picking A-levels combinations HELP!
Hello all! new here 
I started off doing four a-levels (psych, history, sociology, film) but it's way too much so am dropping one.
What is the best combo?History, Combined English, Politics *or*History, Psychology, Politics.
I heard sociology is not respected so I am dropping that. Having to switch from film as it has low respect and apparently is treated like one less alevel. V/ sad because i love that one
Do you need two facilitating subjects to get into a top domestic or international uni or are they fine with one?
Combined English vs Psychology in terms of respect?
Any resources on what a-levels American unis require?
I'm looking for a humanities degree by the way (eg. American studies, history, international development, politics)
Any help, advice, opinion, links etc would be met with lots of gratitude! Thank you
I started off doing four a-levels (psych, history, sociology, film) but it's way too much so am dropping one.
What is the best combo?History, Combined English, Politics *or*History, Psychology, Politics.
I heard sociology is not respected so I am dropping that. Having to switch from film as it has low respect and apparently is treated like one less alevel. V/ sad because i love that one
Do you need two facilitating subjects to get into a top domestic or international uni or are they fine with one?
Combined English vs Psychology in terms of respect?
Any resources on what a-levels American unis require?
I'm looking for a humanities degree by the way (eg. American studies, history, international development, politics)
Any help, advice, opinion, links etc would be met with lots of gratitude! Thank you
(edited 1 year ago)
Original post by C0mixcat
Hello all new here
I started off doing four a-levels (psych, history, sociology, film) but it's way too much so am dropping one.
What is the best combo?History, Combined English, Politics *or*History, Psychology, Politics.
I heard sociology is not respected so I am dropping that. Having to switch from film as it has low respect and apparently is treated like one less alevel. V/ sad because i love that one
Do you need two facilitating subjects to get into a top domestic or international uni or are they fine with one?
Combined English vs Psychology in terms of respect?
Any resources on what a-levels American unis require?
I'm looking for a humanities degree by the way (eg. American studies, history, international development, politics)
Any help, advice, opinion, links etc would be met with lots of gratitude! Thank you
I started off doing four a-levels (psych, history, sociology, film) but it's way too much so am dropping one.
What is the best combo?History, Combined English, Politics *or*History, Psychology, Politics.
I heard sociology is not respected so I am dropping that. Having to switch from film as it has low respect and apparently is treated like one less alevel. V/ sad because i love that one
Do you need two facilitating subjects to get into a top domestic or international uni or are they fine with one?
Combined English vs Psychology in terms of respect?
Any resources on what a-levels American unis require?
I'm looking for a humanities degree by the way (eg. American studies, history, international development, politics)
Any help, advice, opinion, links etc would be met with lots of gratitude! Thank you
What is the best combo?
They all look fine since most of them are essay based subjects. However, that would only allow you to go into humanities and essay based degrees, which I think is what you wanted.
Do you need two facilitating subjects to get into a top domestic or international uni or are they fine with one?
They specify this in the entry requirements section of the degree course page.
I can't comment on international universities (which one?), but for UK universities, you would need history to do a history degree, English Literature for English Literature degree, and Pyschology for some psychology degrees (other psychology degrees don't have any subject requirements). Should you wish to do a sociology degree or a film studies degree, you can with any A Levels.
Having said that, you should always check the entry requirements of the specific course that you want to do. Anything beyond the entry requirements explicitly stated on their course page is difficult to say. You should get a second opinon on this
Combined English vs Psychology in terms of respect?
Combined English is a new A Level to me, but most English Literature degrees ask for English Literature, Psychology is respected for psychology degrees. Both are regarded as academic subjects and are challenging in their own way. I don't think there's a preference of one over the other unless it's for a specific degree you're going for. I would get a second opinion on this.
I'm looking for a humanities degree by the way (eg. American studies, history, international development, politics)
If you're either doing American studies or history, then I would have Combined English and History in your arsenal. The other degrees don't require any specific subjects to my knowledge.
If you're adamant that you want to do a humanities degree, psychology won't really be relevant. Should you wish to later to a psychology degree after your bachelor's consider doing an approved BPS psycholgy postgrad conversion course.
