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Economics and Business for ALevel

So I'm doing my GCSE's this year and will have to choose my A levels very soon. I wanted to ask if doing both Economics and Business for A level was a bad idea. I was told some Universities might consider them the same subject but they are both things I am interested in. However, my math isn't great but I've managed to get 9's for my previous Economics exams due to English skills. I am currently considering taking Business, Economics and English Literature for A Levels but need help deciding wether or not taking both Economics and Business is a good idea. Please help!
(edited 1 year ago)
Original post by sanaddd
So I'm doing my GCSE's this year and will have to choose my A levels very soon. I wanted to ask if doing both Economics and Business for A level was a bad idea. I was told some Universities might consider them the same subject but they are both things I am interested in. However, my math isn't great but I've managed to get 9's for my previous Economics exams due to English skills. I am currently considering taking Business, Economics and English Literature for A Levels but need help deciding wether or not taking both Economics and Business is a good idea. Please help!

It depends on which specific degree you want to do. Whether the university consider them the same subject or not, it would clearly specify in the entry requirements of the specific degree.

For me to play it safe, I would always say to do Maths + either Economics or Business + anything else you want should you want to go into economics (with economics being the preferred subject).
Should you wish to do anything in business, business is just as good as economics, but some business degrees would ask for "well rounded" applicants so you might need to check the entry requirements all the same.
Original post by MindMax2000
It depends on which specific degree you want to do. Whether the university consider them the same subject or not, it would clearly specify in the entry requirements of the specific degree.
For me to play it safe, I would always say to do Maths + either Economics or Business + anything else you want should you want to go into economics (with economics being the preferred subject).
Should you wish to do anything in business, business is just as good as economics, but some business degrees would ask for "well rounded" applicants so you might need to check the entry requirements all the same.

Hi I also am facing the same dilemma. I wanna be a CEO or corporate lawyer or investment banker and yes I'm pretty average at Math and don't wanna study it in A levels. I'm opting for Accounting, Economics, Business Studies and Law for A levels because again Eco and Biz are considered 1 subject. I want advise on whether this is a wise decision or not ?
Original post by first-quarter-cr
Hi I also am facing the same dilemma. I wanna be a CEO or corporate lawyer or investment banker and yes I'm pretty average at Math and don't wanna study it in A levels. I'm opting for Accounting, Economics, Business Studies and Law for A levels because again Eco and Biz are considered 1 subject. I want advise on whether this is a wise decision or not ?

Same advice as above applies here.

Do note: to be a CEO you don't need a degree of any sort. In fact, you don't even need to have any qualifications. You will need to be competent to manage the business though.

A corporate lawyer will likely require a degree of some description (or equivalent). Typical path would include doing a degree or CILEX Level 6 then move onto an SQE specialising in corporate law. The degree can technically be in anything, but most people opt for LLBs to appease law firms. Specialising in corporate law is going to be difficult (due to its popularity), especially when trying to secure a training contract to become a lawyer is difficult in the first place.

Investment bankers don't require you to have a specific degree; most have degrees in economics, but it doesn't help that much. Whilst you don't need a degree to become an investment banker, most tend to try to graduate from top end universities (in the world) doing any subject.

For further information, see the following:
https://nationalcareers.service.gov.uk/job-categories/business-and-finance
https://www.brightnetwork.co.uk/career-profiles/corporate-lawyer/ (see alternative qualifications: https://nationalcareers.service.gov.uk/job-profiles/solicitor, https://www.prospects.ac.uk/job-profiles/solicitor, https://life-pilot.co.uk/job-sectors/law/job-profile/solicitor)
https://www.prospects.ac.uk/job-profiles/corporate-investment-banker
https://www.careerpilot.org.uk/job-sectors/law/job-profile/solicitor

Do note very carefully that all careers that you have picked out involve high stress, a lot of attention to detail, work under pressure, possibly dealing with a lot of unreasonable clients who you probably don't like, and long hours. You are likely going to encounter a lot of people who you would rather not meet outside of a job. If you are purely picking them for the pay, you are picking the wrong jobs.

Maths is pretty much an essential subject for Economics degrees. Economics A Level isn't even required. If you are not good at maths, then doing economics at degree level is not a good idea.

LLBs typically accept A Levels from any subjects, so picking Law and Accounting don't really help. Law A Level is not usually recommended if you want to do a law degree, since it's not required and people have bad experiences with the A Level in general. I would pick well rounded academic subjects to maximise your chances e.g. Economics + French + History (or something else that's considered more of a traditional difficult school subject).

Business degrees (you would never need them if you intend to go into industry as opposed to academia) won't require you to have any specific A Level subjects. If you do a business degree, a lot of it would be a regurgitation of A Level Business Studies i.e. you won't be learning anything particularly new.

If for any random reason you want to do an accounting degree (why if you want to go into industry?), you might need maths if the degree has very quantitative finance modules. However, do note accounting itself isn't really mathematical and you can do the degree with A Levels in any subject in general, and you would never need specific A Level subjects to do the professional qualifications that you need afterwards if you want to become an accountant or have such a qualification. If you want to do the professional qualification, it works out economically (a lot cheaper) and efficiently (quicker) if you just did the chosen qualification right after A Level and skip uni altogether (you can still do a degree in a completely different subject though e.g. Law, but you would start as if you have no degree at all). The exemptions that you get from an accounting qualification usually isn't worth the money or the time spent on the degree.

As none of you chosen A Level subjects are required subjects, you can only opt for degrees that accept A Levels in any subjects.

So yeah, you can do Accounting, Economics, Business Studies and Law in case Eco and Biz are considered 1 subject, but I would wonder what specific degree you intend to do if not for any of the degrees mentioned above.

If you want to do degrees that accept A Levels in any subject, you can also do (other than business and law):

Anthropology

Archaeology

Sociology and criminology

Most psychology degrees

Some degrees in creative writing and English literature

Nonquantiative economics degrees

Education

Theology

Politics

Philosophy

Linguistics

Agriculture

Some art and design degrees, including architecture

Some geography degrees (usually ones with emphasis on human geography)

Some history degrees

Some nutrition degrees

Film

Game design

Hospitality

Property and urban planning

Journalism

Media studies

Nursing

Paramedic science

Social work


Again, whilst you can do the above subjects and still get into Law, some law firms would be looking for an LLB (for reasons beyond me) from a top uni. Also, most of the top unis only teach academic subjects, so you're kind of limiting yourself to what degrees that you can do.

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