The Student Room Group

Should i do further maths (gcse)

Hi, Ive just started Year 11 and my school has told us that they are going to do a further maths gcse course (out of school time). My target for maths this year is a 9. I
n Year 6 i did a foundation maths gcse and got a C and then in Year 8 i did the higher paper and got an A*. Since then i have done Level 3 (AS level) maths awards and an fsmq. In the future i would like to be a doctor and at A level i would like to study biology, chemistry and physics.

My teacher and other people in my class have been trying to persuade me to do the further maths because they feel i wouldnt find it too hard but i don't think i would be at a disadvantage if i don't choose to do it and i'm worried that doing it may detract my attention away from studying for my other subjects, plus i only have 1 free night per week.
Just looking for any opinions on whether i should do it or not and how much extra work it would be
Thanks in advance xx
Original post by Ellasimpson_
Hi, Ive just started Year 11 and my school has told us that they are going to do a further maths gcse course (out of school time). My target for maths this year is a 9. I
n Year 6 i did a foundation maths gcse and got a C and then in Year 8 i did the higher paper and got an A*. Since then i have done Level 3 (AS level) maths awards and an fsmq. In the future i would like to be a doctor and at A level i would like to study biology, chemistry and physics.

My teacher and other people in my class have been trying to persuade me to do the further maths because they feel i wouldnt find it too hard but i don't think i would be at a disadvantage if i don't choose to do it and i'm worried that doing it may detract my attention away from studying for my other subjects, plus i only have 1 free night per week.
Just looking for any opinions on whether i should do it or not and how much extra work it would be
Thanks in advance xx

Tbh I'd say if you have done a level 3 maths award and the FSMQ then it's a waste of time. Further maths GCSE is a level 2 qualification so with you having done the level 3 qualifications already then there's not really any point going back and doing another level 2 qualification. It's not that I think you would find it difficult, more that there's no point and you may as well concentrate on getting the best grades you can in your other subjects rather than going back a step in maths!
Original post by Lemur14
Tbh I'd say if you have done a level 3 maths award and the FSMQ then it's a waste of time. Further maths GCSE is a level 2 qualification so with you having done the level 3 qualifications already then there's not really any point going back and doing another level 2 qualification. It's not that I think you would find it difficult, more that there's no point and you may as well concentrate on getting the best grades you can in your other subjects rather than going back a step in maths!


That's what I was thinking and i'm only wondering if i should now because others are trying to persuade me! Thank you for your reply i think i just needed someone to think the same that i was!
Original post by Ellasimpson_
That's what I was thinking and i'm only wondering if i should now because others are trying to persuade me! Thank you for your reply i think i just needed someone to think the same that i was!

Having done further qualifications before you would have done this won't have any effect on your future in any way other than to potentially detract your attention away from your other subjects, possibly lowering your grades (not because of the difficulty, but because the time it would take to do the classes and stuff).
I think you're making the right decision not to give in to the pressure on this, as there would be no benefit to you doing it at all.
Original post by Lemur14
Having done further qualifications before you would have done this won't have any effect on your future in any way other than to potentially detract your attention away from your other subjects, possibly lowering your grades (not because of the difficulty, but because the time it would take to do the classes and stuff).
I think you're making the right decision not to give in to the pressure on this, as there would be no benefit to you doing it at all.


Thank you very much for your help! I will stick with my decision

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