Okay so I'm asking for my brother. He's pretty nonchalant about most things including his education he just started year 12. And chose biology,chemistry,p.e. and statistics as his A-levels. He's looking at maybe doing medicine or dentistry. I'm not going to lie at the encouragement of my parents. He may also be open to law at uni. Because at his 6th form y13 do 3 a-levels he knows he's going to drop p.e. as many uni will not accept "human biology" with biology. But he really hates statistics. At first he was inbetween statistics and psychology which is what I did(so I guess that turned him off) But now he tried to switch to psycholgy or sociolgy but was told all places are full.
What A-levels would you recommend that compliment biology and chemistry without needing too much attention to get a good grade
What A-levels would you recommend that compliment biology and chemistry without needing too much attention to get a good grade
Original post by lovethoo
Okay so I'm asking for my brother. He's pretty nonchalant about most things including his education he just started year 12. And chose biology,chemistry,p.e. and statistics as his A-levels. He's looking at maybe doing medicine or dentistry. I'm not going to lie at the encouragement of my parents. He may also be open to law at uni. Because at his 6th form y13 do 3 a-levels he knows he's going to drop p.e. as many uni will not accept "human biology" with biology. But he really hates statistics. At first he was inbetween statistics and psychology which is what I did(so I guess that turned him off) But now he tried to switch to psycholgy or sociolgy but was told all places are full.
What A-levels would you recommend that compliment biology and chemistry without needing too much attention to get a good grade
What A-levels would you recommend that compliment biology and chemistry without needing too much attention to get a good grade
If he's nonchalant about things, it's going to be tough to get him into med school or a top uni for that matter.
"Easy" will depend on the individual. I could say I find Maths easier than English Literature, but others would strongly disagree.
Psychology and sociology would have been my best bet. However, if medicine is what he wants to do, he can pick anything relatively academic but he really enjoys e.g English Literature, History, Philosophy, Geography, Economics.
Maths or Physics would be my choices (they tend to be favoured by med schools to my knowledge), but I am not sure whether he would enjoy them.
Law degrees don't require any specific subjects, as you might know, but they do prefer evidence of his ability to write essays. So History, Literature, Philosophy, Religious Studies, Geography, Economics, Business studies are good picks.
I would not necessarily recommend doing Law at A Level, but I have not done it myself (nor would I ever want to). I have heard from other people it's not an A Level one should take, even if you enjoy the subject.
Original post by C0mixcat
Hello all! new here
I started off doing four a-levels (psych, history, sociology, film) but it's way too much so am dropping one.
What is the best combo?History, Combined English, Politics *or*History, Psychology, Politics.
I heard sociology is not respected so I am dropping that. Having to switch from film as it has low respect and apparently is treated like one less alevel. V/ sad because i love that one
Do you need two facilitating subjects to get into a top domestic or international uni or are they fine with one?
Combined English vs Psychology in terms of respect?
Any resources on what a-levels American unis require?
I'm looking for a humanities degree by the way (eg. American studies, history, international development, politics)
Any help, advice, opinion, links etc would be met with lots of gratitude! Thank you
I started off doing four a-levels (psych, history, sociology, film) but it's way too much so am dropping one.
What is the best combo?History, Combined English, Politics *or*History, Psychology, Politics.
I heard sociology is not respected so I am dropping that. Having to switch from film as it has low respect and apparently is treated like one less alevel. V/ sad because i love that one
Do you need two facilitating subjects to get into a top domestic or international uni or are they fine with one?
Combined English vs Psychology in terms of respect?
Any resources on what a-levels American unis require?
I'm looking for a humanities degree by the way (eg. American studies, history, international development, politics)
Any help, advice, opinion, links etc would be met with lots of gratitude! Thank you
Between psychology and combined english, I believe psychology is more respected as it's a social science, whilst if you were to do english, i believe english language or english literature would be a lot more respected than combined English. Keep in mind though you can still go to international unis despite whatever a levels you take as long as you show you're capable of achieving high grades, none of the subjects actually limit your options. And as for facilitating subjects, one is perfectly fine. You should go onto uni websites and check out the courses they have and its requirements to help you come to a more solid conclusion. Good luck!
Original post by MindMax2000
What is the best combo?
