GCSE so that seems to put me at a slight disadvantage ?

Both modules/exams for the subjects have horrid 20 marks questions so it's not as if I can choose a subject based on the easiness of the questions asked either.

Any help?
Reply 1
If you think Sociology sounds more interesting and think you will enjoy it choose Sociology.
Reply 2
I picked RE at the beginning of the year, and having not taken Islam before (because at GCSE I was studying Christianity), I dropped it and chose Sociology instead.
I think you should do Sociology, mainly because you say you enjoy it, and you will be more or less on the same level as the others in your class. You need to know the basics of what religion your class is studying before you start A level RE, otherwise you will find yourself not understanding the simple things that everyone already knows. This is from my experience anyway.
If you are really enthusiastic about RE, you may be able to catch up on work, but if you feel like it's an "OK" subject (like I did) then you may be in for a big surprise.
Sociology also compliments Business Studies and German very well.
Hope this helps :smile:
Reply 3
I'd say Sociology
Reply 4
If you are really enthusiastic about RE, you may be able to catch up on work


I am, but unfortunately I found out last week that my school aren't timetabling it thid year, so I'm now doing History instead because I had to chose one that would fit into the timetable (I took History at GCSE and really enjoyed it, so hopefully the same will be true at A-Level)

However, in this case, I would advice you to go for the one you enjoy the most, which seems to be Sociology. With this, it is a new subject for everyone, so you will be able to start off on the same footing as everyonde else. It is not usually a requirement to have studied RE at GCSE, but it often builds on knowledge and understanding gained at this level, particularly in relation to religious teaching. If you're studying one of the more well-known religions then it might be easier to catch up then if you're doing one of the religions you know less about. I won't specify which I think are the most well known because it is relative to the area in which you live etc.

If you know what subject you want to do at University, then go with the one that compliments your chosen course the most. It has to be your decision though. Something to bear in mind might be which subject you enjoy the most (that's useless if you enjoy them both equally), what the results are like within each department and which will get you the highest marks.

Hope I've given you some things to consider.
Best of Luck. Let us all know how you get on.
Reply 5
If you prefer and find sociology more interseting then you should take that. AS ultimately you will get a better grade in a subject you enjoy than one you dont as much. However the final choice is up to you.
Reply 6
Well, is it RE or RS, because often people don't realise that it's RS - Religious Studies, which is entirely different from RE which most people studied at GCSE. I did RS for A level, you see...
If it were RS, I would definitely advise you to take it, as it's more respected than Sociology and is highly relatable to most degrees - a typical RS course is two of either history, literature or philosophy. If it is Religious Education, then I can't really help you there, but I'd say go for whichever is better for your future plans.
Reply 7
Diachrom
Well, is it RE or RS, because often people don't realise that it's RS - Religious Studies, which is entirely different from RE which most people studied at GCSE. I did RS for A level, you see...
If it were RS, I would definitely advise you to take it, as it's more respected than Sociology and is highly relatable to most degrees - a typical RS course is two of either history, literature or philosophy. If it is Religious Education, then I can't really help you there, but I'd say go for whichever is better for your future plans.

Hehe, I didn't know there was a difference! :smile:

The AQA website calls it "Religious Studies".
Reply 8
Hehe, I didn't know there was a difference!


Neither did I! I remember on the GCSE paper it said Religious Studies (RS), but everyone at my school just calls it RE as it's shorter.

*bows head in shame!*
Reply 9
We call it RS aswell dunno why I put RE.
Sociology because you say you found it more interesting and you won't be expected to have any previous knowledge of it.
Well Im doing both. AQA Sociology and OCR R.S (Ethics and Philosophy). I find both courses really interesting. Though in your position I'd take Sociology because you just start it from scratch and with r.s it is useful to have done it at gcse but I dont think this would be a disadvantage.
Reply 12
AQA RS - that was my course. yeah, there is a huge difference between the two; if the course was RE, I wouldn't have taken it.
I would definitely suggest doing RS then. The best imagery I can give you is going to a religiously themed English Lit, History and Philosophy class .ie. studying passages from the Bible, to analyse how they infer 'pinnacle and lowliness'; studying Nebuchadnezzar's reign, how it affected Zion and thus what it tells us about man's reaction to times of crisis; What is wisdom? What is law? Which is a better tool for maintaining society.
I would definitely recommend you do RS, as it was just SO good, and also, it's a very relaxed atmosphere. Just one thing - beware the synoptic
Reply 13
I did A level RS after not having done it at GCSE, and I managed an A (in spite of a shocking D in my synoptic module. See above, watch out for the synoptic).

I didn't do Sociology, but many of my friends did it as well as RS and from what I gather enjoyed RS an awful lot more. Sociology involves an awful lot of memorising case studies etc. It's up to you! :smile:
Out of the two, I've only studied RS. But it's my favourite subject, so do it! No GCSE shouldn't put you at a disadvantage...depending on the course. If you are disadvantaged it will be compared to your classmates for a few weeks...you should end up at the same level.
From what I've heard, it's more respected than Sociology too, as it's more 'traditional'.

RS all the way, it's so interesting. Why not go on the exam board websites and check out some past questions?
Reply 15
I think you'll enjoy doing RE. Remember though, RE at A level is very different from GCSE, it's much more philosophical.
Karvel
I'm taking German, ICT, Business Studies and need to before Monday confirm my options for A-Levels, but I still haven't decided on the fourth subject. I've been going to both RE and Sociology lessons for the past 2 weeks but I still don't know which one I prefer.

Sociology seems the most interesting, and I didn't do RE for GCSE so that seems to put me at a slight disadvantage ?

Both modules/exams for the subjects have horrid 20 marks questions so it's not as if I can choose a subject based on the easiness of the questions asked either.

Any help?


Not doing RE for GCSE does not disadvantage you at all, my RE teacher wants us to forget all about what we done for GCSE because its a brand new course on John's Gospel and trying to dicipher if the apostle John wrote the gospel or someone else wrote it using a pseudoname. I do both subjects and both are heavy workloads and I find both interesting. Sociology in my school gets the best A level grades and RE comes a close second, my advice is if you want a good grade look at the results from previous years and make a decision from that as that is an inidcator of how well the class performs in exams and how well the teacher is actually teaching the subject. - good luck and hope you come to your decision soon ^_^ xoxo