english lit a level or history a level
hi guys,
im doing politics and french for a level, but im still unsure on my third. Atm I'm predicted around an 8 for history and maybe like a 7-8 in english lit. can someone give me their experience on the a levels and which one is better?
im doing politics and french for a level, but im still unsure on my third. Atm I'm predicted around an 8 for history and maybe like a 7-8 in english lit. can someone give me their experience on the a levels and which one is better?
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Original post by McGinger
What do you want to do after these A levels?
If Uni, do you have any ideas about a Uni subject?
And why French?
If Uni, do you have any ideas about a Uni subject?
And why French?
i want to do law, i enjoy french and am predicted a 9 atm
Original post by klnlljkklhklll
i want to do law, i enjoy french and am predicted a 9 atm
Hi!! I did both English lit and history, and I’m going on to do English at university this September. I personally enjoyed English more with a wider range of texts and topics rather than focus on one area in history BUT I found history much much easier so it depends on which you find more enjoyment in I think!
Original post by klnlljkklhklll
hi guys,
im doing politics and french for a level, but im still unsure on my third. Atm I'm predicted around an 8 for history and maybe like a 7-8 in english lit. can someone give me their experience on the a levels and which one is better?
im doing politics and french for a level, but im still unsure on my third. Atm I'm predicted around an 8 for history and maybe like a 7-8 in english lit. can someone give me their experience on the a levels and which one is better?
I’m currently debating this too 😩
Original post by klnlljkklhklll
i want to do law, i enjoy french and am predicted a 9 atm
Oh also! If you’re doing law, both are great- two of my friend are doing law at university and both took both English lit and history, one with biology and one with psychology and they have offers for Exeter and Warwick!! Honestly either one is an excellent choice
Original post by klnlljkklhklll
hi guys,
im doing politics and french for a level, but im still unsure on my third. Atm I'm predicted around an 8 for history and maybe like a 7-8 in english lit. can someone give me their experience on the a levels and which one is better?
im doing politics and french for a level, but im still unsure on my third. Atm I'm predicted around an 8 for history and maybe like a 7-8 in english lit. can someone give me their experience on the a levels and which one is better?
Really depends on what you want to do, for law, it doesn't particularly matter as both have transferable skills. Through examining facts, essay writing, literary analysis. etc. So its really just down to what you prefer doing, I would look at what history courses your school offers (there is a lot of variation) and look at what genres your school covers in english lit. I personally really enjoy history but its entirely down to you!
Original post by mialiliee
Hi!! I did both English lit and history, and I’m going on to do English at university this September. I personally enjoyed English more with a wider range of texts and topics rather than focus on one area in history BUT I found history much much easier so it depends on which you find more enjoyment in I think!
idk why i thought history was supposed to be harder. could you please tell me why you found english harder? x
For Law, there are no required A level subjects.
An essay-based subject is useful for skills and LNAT but is not essential.
Choose 3 subjects you will enjoy studying and where you feel confident of a high grade.
It doesnt matter if its English or History - which will you enjoy the most?
With a language A level, think about a Law/French degree, or certainly one with study abroad as this adds heaps to your graduate CV :
LLB Law and French | Study at Bristol | University of Bristol
LLB Law with French Law - Undergraduate degree study - MR11 - University of Birmingham
Law with European Study LLB | Undergraduate Study | University of Exeter
etc.
An essay-based subject is useful for skills and LNAT but is not essential.
Choose 3 subjects you will enjoy studying and where you feel confident of a high grade.
It doesnt matter if its English or History - which will you enjoy the most?
With a language A level, think about a Law/French degree, or certainly one with study abroad as this adds heaps to your graduate CV :
LLB Law and French | Study at Bristol | University of Bristol
LLB Law with French Law - Undergraduate degree study - MR11 - University of Birmingham
Law with European Study LLB | Undergraduate Study | University of Exeter
etc.
Original post by klnlljkklhklll
hi guys,
im doing politics and french for a level, but im still unsure on my third. Atm I'm predicted around an 8 for history and maybe like a 7-8 in english lit. can someone give me their experience on the a levels and which one is better?
im doing politics and french for a level, but im still unsure on my third. Atm I'm predicted around an 8 for history and maybe like a 7-8 in english lit. can someone give me their experience on the a levels and which one is better?
Hello, I am currently doing both History and English Lit. Personally I find the later easier especially with the freedom in the way that you are allowed to write. This is something that is not really shining through in history and I feel as though there is more of a set structure to the way that you approach questions. I also found that there was a bigger jump between GCSE history and the A level compared to Eng- I found that in history I would repeatedly get comments such as "This is GCSE level analysis".
That being said I adore history and ultimately prefer it to English (no hate to eng). I know that because I love it so much I am willing to put the effort in to get the grade I want in it. I find the content so much more interesting than that of my other A levels. Although I have to put more into history I feel as though I get more out of it and I want to study history at uni.
