essay based a levels

So I dont do any of these subjects specifically but I would give the general advice that taking 4 subjects can be very difficult, even with one in a native language.
I am told that language a levels are very different from gcse as you have to learn about the culture and stuff so is it possible you could take this as a third? Im not clear on your situation so that might not be accepted as a third by unis- are you a native speaker?
The way I was told to think of taking 3 vs 4 subjects is this:
If you take 3 subjects you’ll have maybe 15 hours of homework and 5 hours of study periods per week- so 10 hours outside of school.
If you take 4 you’ll have perhaps 20 hours of homework and a pretty much full timetable- so 20 hours of work outside of school.
No trying to discourage you but you need to ensure that you are confident you could maintain good grades with 4 subjects if you take them- you’d also need to be really passionate and motivated in all of them.
Also the subjects you’ve mentioned all are very essay based and content heavy so maybe 3 could be a better option for managing the workload, also you need to consider that some have coursework which you’d have to focus on also.
Hope this helps you out and happy to try to answer any more questions if you have them! Have a great day

tysm for answering!! so if u do 4 a levels then no free periods? x

basically im thinking of taking english lit(ocr/aqa), history (Aqa), spanish (aqa - im fluent tho) and either french or politics.
Atm im predicted a grade 9 for french but idk if i should do politics as i want to do law for uni. But at the same time, won't english, politics and history be too much?? anyone doing any of these a levels share your experience pls xx

I’m a current politics student applying to study law this year so I can definitely share my experience with it. Personally I really enjoy politics! It’s definitely my favourite subject and I find all the topics so interesting. I do Edexcel B politics and the exam questions are all essay questions, which I enjoy, as it allows me to develop arguments well and explore a range of themes. I think it’s a great subject to take if you’re considering studying law at university and it has some overlap in certain areas (e.g. topics like the constitution, parliament, relations between branches and subtopics like international law in global politics).
Since you are fluent in Spanish, I don’t think doing four A levels would necessarily impact you heavily here. For most students, a language would be quite a lot to handle, but if you’re fluent in it and have an interest in it then I don’t think you should worry too much about it. Taking Spanish will also allow you to study law with Spanish at university if you’d like to. However, I do agree that taking politics, history and English literature might be a lot. There are no required subjects in a law degree and while some universities like Cambridge will recommend subjects, you don’t need to take all of the recommended ones to get in (or any at all). I’ll be applying to Cambridge this year and don’t study any of the recommended subjects for law (history, English literature or a language), but I don’t think that it is anything to be concerned about. Studying politics and philosophy has prepared me well enough for law. If I were in your position, I’d maybe start off by trying to take four A levels and then dropping one after the first few weeks. I wouldn’t recommend doing two languages unless you are between studying law with French and law with Spanish (or the languages on their own). In my experience, history and politics tend to go together a little better than English does with either of them, simply because there is more similarities between those two subjects. I would recommend taking history and politics along with Spanish, however, if you’re still considering English then start off with four A levels. My personal experience with English language and literature A level was negative and I switched to politics a few weeks into the start of Year 12, as I didn’t enjoy the subject at all.

tysm for the reply!! ye that's why i'm not sure about taking politics because i think it would be too much with history and english, whilst french altho it is difficult isn't entirely essay based (just 20%) . The only thing that's inclining me a little bit more towards politics is that some ppl say it helps for ps writing + lnat + interviews etc but idk if it's worth it because doing those 3 will certainly be more difficult. do u reckon politics made a huge difference in your knowledge of law? or could i get away w/o doing it? x

I don’t think that taking politics is necessary to gain an understanding of the law, but the overlap between the two subjects does help you understand specific areas better (e.g. constitutional and administrative law, EU law). I find it quite interesting and it is the only subject I’ve included on my personal statement, mainly due to the areas of law I’m specifically interested in having a lot of overlap with politics, but if you would prefer to talk about a different subject, I don’t think it would make a huge difference. I will say that in terms of LNAT preparation, having an interest in politics and studying politics has already made me aware of current affairs and keeping up to date with the news is useful when planning essays and researching certain topics. I’m not sure about interviews, but an interest in current affairs is definitely a good starting point. If you’re really set on doing history, English and French then you could get away with not doing politics by keeping up to date with current affairs, however if you are interested in politics, I would switch it out for either English or French. It definitely has helped me to develop my essay writing skills and I enjoy the contrast between politics essays and philosophy essays. In politics essays, I tend to lay out my argument in my introduction by saying what my position is and why I hold that position, before going on to look at different points of my argument. With politics, balancing your arguments is the key to a good essay. In philosophy, it’s more about explaining an argument or a theory and why you believe it’s convincing or not convincing based on different criticisms you have been presented with. I enjoy the back and forth arguing in philosophy, but I also enjoy the different approaches you can take to defend your position in politics. To help you make up your mind, look through the specifications of each subject and see whether you’d enjoy learning the content. This is what made me switch from English to politics in the end.

