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Oh God!! Options!!!!! Need help plzzzz...

I need help picking my subjects for gcse

Compulsory subjects are maths english lan and lit triple science and a modern foreign language (Im picking french)

I have 3 other spaces. History is a defo as im realy good at it and I love it. Its so interesting.
Im struggling between art and dt. I love them both but app the coursework is really hard. I think I enjoy art bit more tho.
The last one is tricky. Im struggling between geography and rs. Rs seems very interesting whereas geography seems more useful. I enjoy both pretty much equally.

Im really stuck so I was hoping advice from u guys here could help
Reply 1
I think you should do Geography, a language and Art
I think you really need to enjoy Art. I don't do it, but my two best friends who took it at both GCSE and A Level have had very mixed responses to it. One friend who is annoyingly good at doing work he doesn't want to do acheived what he needed for an A at GCSE in a few weeks. My other friend who is inversely lazy got his in at the last minute after working extremely hard at the end. He still got an A. They say it's extremely easy, but extremely tedious, but then, they're very good at Art from what I see, so that's something to consider.

RS is bull**** and should be ignored (it might be a more useful/interesting GCSE if your school offers it as an option rather than a mandatory subject).
Reply 3
Original post by amjam441
I need help picking my subjects for gcse

Compulsory subjects are maths english lan and lit triple science and a modern foreign language (Im picking french)

I have 3 other spaces. History is a defo as im realy good at it and I love it. Its so interesting.
Im struggling between art and dt. I love them both but app the coursework is really hard. I think I enjoy art bit more tho.
The last one is tricky. Im struggling between geography and rs. Rs seems very interesting whereas geography seems more useful. I enjoy both pretty much equally.

Im really stuck so I was hoping advice from u guys here could help


Take History.
Don't take Art. Art requires you to constantly do a lot of work each week and if you don't, you will fall behind. But if you really do enjoy it, then go ahead.
For Geography, well you have a lot controlled assessments to do, so if you're fine with essays, then you're good to go. RS is one of those subjects where you just have to learn a lot of content, memorise biblical quotes and know how to write a good explanation e.g. PEE
Go with RS.
Geography is not useful unless you want to learn about rivers, go with RS.


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Reply 5
Geography would be more helpful than RS if you want to do something geography/biology related (lots of jobs in geography - oil, surveying etc). On the other hand if you wanted to do something else RS could be good for medical jobs due to the ethics you learn. Either is good. I'd go with geography. I did both RS and geography, and I found geography so much more interesting and engaging. RS was a little dull for me, but then I'm not religious myself.

Again for Art and DT it depends. Go with the one you are best at. DT would probably provide you with more skills than art, unless you want to be an artist I suppose.

Good luck.


Original post by amjam441
I need help picking my subjects for gcse

Compulsory subjects are maths english lan and lit triple science and a modern foreign language (Im picking french)

I have 3 other spaces. History is a defo as im realy good at it and I love it. Its so interesting.
Im struggling between art and dt. I love them both but app the coursework is really hard. I think I enjoy art bit more tho.
The last one is tricky. Im struggling between geography and rs. Rs seems very interesting whereas geography seems more useful. I enjoy both pretty much equally.

Im really stuck so I was hoping advice from u guys here could help
Reply 6
Having done both, geography is way more interesting than RS a million times over.


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Reply 7
Thx for the responses guys. I just found out my school also does greek civilisation as well. It seems really interesting as im into history and classical mythology is fun in my opinion. App it is easier than rs and geo but if ne1 who is doing it could tell me about it that would be great. But does any of you guys think its worth it for gcse? Btw it would take the place of the geo/rs slot

PS: I think im going to go for art since I enjoy it a lot.
Reply 8
Original post by amjam441
Thx for the responses guys. I just found out my school also does greek civilisation as well. It seems really interesting as im into history and classical mythology is fun in my opinion. App it is easier than rs and geo but if ne1 who is doing it could tell me about it that would be great. But does any of you guys think its worth it for gcse? Btw it would take the place of the geo/rs slot

PS: I think im going to go for art since I enjoy it a lot.

geography and history are the smart choices. Art sounds like fun!
Reply 9
Anyone know much about classical civilisation???
Reply 10
Don't take art...i know its different for everyone but unless you really are a truly amazing artist (making shrines and clay and stuff -.-) you'll probably fail and end up hating it. Everyone at our school is falling behind with the coursework too. Of course, if you really put the effort in then you might be alright but tbh its just unnecessary stress :L
I'd take geography instead of RS if i were you...i wouldn't say geography is more interesting but it is looked on as a better subject.