Both are amazing subjects and this is just my personal experiences of each and I hope this is at least somewhat helpful. These options go well with French and Politics and a lot of further education options value the skills these subjects have in common. With the grades you are predicted at GCSE I am sure you will succeed in either of these. I would say pick the one you have more of a passion for as I have found that at times I have found myself lacking motivation to write an essay when it is not something I am really interested in.
If you have anymore specific questions feel free to ask. Good luck!
Original post by A.bagel123
Hello, I am currently doing both History and English Lit. Personally I find the later easier especially with the freedom in the way that you are allowed to write. This is something that is not really shining through in history and I feel as though there is more of a set structure to the way that you approach questions. I also found that there was a bigger jump between GCSE history and the A level compared to Eng- I found that in history I would repeatedly get comments such as "This is GCSE level analysis".
That being said I adore history and ultimately prefer it to English (no hate to eng). I know that because I love it so much I am willing to put the effort in to get the grade I want in it. I find the content so much more interesting than that of my other A levels. Although I have to put more into history I feel as though I get more out of it and I want to study history at uni.
Both are amazing subjects and this is just my personal experiences of each and I hope this is at least somewhat helpful. These options go well with French and Politics and a lot of further education options value the skills these subjects have in common. With the grades you are predicted at GCSE I am sure you will succeed in either of these. I would say pick the one you have more of a passion for as I have found that at times I have found myself lacking motivation to write an essay when it is not something I am really interested in.
If you have anymore specific questions feel free to ask. Good luck!
That being said I adore history and ultimately prefer it to English (no hate to eng). I know that because I love it so much I am willing to put the effort in to get the grade I want in it. I find the content so much more interesting than that of my other A levels. Although I have to put more into history I feel as though I get more out of it and I want to study history at uni.
Both are amazing subjects and this is just my personal experiences of each and I hope this is at least somewhat helpful. These options go well with French and Politics and a lot of further education options value the skills these subjects have in common. With the grades you are predicted at GCSE I am sure you will succeed in either of these. I would say pick the one you have more of a passion for as I have found that at times I have found myself lacking motivation to write an essay when it is not something I am really interested in.
If you have anymore specific questions feel free to ask. Good luck!
tysm!! what u predicted for both of them?x
Original post by klnlljkklhklll
tysm!! what u predicted for both of them?x
I’m predicted an A in both (got a 7 in eng at gcse and an 8 in history)
Original post by A.bagel123
I’m predicted an A in both (got a 7 in eng at gcse and an 8 in history)
wow those r my exact same predicted grades rn. what do u think allowed u to get those As? do you have any revision tips or things that really uped your grade? I'm hoping to get As as well
Original post by klnlljkklhklll
wow those r my exact same predicted grades rn. what do u think allowed u to get those As? do you have any revision tips or things that really uped your grade? I'm hoping to get As as well
With English I think it was learning more literacy techniques and just practicing things like noticing meter (which I was so bad at before). My teachers have been really helpful with everything and helping me shape my ideas in writing! What I did to improve was read more and talk about them with my friend who also does English and try and explain what I found and how that carried meaning across. I know it probably sounds daunting but I have begun to take more of an analytical approach to a lot of things (such as watching movies). Since being in the right mindset I have been able to consistently achieve As. For me one of the hardest parts to get used to was writing a good comparative essay between poetry and prose. This is something that just got better with practice and always ask your teachers for feedback, they have been so helpful and even if their initial feedback was short they can always tell you how to shape your writing style. As well as this one of the biggest tips I have is don't get carried away with ornate language, it is the ideas that the reader of your essay is after and it is better if they are clear and concise rather than using overly elaborate and complex language.
With history I think I have done a lot more towards getting predicted an A. From the start of the course I have done extra reading wether that be an extract from a historian's book or a journal (websites like JSTOR and the Literacy Centre have been great), when I did this I would have a clear question that I aimed to answer and there would always be an aim to my effort and an intention behind the notes I was making. Reading the work historians makes your writing better and helps you with the interpretation question (I don't know about other exam boards but it is important in AQA). Keeping ontop of notes is important and just revising as you go along (I made blooket sets that I go over every couple weeks) just to keep the content fresh in your mind because there is a lot and it does move quite quickly compared to GCSE as there is so much more depth to cover (even in the breath study). Last time we did a set of tests I was getting a B/C (on the grade boundary) in history, since then I have been doing a lot of practice questions in timed conditions. Timing for history has always been hard for me as I always want to write more, my advice for doing papers is learn how long you have for each question and try not to run over otherwise everything becomes rushed. Doing more practice papers in exam conditions has really helped me as I now know what the exam board is after and what I need to cover to achieve the highest marks I can.
I hope this helps
Hi. I did English and history A level.
