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Unsure which subject to do for fourth A Level

At the moment my A Level choices are Psychology, Biology, English Lit and Geography. However, as of late I've decided I don't actually like Geography much at all and only decided to take it at A Level because I was good at it at GCSE (I was supposed to get an A* but not too sure about that as my last exam went awfully). Instead of Geography I'm now considering either Chemistry or Physics as at the end of year 11 it turned out I was actually pretty good at them?? With Chemistry I'm guessing I'll get either an A or an A* (thinking more an A*) and with Physics either an A or A*. I also did do triple science so I did all 3 units at GCSE.
I'm not really sure which subject to do though, as with Chemistry I'm good at it but prefer Physics as I find it more interesting. However, I dislike the heavy maths aspect of Physics A Level, as I'm likely to only get a B in Maths at GCSE (due to having 3 teachers in year 11).
Any suggestions?
(edited 8 years ago)
Reply 1
Original post by sophie201518
At the moment my A Level choices are Psychology, Biology, English Lit and Geography. However, as of late I've decided I don't actually like Geography much at all and only decided to take it at A Level because I was good at it at GCSE (I was supposed to get an A* but not too sure about that as my last exam went awfully). Instead of Geography I'm now considering either Chemistry or Physics as at the end of year 11 it turned out I was actually pretty good at them?? With Chemistry I'm guessing I'll get either an A or an A* (thinking more an A*) and with Physics either an A or A*. I also did do triple science so I did all 3 units at GCSE.
I'm not really sure which subject to do though, as with Chemistry I'm good at it but prefer Physics as I find it more interesting. However, I dislike the heavy maths aspect of Physics A Level, as I'm likely to only get a B in Maths at GCSE (due to having 3 teachers in year 11).
Any suggestions?


First of, good on you for not considering geo any more, since what I highlighted in bold is not a good reason to study a subject for a year for (remember, unis see ALL the results). In regards to physics, if you have a passion for it, then there is a good chance that you'll do well in it. Yes there is maths involved but it's nothing that you can't learn by yourself (or have a A-Level maths student/teacher talk to you about) I did both Physics and Chemistry at AS (dropped chem at A2). Have you purchased the "Head Start Guides" from CGP? They may at least provide you with some sort of idea, and they're quite cheap.

Hope this helped in some way (apologies if it didn't... haha :wink: )
Original post by tohaaaa
First of, good on you for not considering geo any more, since what I highlighted in bold is not a good reason to study a subject for a year for (remember, unis see ALL the results). In regards to physics, if you have a passion for it, then there is a good chance that you'll do well in it. Yes there is maths involved but it's nothing that you can't learn by yourself (or have a A-Level maths student/teacher talk to you about) I did both Physics and Chemistry at AS (dropped chem at A2). Have you purchased the "Head Start Guides" from CGP? They may at least provide you with some sort of idea, and they're quite cheap.

Hope this helped in some way (apologies if it didn't... haha :wink: )


Thank you!! Yes this has helped a lot thank you, I think I'm going to end up going with Physics ☺️
Reply 3
Original post by sophie201518
Thank you!! Yes this has helped a lot thank you, I think I'm going to end up going with Physics ☺️


Awesome to hear :smile: I'm not going to say it's easy (well, because it isn't). It's challenging, but well worth it ! :smile:
Reply 4
Original post by sophie201518
At the moment my A Level choices are Psychology, Biology, English Lit and Geography. However, as of late I've decided I don't actually like Geography much at all and only decided to take it at A Level because I was good at it at GCSE (I was supposed to get an A* but not too sure about that as my last exam went awfully). Instead of Geography I'm now considering either Chemistry or Physics as at the end of year 11 it turned out I was actually pretty good at them?? With Chemistry I'm guessing I'll get either an A or an A* (thinking more an A*) and with Physics either an A or A*. I also did do triple science so I did all 3 units at GCSE.
I'm not really sure which subject to do though, as with Chemistry I'm good at it but prefer Physics as I find it more interesting. However, I dislike the heavy maths aspect of Physics A Level, as I'm likely to only get a B in Maths at GCSE (due to having 3 teachers in year 11).
Any suggestions?



That's pretty much your answer sorted, go with what you enjoy. Although, the step up in physics is quite demanding so I'd encourage you to maybe look at the syllabus or purchase a book to go through some of the topics before September. This will also help you to know if you will still find the topics on your exam board interesting. I was going to pick physics but I was completely put off it after realising my exam board was very heavy on the electricity side, and I didn't enjoy that part at all. Sounds like you have the natural ability from it with your expected grades though - of course combined with hard work.

The reason I'm stressing you check that you find the topics interesting is a lot of my friends took physics and it requires a hell of a lot of work, you need to enjoy it to be able to dedicate that amount of time. Also, speak to students who took physics at your school as the teaching can be the difference from a good or bad grade - as the people in my school all found out. It's very hard to excel in if you haven't been taught the basic principles first to understand. Don't worry about the maths side though, it's not complicated maths - it might take you a little more time to do it but a-level maths isn't necessary if you practice lots and ask for help if you're struggling!

Good luck with your results - and if you don't enjoy geography, don't even think about taking it! (too much memorising to hate it) :smile:
Original post by meloj
That's pretty much your answer sorted, go with what you enjoy. Although, the step up in physics is quite demanding so I'd encourage you to maybe look at the syllabus or purchase a book to go through some of the topics before September. This will also help you to know if you will still find the topics on your exam board interesting. I was going to pick physics but I was completely put off it after realising my exam board was very heavy on the electricity side, and I didn't enjoy that part at all. Sounds like you have the natural ability from it with your expected grades though - of course combined with hard work.

The reason I'm stressing you check that you find the topics interesting is a lot of my friends took physics and it requires a hell of a lot of work, you need to enjoy it to be able to dedicate that amount of time. Also, speak to students who took physics at your school as the teaching can be the difference from a good or bad grade - as the people in my school all found out. It's very hard to excel in if you haven't been taught the basic principles first to understand. Don't worry about the maths side though, it's not complicated maths - it might take you a little more time to do it but a-level maths isn't necessary if you practice lots and ask for help if you're struggling!

Good luck with your results - and if you don't enjoy geography, don't even think about taking it! (too much memorising to hate it) :smile:


Thank you!! Yes I'm going to try and find out what exam board my college does Physics on, as they didn't think to include it in the prospectus :frown: Also I think I may just wait until results day and if I manage to get my B in maths then that'll be great and I'll go with Physics 😊 Thanks again for the advice!

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