what is the difference between A Level Maths and FM

how much harder/ time consuming is FM compared to Maths?
is FM mainly more content or more problem-solving skill required?
which is more enjoyable/fun to learn for you?

Reply 1

baccylaureat

You will have to take maths as well if you want to do FM

(edited 10 months ago)

Reply 2

ismaelishere

Original post by baccylaureat

You will have to take maths as well if you want to do FM

ye ik. i was wondering if i pick FM what would I be adding to my studies in comparison to if i didnt.

Reply 3

artful_lounger

Universities Forum Helper

As above, FM is taken with A-level Maths, it's not an alternate course - it's an extension of A-level Maths.

If you are very good at maths and would like to be stretched in your mathematical skills, especially if considering a highly numerate degree (e.g. maths, physics, CS, engineering) at uni, FM is worth considering.

If maths isn't your strongest subject or you sometimes find it a challenge, it may be better to take just A-level Maths and then see how that goes (potentially picking up AS FM in year 13 or doing AS or A-level FM in a gap year if you need/want to).

Reply 4

poopy69poopy

Original post by ismaelishere

how much harder/ time consuming is FM compared to Maths?
is FM mainly more content or more problem-solving skill required?
which is more enjoyable/fun to learn for you?

Maths is pretty simple especially in year 12 and doesn't get much harder in year 13. As for FM, you are thrown in the deep end in year 12 and some topics are extremely difficult. However if you have a good work ethic, you'll be fine.

Reply 5

ismaelishere

Original post by poopy69poopy

ye i looked thru a level maths pure year 1 textbook and there was lot of gcse content. most of it was easy and kinda boring after a while. i rlly liked the challenge questions tho and could see myself doing them a lot as they were both interesting and made me think a lot.

Reply 6

SiberianLIGER

Original post by ismaelishere

If that's your stance on the maths A-level you should consider taking F.maths. I really enjoyed the course and would recommend it (as long as you don't hate maths with a passion). The course was so much more fun and engaging than the standard A-level course imo. If you want a gauge on the difficulty of F.Maths, I have about twice the number of completed notebooks and practice papers for F.maths as I did for the normal maths A-level. I don't want to give a hard measure on how much more difficult it is because that could easily be misleading, but it is tangibly more challenging.

If you do end up choosing F.Maths, the normal maths A-level should be easy for you, so that's another plus of taking the course. (My school had us sit both exams at the end of yr13, some schools make you sit the maths A-level in yr12).

Also, in the beginning I wasn't a very strong maths student at all. I ended up failing the screening assessment required to start the course. However, if you put the work in, you can come out of the other end of the course with a good grade (I was pleased to get an A*). So I wouldn't be discouraged if you feel like you're not the best at maths. As long as you have the willingness to put the work in you'll be fine.

Reply 7

ismaelishere

Original post by SiberianLIGER

If that's your stance on the maths A-level you should consider taking F.maths. I really enjoyed the course and would recommend it (as long as you don't hate maths with a passion). The course was so much more fun and engaging than the standard A-level course imo. If you want a gauge on the difficulty of F.Maths, I have about twice the number of completed notebooks and practice papers for F.maths as I did for the normal maths A-level. I don't want to give a hard measure on how much more difficult it is because that could easily be misleading, but it is tangibly more challenging.
If you do end up choosing F.Maths, the normal maths A-level should be easy for you, so that's another plus of taking the course. (My school had us sit both exams at the end of yr13, some schools make you sit the maths A-level in yr12).
Also, in the beginning I wasn't a very strong maths student at all. I ended up failing the screening assessment required to start the course. However, if you put the work in, you can come out of the other end of the course with a good grade (I was pleased to get an A*). So I wouldn't be discouraged if you feel like you're not the best at maths. As long as you have the willingness to put the work in you'll be fine.

thx for ur insightful reply. glad to hear that u found FM more interesting and i hope i do too if i do take it.

i was wondering if u enjoyed the further optional modules more interesting/enjoyable than the core pure stuff? which modules did u do and which was one was good/bad. thanks!

Reply 8

SiberianLIGER

Original post by ismaelishere

thx for ur insightful reply. glad to hear that u found FM more interesting and i hope i do too if i do take it.
i was wondering if u enjoyed the further optional modules more interesting/enjoyable than the core pure stuff? which modules did u do and which was one was good/bad. thanks!

I took Further Pure 1 and Further Mechanics 1. Sadly, I didn't get to choose otherwise I probably would have chosen decision or statistics instead of mechanics. That being said, they were both very enjoyable. I remember enjoying the content in Further Pure 1 and Core Pure 2 the most. I didn't do physics, but a lot of my peers who did found that there was a lot of overlap with the mechanics option. I just treated all of the questions in that paper as fun little puzzles (I sound like a bit of a nerd saying that, but they really were enjoyable to solve) and it was a nice break from all of the pure maths.

I think the content in the core modules is on par with the optional modules that I took. You could lean more into your specific interests if your college allows you to choose for yourself. You could take a look at the syllabus for all of the modules online if you want (I also think z-library is still operating somewhere online if you want to get digital copies of the textbooks).

Unfortunately, I can't remember a lot of the course since I am doing an economics degree, which only requires calculus and set theory for the most part. So I can't provide any advice on the modules any more detailed than that.

Hope that helps!