The Student Room Group

Archaeology and A level requirements

I’m planning to study archaeology in university and I have to pick my A-levels. Which ones should I pick?
I have originally planned to pick geography, biology and economics as my school does not offer much in A-levels but I am afraid the subjects I have chosen are not sufficient for my desired course path. The GCSEs I am currently finishing are chemistry, biology, physics, mathematics, english literature, english language, geography, graphic design and business studies, as well as Arabic which is another required subject. Will geography, economics and biology allow me to enter the archeological field? I also plan to go into sustainable development or environmental science if I am unable to go into archaeology.

Reply 1

Hi there! economics doesn't seem very revelant to your course, have you considered history or classic civ?
Check out https://www.ucas.com/explore/subjects/archaeology. It says:

"You’ll want to show your passion for history, but also your skills with computers and technology. Knowledge of another language, or at least an interest in travel, would also be beneficial, as archaeology is a global field which requires frequent international communication."

Better still, visit some university web sites and check what their subject requirements are, if any.

Keep in mind that if there are no "must have" subjects, then choosing subjects you're going to do well in is a reasonable default approach.

Reply 3

Check the entry requirements on Archaelology course pages at a range of different Unis - they will ist which subjects are essential and which might be 'preferred'. Btw, BSc courses tend to be more technical and BA courses more 'history', but check carefully.
Examples :
Reading - https://www.reading.ac.uk/ready-to-study/study/2022/archaeology-ug
York - https://www.york.ac.uk/archaeology/undergraduates/
Cardiff - https://www.cardiff.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/subjects/archaeology-and-conservation

Reply 4

Original post
by beans111
Hi there! economics doesn't seem very revelant to your course, have you considered history or classic civ?

Unfortunately I am unable to take history as I did not pick it as my GCSE and for classic civ my school does not offer that A-level. I decided to take economics as a backup incase I can’t do archaeology and settle with my other desired course options.

Reply 5

Original post
by DataVenia
Check out https://www.ucas.com/explore/subjects/archaeology. It says:

"You’ll want to show your passion for history, but also your skills with computers and technology. Knowledge of another language, or at least an interest in travel, would also be beneficial, as archaeology is a global field which requires frequent international communication."

Better still, visit some university web sites and check what their subject requirements are, if any.

Keep in mind that if there are no "must have" subjects, then choosing subjects you're going to do well in is a reasonable default approach.


Thank you I will definitely check it out, as for languages, I’m fluent in 2 and I am also currently learning Spanish if that helps.

Reply 6

Original post
by McGinger
Check the entry requirements on Archaelology course pages at a range of different Unis - they will ist which subjects are essential and which might be 'preferred'. Btw, BSc courses tend to be more technical and BA courses more 'history', but check carefully.
Examples :
Reading - https://www.reading.ac.uk/ready-to-study/study/2022/archaeology-ug
York - https://www.york.ac.uk/archaeology/undergraduates/
Cardiff - https://www.cardiff.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/subjects/archaeology-and-conservation

Thank you, for some unis the requirements weren’t asking for a specific A-level so I got confused.
Original post
by Idk1788327
Thank you, for some unis the requirements weren’t asking for a specific A-level so I got confused.

If they don't require (or prefer) particular subjects, then pick whatever subjects you enjoy and/or are good at.
In the UK there are no subject requirements for archaeology. It's a pretty wide spanning discipline so any subjects can be a suitable background, be they humanities, social sciences, or natural sciences. For some courses that (may) include language elements (e.g. Egyptology/Assyriology/Egyptian archaeology or classical archaeology) some background in languages may be useful. However in general your combination would be fine as is.

Note that an environmental science degree if it is more focused on the basic science than applications or policy (or related courses in e.g. earth sciences, oceanography, climate sciences, ecology etc) may prefer a second science at A-level. So for that option your combination may be less ideal. For a degree in (sustainable) development studies your options would be fine as is though.

Reply 9

Original post
by artful_lounger
In the UK there are no subject requirements for archaeology. It's a pretty wide spanning discipline so any subjects can be a suitable background, be they humanities, social sciences, or natural sciences. For some courses that (may) include language elements (e.g. Egyptology/Assyriology/Egyptian archaeology or classical archaeology) some background in languages may be useful. However in general your combination would be fine as is.

Note that an environmental science degree if it is more focused on the basic science than applications or policy (or related courses in e.g. earth sciences, oceanography, climate sciences, ecology etc) may prefer a second science at A-level. So for that option your combination may be less ideal. For a degree in (sustainable) development studies your options would be fine as is though.

Thank you for clarifying about the A-levels, I am also considering taking chemistry as a 4th A-level but that’s less ideal. I’ll most likely not go into environmental science so it’s only really there incase I take Chem as well.

Reply 10

Original post
by Idk1788327
I decided to take economics as a backup incase I can’t do archaeology and settle with my other desired course options.

Economics probably isn't a great back up - as far as I know there aren't any university courses that require Economics. Maths is normally required for Economics at university, but not Economics.

Reply 11

Original post
by Idk1788327
I’m planning to study archaeology in university and I have to pick my A-levels. Which ones should I pick?
I have originally planned to pick geography, biology and economics as my school does not offer much in A-levels but I am afraid the subjects I have chosen are not sufficient for my desired course path. The GCSEs I am currently finishing are chemistry, biology, physics, mathematics, english literature, english language, geography, graphic design and business studies, as well as Arabic which is another required subject. Will geography, economics and biology allow me to enter the archeological field? I also plan to go into sustainable development or environmental science if I am unable to go into archaeology.


History will be helpful, but you should be fine with those. I did Economics, English Literature, and History. You'll probably have a harder time going into Environmental Science with those A-Levels, but you should be fine for a BA in Archaeology. I would recommend you do some reading on the history side. I had a friend who was one of the best archaeology students at our university and they did Maths, Physics and something else - definitely not History, though.

Reply 12

Original post
by Idk1788327
I’m planning to study archaeology in university and I have to pick my A-levels. Which ones should I pick?
I have originally planned to pick geography, biology and economics as my school does not offer much in A-levels but I am afraid the subjects I have chosen are not sufficient for my desired course path. The GCSEs I am currently finishing are chemistry, biology, physics, mathematics, english literature, english language, geography, graphic design and business studies, as well as Arabic which is another required subject. Will geography, economics and biology allow me to enter the archeological field? I also plan to go into sustainable development or environmental science if I am unable to go into archaeology.


I did history, geography and psychology & did MSci Archaeology at Southampton. I have also worked in student recruitment for the subject & there are no overwhelmingly required a levels for the degree. It is more about your enthusiasm for the past.

The most relevant a level I did I feel was geography (from my lot) as it combines a lot of skills utilised during the degree. A science is also good, as depending where you study a bsc may be on offer (& require a science-y subject. As I mentioned, I would highly recommend geography if you enjoy it.

Class Civ could also be a good choice if you don’t mind classics & ancient language.

I know people who did all sciences & maths. Other people did economics, (saw people above saying not to do it!). I would also consider, seeing if you could volunteer on a dig if you’re interested I can pass on a few links online to find them :smile:
(edited 3 years ago)
Original post
by Idk1788327
Unfortunately I am unable to take history as I did not pick it as my GCSE and for classic civ my school does not offer that A-level. I decided to take economics as a backup incase I can’t do archaeology and settle with my other desired course options.


Are you sure you can't take history? I was accepted onto A Level History even though I dropped it in Year 9 and therefore didn't have a GCSE in it.

Double check your chosen sixth form's entry requirements.

Quick Reply

How The Student Room is moderated

To keep The Student Room safe for everyone, we moderate posts that are added to the site.