tsym for answering! i reckon im going to take politics, french, history and english lit! how did u find politics grade boundaries x

4 is a lot, especially considering you’re not native in french. Universities only want 3 and doing 4 will bring your grades down, do you have to do 4 or just like the idea? Unless you need all of them because you’re stuck between degree ideas taking 4 is a bad idea, especially with them all being intense in terms of being essay subjects and heavy content wise. If you cant choose then take 4 and drop one, if you have to take 4 id still recommend doing Spanish and maybe doing it earlier (in yr 12) or just dropping it as some unis can be funny about native language a levels.
It’s completely up to you but this is just what I think. If want to do these and are interested then go ahead but make sure you’re not over working yourself and you fully understand what you’re getting yourself into. Hope this helps and happy to answer any question if you have them. Have a great day and sorry if this sounds at all mean or anything, I just want to inform you so you can make a choice which suits you

but if spanish is my fourth, it won't be like a lot of work outside tbh no? and no im not native in french but i began french in y10 (barely revised the whole year) and came out with a 9 in end of year mocks and a 9 in y11 mocks with high nineties across the papers. That being said I genuinely think having a background in spanish allows me to understand french way more than the average person + just a general love for langauges. So i assumed if i did spanish as a fourth it wouldnt really take up that much time as i speak it no? i might be wrong, do u mind giving me a bit more info abt 4 a levels? which ones do u do

tsym for answering! i reckon im going to take politics, french, history and english lit! how did u find politics grade boundaries x

The grade boundaries for politics are relatively low. You need 71% to get an A* and on paper 1 and 2, that translates to 23/30 on the essay questions and 18/24 for ideologies questions. Four A levels is a lot and I would advise against it with your subject combination. These are all very content heavy subjects and unless you would like to study law with French law, there’s no need to take French alongside your other subjects. If you are that set on taking French, drop one of the others. Regardless of your GCSE performance, A levels are a challenge for everyone. Most people I know are struggling in at least one subject, if not more than one. A lot of grade 9 GCSE students will enter a subject thinking they’ll find it easy, but getting a 9 at GCSE does not mean you won’t struggle. I know a lot of very capable grade 9 students who are currently getting Cs and below in the subjects they did well in at GCSE, simply because A levels are so different to GCSEs. If Spanish were your fourth option, I don’t think you’d struggle, as you’re fluent. As suggested, perhaps try out four and drop one a few weeks into the year.

so it's actually quite possible to get an A*?? or do u think it's a difficult a level?

So I dont do any of these subjects specifically but I would give the general advice that taking 4 subjects can be very difficult, even with one in a native language.
I am told that language a levels are very different from gcse as you have to learn about the culture and stuff so is it possible you could take this as a third? Im not clear on your situation so that might not be accepted as a third by unis- are you a native speaker?
The way I was told to think of taking 3 vs 4 subjects is this:
If you take 3 subjects you’ll have maybe 15 hours of homework and 5 hours of study periods per week- so 10 hours outside of school.
If you take 4 you’ll have perhaps 20 hours of homework and a pretty much full timetable- so 20 hours of work outside of school.
No trying to discourage you but you need to ensure that you are confident you could maintain good grades with 4 subjects if you take them- you’d also need to be really passionate and motivated in all of them.
Also the subjects you’ve mentioned all are very essay based and content heavy so maybe 3 could be a better option for managing the workload, also you need to consider that some have coursework which you’d have to focus on also.
Hope this helps you out and happy to try to answer any more questions if you have them! Have a great day

If my gcse results permit me, I would also like to take 4 a levels, two of them being french and Spanish, and sociology and English. Although I’m not native in Spanish and French, I love learning languages and I’m really passionate about them. I think it will be challenging dont get me wrong, but I kinda can’t wait to start a levels as it goes into depth way more

As someone who has achieved an A* and is predicted an A*, it really depends on how invested you are. Having a good essay structure alone can get you a B, but being able to defend your position and formulate precise arguments is what gets you into A/A* territory. The vast majority of people I know do not get higher than a C or a B in politics, simply because they aren’t that invested in it. The people who get As are people who work hard and have a big interest in current affairs. I think it is a difficult A level for people who aren’t really invested in it or struggle to understand the content, but I don’t think it’s difficult to get an A/A* in if you like it a lot and are willing to put in the effort to improve. A lot of it is dependent on how well you can structure your argument and write essays.

do u form these arguments from like watchijg the news and reading books?

tysm for answering!! so if u do 4 a levels then no free periods? x