They all look fine since most of them are essay based subjects. However, that would only allow you to go into humanities and essay based degrees, which I think is what you wanted.
Do you need two facilitating subjects to get into a top domestic or international uni or are they fine with one?
They specify this in the entry requirements section of the degree course page.
I can't comment on international universities (which one?), but for UK universities, you would need history to do a history degree, English Literature for English Literature degree, and Pyschology for some psychology degrees (other psychology degrees don't have any subject requirements). Should you wish to do a sociology degree or a film studies degree, you can with any A Levels.
Having said that, you should always check the entry requirements of the specific course that you want to do. Anything beyond the entry requirements explicitly stated on their course page is difficult to say. You should get a second opinon on this
Combined English vs Psychology in terms of respect?
Combined English is a new A Level to me, but most English Literature degrees ask for English Literature, Psychology is respected for psychology degrees. Both are regarded as academic subjects and are challenging in their own way. I don't think there's a preference of one over the other unless it's for a specific degree you're going for. I would get a second opinion on this.
I'm looking for a humanities degree by the way (eg. American studies, history, international development, politics)
If you're either doing American studies or history, then I would have Combined English and History in your arsenal. The other degrees don't require any specific subjects to my knowledge.
If you're adamant that you want to do a humanities degree, psychology won't really be relevant. Should you wish to later to a psychology degree after your bachelor's consider doing an approved BPS psycholgy postgrad conversion course.
They all look fine since most of them are essay based subjects. However, that would only allow you to go into humanities and essay based degrees, which I think is what you wanted.
Do you need two facilitating subjects to get into a top domestic or international uni or are they fine with one?
They specify this in the entry requirements section of the degree course page.
I can't comment on international universities (which one?), but for UK universities, you would need history to do a history degree, English Literature for English Literature degree, and Pyschology for some psychology degrees (other psychology degrees don't have any subject requirements). Should you wish to do a sociology degree or a film studies degree, you can with any A Levels.
Having said that, you should always check the entry requirements of the specific course that you want to do. Anything beyond the entry requirements explicitly stated on their course page is difficult to say. You should get a second opinon on this
Combined English vs Psychology in terms of respect?
Combined English is a new A Level to me, but most English Literature degrees ask for English Literature, Psychology is respected for psychology degrees. Both are regarded as academic subjects and are challenging in their own way. I don't think there's a preference of one over the other unless it's for a specific degree you're going for. I would get a second opinion on this.
I'm looking for a humanities degree by the way (eg. American studies, history, international development, politics)
If you're either doing American studies or history, then I would have Combined English and History in your arsenal. The other degrees don't require any specific subjects to my knowledge.
If you're adamant that you want to do a humanities degree, psychology won't really be relevant. Should you wish to later to a psychology degree after your bachelor's consider doing an approved BPS psycholgy postgrad conversion course.
Ah thank you!
Would you say psychology's lack of relevance limits things for me? Would sociology be better (heard it is disrespected though)?
sorry for the extra questions
Original post by psychstudent2625
Between psychology and combined english, I believe psychology is more respected as it's a social science, whilst if you were to do english, i believe english language or english literature would be a lot more respected than combined English. Keep in mind though you can still go to international unis despite whatever a levels you take as long as you show you're capable of achieving high grades, none of the subjects actually limit your options. And as for facilitating subjects, one is perfectly fine. You should go onto uni websites and check out the courses they have and its requirements to help you come to a more solid conclusion. Good luck!
Thank you for your advice
Original post by C0mixcat
Ah thank you!
Would you say psychology's lack of relevance limits things for me? Would sociology be better (heard it is disrespected though)?
sorry for the extra questions
Would you say psychology's lack of relevance limits things for me? Would sociology be better (heard it is disrespected though)?
sorry for the extra questions
I wouldn't say it limits things. Most UK degree courses ask for 3 A Levels, and usually one facilitating subject at most. So your other 2 A Levels can be in any subject you want. Psychology can be one of them should you need it to be.
I am not sure about sociology. From what I have heard from other students is that it's relatively 'easy', but it's not as academic as other 'standard' subjects. I don't study humanities nor sociology, so I can't comment.
