Need some advice regarding FURTHER MATHS?

Hi all,

I am currently studying at an independent school and am ranked at 6th in the year for Maths. My maths teacher would recommend that I take FM as would the head of the maths department

HOWEVER the head of academics recommended specifically that I don't take FM next year. This is due to a VERY low maths Midyis score which suggests that FM is out of reach for my 'simple' mind especially at A2 where I could possibly hit a brick wall perhaps at the FP2 and FP3 modules which could potentially compromise my entire FM A Level.

My parents are also discouraging me (every single conversation I have with them involves a question like, 'do you understand how difficult FM is?') as they think that picking FM may compromise my other A Levels (maths, physics and economics). I want to apply for economics at Cam, UCL, King's, Warwick and Edinburgh so I understand that not having FM could hurt my chances of admission.

I am currently averaging at 97.5% in iGCSE maths papers which although is quite high, I have been informed that A Level is a completely different ball game?

Suggestions?

Reply 1

dragonkeeper999

Do it. You can always drop it after AS if you are struggling, and at AS the modules are generally very simple since they are the other 2 AS/ A2 Maths modules (e.g. M1 and D1) and FP1 (which is a bit more challenging but not that bad if you put a bit of effort into it).

Further Maths will make 'normal' Maths really easy so won't be too much extra work on top of your other A levels. It also ties in very well with Physics and to a lesser extent Economics - so will help you in all your other subjects :smile:

For Cambridge, FM is 'highly recommended' - i.e. basically essential if your school offers it, and if you don't take it you'll have a lot of catching up to do at uni. For your other unis they are less likely to require it, but it would make your application much stronger as well as reducing your workload at uni.

Bear in mind however that some unis don't consider the combination of Maths and Further Maths as two properly separate A levels and may expect you to take a 5th subject - this is due to what I was saying earlier about how much easier your other three subjects will become if you do FM due to the overlap in topics. Therefore, I would advice looking into the possibility of doing an additional AS level - perhaps something like History or English since Economics is quite an essay based degree and so you need to show a broader range of skills.

Reply 2

Good bloke

Original post by dragonkeeper999

Bear in mind however that some unis don't consider the combination of Maths and Further Maths as two properly separate A levels and may expect you to take a 5th subject - this is due to what I was saying earlier about how much easier your other three subjects will become if you do FM due to the overlap in topics. Therefore, I would advice looking into the possibility of doing an additional AS level - perhaps something like History or English since Economics is quite an essay based degree and so you need to show a broader range of skills.

This is not true. Maths and FM are fundamental building blocks for most of the top universities' economics courses, and taking FM can only be advantageous. University economics is not really like A level economics. No university asks for five A levels, though the vast majority expect four A AS and three full A levels. Only medical courses will discount FM as a separate subject and even they won't ask for five subjects at A level.

Maths, FM, physics and economics is fine as preparation for an economics degree.

Reply 3

rasberyl

Try it out at As and if you find it too hard don't take it to full A Level.
Looking from your results I think you'll be fine.
Don't let anyone pressure you to choose either way.
It's your choice... :smile:

Reply 4

Pip1309

Just take it at AS level, I did that and turned out I hated it so dropped it after 5 lessons and switched to sociology :') if you don't get it, it isn't the end of the world and there's usually an ability to swap courses early in the year. From what it sounds like, you're very good at maths, just give it a go and you might surprise yourself. Also, if you're applying to Cambridge for Econ then you will need to take AS further at least to get noticed. It's bloody hard to get in (I should know) so give yourself the best chance.

Reply 5

mjohnson29

Doing further maths A2 this year I'd say its not as bad as you're being told. further maths will still be reasonably difficult for everyone but you'll find normal maths so much easier that the overall workload is probably less than doing two unrelated ALevels. Remember that maths ALevels are based on separate modules (core, pure, stats, mechanics...) So if you find one part hard you'll be doing something completely different next term!

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Reply 6

dragonkeeper999

Original post by Good bloke

I did not mean 5 subjects to full A level. I meant 5 AS levels followed by 4 A2s.
Do you not think that double maths and economics A2s is a little too narrow a range of subjects for such a broad degree? It seems clear to me that an additional subject (which requires very little extra work than most students due to the links between further maths and OP's other two subjects) would be a very good option to best prepare for university study. Of course, not all schools offer students the option to take additional subjects, but OP has already mentioned going to an independent school so it is unlikely to be an issue for them.

Reply 7

Goldfly

Thank you very much for your responses. I guess my underlying question in all this is that is it possible to get a top grade with little natural ability (the bloody Midyis test suggests that I have below average ability although this does seem a little strange to me and my maths teacher) but with a lot of hard work? I am really talking about modules such as FP2, FP3 and Mechanics 3 as these are notoriously difficult according to the A2 students that I have spoken to.

Also, my school does not allow students to drop out of FM unless under extreme circumstances (I think one person cried himself off the course last year) but I don't really want to be in such an embarrassing position.

As for needing 5 ASs, I will be doing EPQ but I think that is irrelevant as I know somebody who got into Oxford E & M with my 4 choices.

Just on a slightly separate note, what should I be looking to get in my GCSEs for the courses that I have selected as I have my strengths and weaknesses (English Lit :frown: