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Advice on what A-levels to choose?

Hi
I'm starting to apply for different sixth forms and choosing the subjects I want to take at A-level. At the moment, I was thinking about taking History, Politics, Psychology and potentially Biology. I was just wondering if people had any experience with these courses and how they found them/ are finding them. I will be taking the reformed A-levels and most likely will be taking these 4 for the whole 2 year period as AS levels are being scrapped. Do you think that these will be good choices? What are the work loads like? Will these subjects compliment each other? Does anyone have any other subjects that they recommend after taking them?

The exam boards are:
History- Edexcel
Government and Politics- probably AQA (school hasn't decided yet until all new specs are released)
Psychology- AQA
Biology- Edexcel

Also, did anyone take/ is taking the AQA Law course? How did you find it?
Thank you in advance!
Original post by Purpleflo1
Hi
I'm starting to apply for different sixth forms and choosing the subjects I want to take at A-level. At the moment, I was thinking about taking History, Politics, Psychology and potentially Biology. I was just wondering if people had any experience with these courses and how they found them/ are finding them. I will be taking the reformed A-levels and most likely will be taking these 4 for the whole 2 year period as AS levels are being scrapped. Do you think that these will be good choices? What are the work loads like? Will these subjects compliment each other? Does anyone have any other subjects that they recommend after taking them?

The exam boards are:
History- Edexcel
Government and Politics- probably AQA (school hasn't decided yet until all new specs are released)
Psychology- AQA
Biology- Edexcel

Also, did anyone take/ is taking the AQA Law course? How did you find it?
Thank you in advance!


Hiya,

I don't take any of those subjects myself but lots of my friends do. One thing that I would say is that you're workload is going to be very heavy and taking all 4 to A2 level may not be manageable.

Psychology and biology compliment each other very well and it is a common combination, as do history and politics. All together there will be lots of factual content and written work to get through. :smile:
Reply 2
What A-Levels do you take? Would you recommend any of them?
Do you know what degree at university or what career you want to go into? Its helpful to think about these factors while thinking about the correct A levels to study
Reply 4
Original post by jaffacakes101
Do you know what degree at university or what career you want to go into? Its helpful to think about these factors while thinking about the correct A levels to study


Unfortunately, like many others, I have absolutely NO idea what I want to do in the future. I was planning to just do the subjects that I enjoy/ find the most interesting. I'm a self-confessed history nerd but none of the careers I've heard of down that path have caught my attention really hence why I was desperately searching for some advice...
I take history and politics and would highly recommend them. But it seems like you have two conflicting pathways (wouldn't say this is a bad thing just something to consider). It's best to pick based on subjects you enjoy as whatever you take will be 10x harder if you don't enjoy them. History is very heavily content based but it's enjoyable non the less.
I dont recommend Gov and Politics and Psychology as you'd be in a disadvantage if you plan on applying to the top unis. They're seen as lower A-Levels. This isn't emphasised enough when people start choosing subjects.

I would substitute G&P for Economics or English lit.
Do you have to take 4 subjects? You could swap Psych for Maths if you're any good at that. Maths is very useful as it makes you suitable to apply to all degrees

But go with your gut feeling on what ever you want to do
(edited 7 years ago)
Reply 7
Original post by rosie.mn
I take history and politics and would highly recommend them. But it seems like you have two conflicting pathways (wouldn't say this is a bad thing just something to consider). It's best to pick based on subjects you enjoy as whatever you take will be 10x harder if you don't enjoy them. History is very heavily content based but it's enjoyable non the less.


What other A-Levels do you take along side History and Politics? I definitely want to take those two but it is Psychology and biology that I am still questioning...
As for the two conflicting pathways, my family has always said that I like to be difficult so I guess that accounts for it :biggrin:

Science at A-level has always had a rep for being ridiculously hard so I reckon that's what is making me anxious. My brother took it before dropping it very quickly so I am hesitant to make the same mistake...
Reply 8
I do History and the workload is quite high but if you actually like it you'll be fine. If you're in any way doubtful I would think very hard about it because its very, very hard to motivate yourself to do the work when you don't like it!
If you're going for top top unis consider swapping Psychology or Politics for a facilitating subject-if you google it you should be able to find a list on the Russell group website. But I wouldn't worry too much. My friend has applied to all Russell group unis with only one facilitating subject and she's got 4/5 of her offers. It just helps you to strengthen your application.
Bearing in mind it would probably be pointless for you to drop one of them after the first year as you won't actually get an AS qualification, you should probably also consider only taking on 3. 4 A2s is a lot of work!
Original post by Purpleflo1
What other A-Levels do you take along side History and Politics? I definitely want to take those two but it is Psychology and biology that I am still questioning...
As for the two conflicting pathways, my family has always said that I like to be difficult so I guess that accounts for it :biggrin:

Science at A-level has always had a rep for being ridiculously hard so I reckon that's what is making me anxious. My brother took it before dropping it very quickly so I am hesitant to make the same mistake...

History can be just as difficult as a subject like biology or chemistry if you don't work hard! Both subjects are highly content based. I do Philosophy and English Lit. I love English Lit and Philosophy is okay! I'm doing well in them though. I would highly suggest English Lit if you're looking into Journalism, Law etc. However, I would consider not doing 4. The workload with essay based subjects is difficult and it's best to have 3 great results than 4 mediocre ones.

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