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Thoughts on AQA geography A level?

I'm considering it for my third subject alongside biology and chemistry, but I just wanted to hear peoples thoughts on it.

Was it difficult? Is it content heavy? Is it a fun course? What are the exams like and how do you prepare for them? etc

Thank you very much!
Original post by School_Student99
I'm considering it for my third subject alongside biology and chemistry, but I just wanted to hear peoples thoughts on it.
Was it difficult? Is it content heavy? Is it a fun course? What are the exams like and how do you prepare for them? etc
Thank you very much!

Was it difficult?
As difficult as most A Level subjects

Is it content heavy?
Very, although nowhere near as much as English Lit.

Is it a fun course?
Yeah. Out of the A Level subjects that I did, I would say it's the most fun. For one, you get to go on field trips.
It also really helped that the teachers that I had were nice.

What are the exams like and how do you prepare for them?
A lot of essays and memorisation. What really helped me were the exam practices, since essays weren't my forte.
As a science/maths guy, I found the physical geography components came to me a lot easier than the human geography components. Those who don't like maths or science would find the reverse is true.

Reply 2

Original post by MindMax2000
Was it difficult?
As difficult as most A Level subjects
Is it content heavy?
Very, although nowhere near as much as English Lit.
Is it a fun course?
Yeah. Out of the A Level subjects that I did, I would say it's the most fun. For one, you get to go on field trips.
It also really helped that the teachers that I had were nice.
What are the exams like and how do you prepare for them?
A lot of essays and memorisation. What really helped me were the exam practices, since essays weren't my forte.
As a science/maths guy, I found the physical geography components came to me a lot easier than the human geography components. Those who don't like maths or science would find the reverse is true.

Thanks for the response! I'm predicted a grade 8 at geography GCSE (Edexcel A), do you think I would be able to get an A at A level? Btw essays are not really my strong suit... I'm going to do either geography or environmental science
Original post by School_Student99
Thanks for the response! I'm predicted a grade 8 at geography GCSE (Edexcel A), do you think I would be able to get an A at A level? Btw essays are not really my strong suit... I'm going to do either geography or environmental science

I wouldn't bet on it with GCSE grades. My experience of A Levels is that it's a completely different experience to that with GCSEs - for one they're examining completely different skills, even in the same subject; two, they're marked different.

I would suggest looking into exam practice books for geography to see how you would fare, where possible. For example:
https://global.oup.com/education/product/9780198432586/?region=uk
https://www.cgpbooks.co.uk/secondary-books/as-and-a-level/geography/gar73-as-and-a-level-geography-aqa-complete
Feel free to try to find second hand copies of the above books so long they follow the 2018 specification (anything prior to that would follow the wrong specification that you would be studying under). Do make sure the book is exam board specific (AQA).

Reply 4

Original post by MindMax2000
I wouldn't bet on it with GCSE grades. My experience of A Levels is that it's a completely different experience to that with GCSEs - for one they're examining completely different skills, even in the same subject; two, they're marked different.
I would suggest looking into exam practice books for geography to see how you would fare, where possible. For example:
https://global.oup.com/education/product/9780198432586/?region=uk
https://www.cgpbooks.co.uk/secondary-books/as-and-a-level/geography/gar73-as-and-a-level-geography-aqa-complete
Feel free to try to find second hand copies of the above books so long they follow the 2018 specification (anything prior to that would follow the wrong specification that you would be studying under). Do make sure the book is exam board specific (AQA).

Alright, thank you very much for the help :smile:

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