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Experiences with A level Chemistry

I'm starting A levels next year and am considering taking chemistry as a subject along with biology and sociology. I enjoy chemistry a lot now at GCSE but I've heard a lot of conflicting opinions on it at A level - ranging from "it's my favourite subject" to "it's my biggest regret".
I need 2 sciences for my ideal university course and I have my heart set on biology so I'm at a conflict with taking chemistry or math (from what I know math is considered a science by almost all unis).
What I hope from this is to hear other people's experiences with chemistry at A level, whether or not it's a good subject and how difficult it is.
:smile:

Reply 1

MDchalametobrien

It rrly depends on the person you are, if you enjoy chemistry at gcse i would say go for that especially if you need 2 sciences. It is quite a heavy workload especially along Biology but so is maths so if you enjoy chemistry more go for that.

Reply 2

J.cowley26

Original post by Amelia Exists

Hi so I’m taking biology maths and chemistry I loveeee biology however maths and Chem are another thing. I don’t hate chemistry however it’s extremely different than GCSE I would say that chemistry takes a lot of work to get your head around all the different equations and rules. Maths on the other hand I feel is more manageable but if you didn’t enjoy physics with Suvat and forces you won’t enjoy the mechanics side equally if you don’t enjoy probability and Venn diagrams you won’t enjoy stats I would also say it depends extremely on the type of teacher you have.

Reply 3

Mabli.W

I take chem, maths and physics. I really enjoyed maths and chemistry at GCSE, but at a level I've found maths much harder than chem. As other people have said, it entirely depends on what kind of a person you are. I think all a levels are difficult in some way, but enjoying them can make a huge difference in whether you sink or swim. That said, I cried my way through maths for two years and I'm still going to leave with an A so anything is possible lol.

I would say that if you're not going on to do a chemistry related degree, maths will be more generally useful because between stats, mechanics and pure you cover quite a wide range of content. It'll grow your mathematic ability and generally improve problem solving and analysis skills, giving you more confidence in any degree with a maths element. Stats is basically used in everything lmao. Chemistry does improve problem solving but the focus on maths is obviously less intense, all the equations come coupled with theory so imo it's all manageable. If you're doing a biology based degree at uni then chem could also be useful because they have some areas of overlap.

A level chemistry is tough for a lot of people because it takes a lot of work outside of lessons than you're not used to from gcse. There's a lot to remember and if you don't get a concept it can be tempting to say 'I can't do it' and pack it in because you're not used to struggling, and you assume it means you're bad a chemistry when really it's just going to take more work to be as successful as you're used to being. That's the same across all A levels really. Success at A level doesn't just come from aptitude alone, it comes from having the tenacity to follow up on everything you don't understand and do as much work as you need to get that content secure, and the amount of work that entails is different for everyone hence so many differing opinions on whether it's easy or not.

Personally, I love chem and it's a lot of fun, but I'm starting a Chemistry and physics degree in September so its 'my thing' so to speak. See if you can get your hands on an A level chem revision guide and look at some content to see if it engages you, you'll be building off GCSE concepts in year 12 so it won't be complete jargon. If you're not sure, maths is probably a safe option :smile:

Experiences with A level Chemistry

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