My personal experience was this: at first everyone in class struggled more with history, because (with AQA at least) it’s quite different from gcse. However, once we all found our feet with the essay style a bit more into Y12, it became quite a good subject. Obviously having a good memory helps, and it depends if you enjoy lots of memorisation, because getting the dates down is really fundamental, even though the analysis is what really help to distinguish the different grades.
With English, it initially feels a lot more familiar because obviously the key elements of the subject are the same as GCSE (using textual evidence, close reading, well written essays, often Shakespeare, unseen poetry, etc). However, as you get more into it you realise that it can be tricky because the exam timings are very tight while the quality of the essays has gone up. Effectively with history you will probably have answered a similar question before, so you can regurgitate the info and analysis you know, mixing together different points from previous assignments and revision; with English, in contrast, you have to think up more on the spot, even in the non-unseen poetry questions. So it’s imperative to score well on the coursework.
Ultimately both are highly respected subjects that can be very enjoyable and also frustrating at different times!
My personal experience was this: at first everyone in class struggled more with history, because (with AQA at least) it’s quite different from gcse. However, once we all found our feet with the essay style a bit more into Y12, it became quite a good subject. Obviously having a good memory helps, and it depends if you enjoy lots of memorisation, because getting the dates down is really fundamental, even though the analysis is what really help to distinguish the different grades.
With English, it initially feels a lot more familiar because obviously the key elements of the subject are the same as GCSE (using textual evidence, close reading, well written essays, often Shakespeare, unseen poetry, etc). However, as you get more into it you realise that it can be tricky because the exam timings are very tight while the quality of the essays has gone up. Effectively with history you will probably have answered a similar question before, so you can regurgitate the info and analysis you know, mixing together different points from previous assignments and revision; with English, in contrast, you have to think up more on the spot, even in the non-unseen poetry questions. So it’s imperative to score well on the coursework.
Ultimately both are highly respected subjects that can be very enjoyable and also frustrating at different times!
Original post by EternalStudent43
Hi. I did English and history A level.
My personal experience was this: at first everyone in class struggled more with history, because (with AQA at least) it’s quite different from gcse. However, once we all found our feet with the essay style a bit more into Y12, it became quite a good subject. Obviously having a good memory helps, and it depends if you enjoy lots of memorisation, because getting the dates down is really fundamental, even though the analysis is what really help to distinguish the different grades.
With English, it initially feels a lot more familiar because obviously the key elements of the subject are the same as GCSE (using textual evidence, close reading, well written essays, often Shakespeare, unseen poetry, etc). However, as you get more into it you realise that it can be tricky because the exam timings are very tight while the quality of the essays has gone up. Effectively with history you will probably have answered a similar question before, so you can regurgitate the info and analysis you know, mixing together different points from previous assignments and revision; with English, in contrast, you have to think up more on the spot, even in the non-unseen poetry questions. So it’s imperative to score well on the coursework.
Ultimately both are highly respected subjects that can be very enjoyable and also frustrating at different times!
My personal experience was this: at first everyone in class struggled more with history, because (with AQA at least) it’s quite different from gcse. However, once we all found our feet with the essay style a bit more into Y12, it became quite a good subject. Obviously having a good memory helps, and it depends if you enjoy lots of memorisation, because getting the dates down is really fundamental, even though the analysis is what really help to distinguish the different grades.
With English, it initially feels a lot more familiar because obviously the key elements of the subject are the same as GCSE (using textual evidence, close reading, well written essays, often Shakespeare, unseen poetry, etc). However, as you get more into it you realise that it can be tricky because the exam timings are very tight while the quality of the essays has gone up. Effectively with history you will probably have answered a similar question before, so you can regurgitate the info and analysis you know, mixing together different points from previous assignments and revision; with English, in contrast, you have to think up more on the spot, even in the non-unseen poetry questions. So it’s imperative to score well on the coursework.
Ultimately both are highly respected subjects that can be very enjoyable and also frustrating at different times!
what are u predicted in both of them? vs what u got at gcse? x
Original post by A.bagel123
With English I think it was learning more literacy techniques and just practicing things like noticing meter (which I was so bad at before). My teachers have been really helpful with everything and helping me shape my ideas in writing! What I did to improve was read more and talk about them with my friend who also does English and try and explain what I found and how that carried meaning across. I know it probably sounds daunting but I have begun to take more of an analytical approach to a lot of things (such as watching movies). Since being in the right mindset I have been able to consistently achieve As. For me one of the hardest parts to get used to was writing a good comparative essay between poetry and prose. This is something that just got better with practice and always ask your teachers for feedback, they have been so helpful and even if their initial feedback was short they can always tell you how to shape your writing style. As well as this one of the biggest tips I have is don't get carried away with ornate language, it is the ideas that the reader of your essay is after and it is better if they are clear and concise rather than using overly elaborate and complex language.