The reason why I recommended Combined English + History is because you have mentioned that you are considering degrees in American Studies and History. To encompass the entry requirements of both, I would recommend history and combined English (although American studies don't really have specific entry requirements if it's a degree in the UK - I have only seen one degree course that requires an English related A Level, but others don't have subject specific requirements).
Original post by C0mixcat
Hello all! new here
I started off doing four a-levels (psych, history, sociology, film) but it's way too much so am dropping one.
What is the best combo?History, Combined English, Politics *or*History, Psychology, Politics.
I heard sociology is not respected so I am dropping that. Having to switch from film as it has low respect and apparently is treated like one less alevel. V/ sad because i love that one
Do you need two facilitating subjects to get into a top domestic or international uni or are they fine with one?
Combined English vs Psychology in terms of respect?
Any resources on what a-levels American unis require?
I'm looking for a humanities degree by the way (eg. American studies, history, international development, politics)
Any help, advice, opinion, links etc would be met with lots of gratitude! Thank you
I started off doing four a-levels (psych, history, sociology, film) but it's way too much so am dropping one.
What is the best combo?History, Combined English, Politics *or*History, Psychology, Politics.
I heard sociology is not respected so I am dropping that. Having to switch from film as it has low respect and apparently is treated like one less alevel. V/ sad because i love that one
Do you need two facilitating subjects to get into a top domestic or international uni or are they fine with one?
Combined English vs Psychology in terms of respect?
Any resources on what a-levels American unis require?
I'm looking for a humanities degree by the way (eg. American studies, history, international development, politics)
Any help, advice, opinion, links etc would be met with lots of gratitude! Thank you
Heya!
Have you considered entry requirements for the course you want to do at unis? Usually, UK unis have a list of what a-levels they need/want/prefer (unis are pretty open about it). If there are no entry requirements, then you don't need anything specific - just pick something you would enjoy
If there are something specific or preferred a-levels then you need to follow the requirements. Combined English is something new for me, so I would just double check if uni you want to apply to requires/accepts it. I hope this helps!
Milena G.
UCL PFE
Study Mind
Original post by lovethoo
Okay so I'm asking for my brother. He's pretty nonchalant about most things including his education he just started year 12. And chose biology,chemistry,p.e. and statistics as his A-levels. He's looking at maybe doing medicine or dentistry. I'm not going to lie at the encouragement of my parents. He may also be open to law at uni. Because at his 6th form y13 do 3 a-levels he knows he's going to drop p.e. as many uni will not accept "human biology" with biology. But he really hates statistics. At first he was inbetween statistics and psychology which is what I did(so I guess that turned him off) But now he tried to switch to psycholgy or sociolgy but was told all places are full.
What A-levels would you recommend that compliment biology and chemistry without needing too much attention to get a good grade
What A-levels would you recommend that compliment biology and chemistry without needing too much attention to get a good grade
Heya!
For medicine and dentistry, you typically need chem and bio (only unis like Cambridge prefer if your 3rd a-level was physics and maths). Usually, when people apply to medicine, psychology or physics or maths are the popular choices
For law you don't need any specific a-levels, just good grades, so even if he picks physics, it should still be fine as long as he does well in it! He could also pick something essay based if he wants to go into law e.g. history.In the end, it's up to him! Since he already has chem and bio, dentistry and medicine are open for him, so 3rd a-level can be anything he enjoys/wants to do really
I would recommend listing out available a-levels and doing a pros and cons table for each. Do some research on different a-levels and see what would suit him the best!I hope this helps!
Milena G.
UCL PFE
Study Mind
Original post by MindMax2000
I wouldn't say it limits things. Most UK degree courses ask for 3 A Levels, and usually one facilitating subject at most. So your other 2 A Levels can be in any subject you want. Psychology can be one of them should you need it to be.
I am not sure about sociology. From what I have heard from other students is that it's relatively 'easy', but it's not as academic as other 'standard' subjects. I don't study humanities nor sociology, so I can't comment.
The reason why I recommended Combined English + History is because you have moentioned that you are considering degrees in American Studies and History. To encompass the entry requirements of both, I would recommend history and combined English (although American studies don't really have specific entry requirements if it's a degree in the UK - I have only seen one degree course that requires an English related A Level, but others don't have subject specific requirements).