I'm going to be honest with you. At GCSE is not even about the subjects you take, its only really about the grades you get. I didn't get told this so use it pleaseee :smile: pick the ones you think you'll enjoy, but also that you'll do best in
Original post by amjam441
Anyone know much about classical civilisation???


I've done classical civilisation gcse. Are you considering taking classics as an option? :smile:
Reply 12
Original post by happysmile
I've done classical civilisation gcse. Are you considering taking classics as an option? :smile:


Yh Im considering it, looks like fun. Geo is starting to become just a tad bit boring for me and it sort of depends with rs.
Whatever you do, don't choose both Art and DT - it's way too much coursework. Both involves a lot of coursework, but I'd say choose the one you enjoy more - that way, at least you'll be doing something you enjoy when you spend hours trying to complete the coursework on time... why don't you talk to the Art and DT Year 10s or 11s in your school and ask what they think?
As for Geography or RS, I find both pretty boring but if RS isn't a compulsory subject in your school, I would definitely drop it! For Geography (AQA A), the controlled assessment (coursework) is 25% of your Geography GCSE and involves fieldwork, and though it's harder than RS, its slightly more interesting... RS (Edexcel) is just memorising and recalling knowledge and all exams without any coursework/controlled assessment, but personally I find it a bit easier but much more tedious. Hope you finished reading this lengthy passage and it helps! :smile:
Reply 14
DEFINITELY DO RS! It gets a bad press because people don't think its useful but its probably the one subject in school that is most relevant to life after school(trust me!) and employers realise that. It doesn't just teach religion, it teaches morals, ethics, empathy and respect which are probably the most important qualities a person can have! If more people did it, society might not be as disrespectful to other people...
Reply 15
People have different perceptions of different subjects e.g. someone may find RS challenging and drab while someone else may love it so it is quite individual to your opinion. Try to remember you should be choosing the subjects that you are interested in and ones that you are good at. If you know what you want to do in the future then research applicable skills for that job and look at the skills for the subjects. In this case, geography and RS are both writing subjects and well regarded subjects so to be honest, whatever you choose, you can do well and receive a decent GCSE! Good luck in choosing.
(edited 10 years ago)
Reply 16
Original post by RJohnson
Don't take art...i know its different for everyone but unless you really are a truly amazing artist (making shrines and clay and stuff -.-) you'll probably fail and end up hating it. Everyone at our school is falling behind with the coursework too. Of course, if you really put the effort in then you might be alright but tbh its just unnecessary stress :L
I'd take geography instead of RS if i were you...i wouldn't say geography is more interesting but it is looked on as a better subject.

I'm going to be honest with you. At GCSE is not even about the subjects you take, its only really about the grades you get. I didn't get told this so use it pleaseee :smile: pick the ones you think you'll enjoy, but also that you'll do best in


Im pretty good at art. I get grades A6 A5 or A4 (top 3 highest grades) so I guess Im ok. I really enjoy art and for me its more like a chill out gcse rather than a stressfull one. I already do lots of art in my fee time anyway
I would choose geography , history and art if I were you. Rs isn’t that good In my opinion, and I myself am taking art and geography —- pleaseee check out my post and help me choose mine too
Reply 18
Original post by Mythsical
I would choose geography , history and art if I were you. Rs isn’t that good In my opinion, and I myself am taking art and geography —- pleaseee check out my post and help me choose mine too


I'd recommend choosing subjects based on your interests / enjoyment and how relevant they will be for your future career. If you don't know yet know your career choice, just go with what you enjoy.

You can make some posts like: What 'German' is like as an option?Hopefully some people who have done it will comment (remember different school use different exam boards so their experience may be different for you). You could also ask your teachers from every subject what exam board you'll be using, then google eg: Edexcel History GCSE course and specification, this will give you an idea of what to expect from taking the GCSE and what topics you'll be studying.

PS - You're responding to someone who made the post 4 years ago.
(edited 5 years ago)

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