With history I think I have done a lot more towards getting predicted an A. From the start of the course I have done extra reading wether that be an extract from a historian's book or a journal (websites like JSTOR and the Literacy Centre have been great), when I did this I would have a clear question that I aimed to answer and there would always be an aim to my effort and an intention behind the notes I was making. Reading the work historians makes your writing better and helps you with the interpretation question (I don't know about other exam boards but it is important in AQA). Keeping ontop of notes is important and just revising as you go along (I made blooket sets that I go over every couple weeks) just to keep the content fresh in your mind because there is a lot and it does move quite quickly compared to GCSE as there is so much more depth to cover (even in the breath study). Last time we did a set of tests I was getting a B/C (on the grade boundary) in history, since then I have been doing a lot of practice questions in timed conditions. Timing for history has always been hard for me as I always want to write more, my advice for doing papers is learn how long you have for each question and try not to run over otherwise everything becomes rushed. Doing more practice papers in exam conditions has really helped me as I now know what the exam board is after and what I need to cover to achieve the highest marks I can.
I hope this helps
With history I think I have done a lot more towards getting predicted an A. From the start of the course I have done extra reading wether that be an extract from a historian's book or a journal (websites like JSTOR and the Literacy Centre have been great), when I did this I would have a clear question that I aimed to answer and there would always be an aim to my effort and an intention behind the notes I was making. Reading the work historians makes your writing better and helps you with the interpretation question (I don't know about other exam boards but it is important in AQA). Keeping ontop of notes is important and just revising as you go along (I made blooket sets that I go over every couple weeks) just to keep the content fresh in your mind because there is a lot and it does move quite quickly compared to GCSE as there is so much more depth to cover (even in the breath study). Last time we did a set of tests I was getting a B/C (on the grade boundary) in history, since then I have been doing a lot of practice questions in timed conditions. Timing for history has always been hard for me as I always want to write more, my advice for doing papers is learn how long you have for each question and try not to run over otherwise everything becomes rushed. Doing more practice papers in exam conditions has really helped me as I now know what the exam board is after and what I need to cover to achieve the highest marks I can.
I hope this helps
insanely helpful tysm x wdym with clear question tho? could u delve deeper into that and the impression aspect? how to do well in that bit of the exam
Original post by klnlljkklhklll
insanely helpful tysm x wdym with clear question tho? could u delve deeper into that and the impression aspect? how to do well in that bit of the exam
Of course! For example I do the Weimar Democracy and Nazism and I would approach a reading with the question “Was the main reason for the rise of the Nazis the weakness of communism” then I would make my notes in sections like an essay plan. This makes it extremely useful for writing essays in the long run as well as a great way to organise your notes.
(AQA history)
With the different parts of the exam, as part of one paper you have to analyse sources from the time (a bit like the utility question at GCSE) and in the other paper you have to compare historians interpretations of an event (they give you extracts of people with different views). As well as this there are typical essay questions in both papers.
The essay questions are like GCSE just include more detail- I tend to write 4 paragraphs instead of 3 although you can get full marks if your three paragraphs have enough detail. I found this the easiest part of the transition to A level as it is similar to GCSE just more advanced!
The source question (found on the depth paper) is like the utility question. This is the one I would get feedback on saying I included “GCSE style evaluation” and I worked on a lot so that I now consistently achieve high marks (it is now my best question stem and i get A* when it is this question alone). Content analysis is similar to GCSE but the analysis of the provenance is different. Instead of making generic comments like “it is a speech from the highest position of decision making which makes it valuable” you have to expand on it more and back it up with course content (in the example I used you would explain the current situation of those in authority and societies views of the time).
The last question is something new to A level (at least for me) and it’s the Interpretation question (found in the breath paper). The aim of the question is to establish if a view is convincing or not. With this question I recommend reading all the interpretations first and finding out which topics they all cover as well as seeing what their overall view is individually (positive or negative). While it is important to back up your statements with facts make sure that you don’t ramble as you are not brain dumping everything you know that supports or contradicts the interpretation.
Hope that clears things up and answers your questions
Original post by klnlljkklhklll
what are u predicted in both of them? vs what u got at gcse? x
I’m predicted A* in both. I actually didn’t do history GCSE, so that just shows you can do it without prior experience (although it was more of a struggle at the start of Y12 because of this)
Original post by klnlljkklhklll
hi guys,
im doing politics and french for a level, but im still unsure on my third. Atm I'm predicted around an 8 for history and maybe like a 7-8 in english lit. can someone give me their experience on the a levels and which one is better?
im doing politics and french for a level, but im still unsure on my third. Atm I'm predicted around an 8 for history and maybe like a 7-8 in english lit. can someone give me their experience on the a levels and which one is better?
Id suggest looking at the course content for both and deciding based on that which you think you’d enjoy more
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