I am not sure about sociology. From what I have heard from other students is that it's relatively 'easy', but it's not as academic as other 'standard' subjects. I don't study humanities nor sociology, so I can't comment.
The reason why I recommended Combined English + History is because you have moentioned that you are considering degrees in American Studies and History. To encompass the entry requirements of both, I would recommend history and combined English (although American studies don't really have specific entry requirements if it's a degree in the UK - I have only seen one degree course that requires an English related A Level, but others don't have subject specific requirements).
Okay thank you for your perspective really helpful
Same I really enjoy it so fascinating
Original post by zoran1102
Who told you that Sociology is disrespected? It might be popular but that doesn’t entail that it’s bad. I quite enjoy it.
Hi I all.
As an update, I'm now doing Film, History, Politics, with an EPQ. Got yr 12 Mocks next week.
I really enjoy film and history, although one teacher isn't teaching it very well.
In hindsight I can see sociology is seen as a respected 'traditional' subject, and probably would have been more enjoyable and interesting for me over politics, but that might be the better combo. I was in such a flap at the start of my a-levels with switching subject and a new school so felt overwhelmed and was unsure of the long term impact of my choices. Hopefully it all turns out well for me, I'm feeling a lot more confident now.
Thanks for all the advice and do what you love
As an update, I'm now doing Film, History, Politics, with an EPQ. Got yr 12 Mocks next week.
I really enjoy film and history, although one teacher isn't teaching it very well.
In hindsight I can see sociology is seen as a respected 'traditional' subject, and probably would have been more enjoyable and interesting for me over politics, but that might be the better combo. I was in such a flap at the start of my a-levels with switching subject and a new school so felt overwhelmed and was unsure of the long term impact of my choices. Hopefully it all turns out well for me, I'm feeling a lot more confident now.
Thanks for all the advice and do what you love
Hi I all.
As an update, I'm now doing Film, History, Politics, with an EPQ. Got yr 12 Mocks next week.
I really enjoy film and history, although one teacher isn't teaching it very well.
In hindsight I can see sociology is seen as a respected 'traditional' subject, and probably would have been more enjoyable and interesting for me over politics, but that might be the better combo. I was in such a flap at the start of my a-levels with switching subject and a new school so felt overwhelmed and was unsure of the long term impact of my choices. Hopefully it all turns out well for me, I'm feeling a lot more confident now.
Thanks for all the advice and do what you love
As an update, I'm now doing Film, History, Politics, with an EPQ. Got yr 12 Mocks next week.
I really enjoy film and history, although one teacher isn't teaching it very well.
In hindsight I can see sociology is seen as a respected 'traditional' subject, and probably would have been more enjoyable and interesting for me over politics, but that might be the better combo. I was in such a flap at the start of my a-levels with switching subject and a new school so felt overwhelmed and was unsure of the long term impact of my choices. Hopefully it all turns out well for me, I'm feeling a lot more confident now.
Thanks for all the advice and do what you love
Original post by C0mixcat
Hi I all.
As an update, I'm now doing Film, History, Politics, with an EPQ. Got yr 12 Mocks next week.
I really enjoy film and history, although one teacher isn't teaching it very well.
In hindsight I can see sociology is seen as a respected 'traditional' subject, and probably would have been more enjoyable and interesting for me over politics, but that might be the better combo. I was in such a flap at the start of my a-levels with switching subject and a new school so felt overwhelmed and was unsure of the long term impact of my choices. Hopefully it all turns out well for me, I'm feeling a lot more confident now.
Thanks for all the advice and do what you love
As an update, I'm now doing Film, History, Politics, with an EPQ. Got yr 12 Mocks next week.
I really enjoy film and history, although one teacher isn't teaching it very well.
In hindsight I can see sociology is seen as a respected 'traditional' subject, and probably would have been more enjoyable and interesting for me over politics, but that might be the better combo. I was in such a flap at the start of my a-levels with switching subject and a new school so felt overwhelmed and was unsure of the long term impact of my choices. Hopefully it all turns out well for me, I'm feeling a lot more confident now.
Thanks for all the advice and do what you love
What politics exam board r u doing?
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