I have no idea what I want to do in the future - which A levels do I choose?

I'm taking maths, english lang and lit, 3 sciences, music, history, geography, german and history of art at GCSE, and I've got an ARSM diploma in 2 instruments. Otherwise, I'm pretty balanced in all subjects.

I'm completely clueless over which A Levels to take: as of now, Im thinking Maths, either Bio or Chem, Music(?) and something else

would bio or chem be more generally helpful, and does anyone have suggestions as to what it should take as my 4th subject?

Reply 1

Forlornsoul

13

Hey there. I would strongly encourage you to speak to a careers advisor. They can help with strengths and weaknesses. Websites like prospects.ac.uk are also helpful.

Absolutely choose subjects you enjoy but you should have some careers in mind too I would say.

Majority of people will choose 3 A Levels though a very small percentage will take 4. It's better to get solid grades on 3 subjects instead however.

In terms of bio and chem, I did AS bio and A level chem. There isn't one that's "better", it just depends on your preference. Some say that Chemistry has more of a "structure " and it's more exam technique oriented. But personally I wouldn't say that's always true

All the best!

Reply 2

sound-famous-

13

Original post by vaguely_maple

I'm taking maths, english lang and lit, 3 sciences, music, history, geography, german and history of art at GCSE, and I've got an ARSM diploma in 2 instruments. Otherwise, I'm pretty balanced in all subjects.
I'm completely clueless over which A Levels to take: as of now, Im thinking Maths, either Bio or Chem, Music(?) and something else
would bio or chem be more generally helpful, and does anyone have suggestions as to what it should take as my 4th subject?

Look at degrees that have subject requirements, like medicine, engineering, etc and see if there are any there that you think you want to keep available to you. Then pick the subjects you'll need for them, and then whatever other subjects you want in your remaining slots.

Reply 3

McGinger

20

Good careers website with 100s of jo/careers descriptions -
Job profiles | Prospects.ac.uk

NHS job roles - Explore roles | Health Careers
Royal Navy roles - Role Finder | Royal Navy (mod.uk)
Apprenticeship search - Find an apprenticeship - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Original post by vaguely_maple

I'm taking maths, english lang and lit, 3 sciences, music, history, geography, german and history of art at GCSE, and I've got an ARSM diploma in 2 instruments. Otherwise, I'm pretty balanced in all subjects.
I'm completely clueless over which A Levels to take: as of now, Im thinking Maths, either Bio or Chem, Music(?) and something else
would bio or chem be more generally helpful, and does anyone have suggestions as to what it should take as my 4th subject?

The combination of maths, a science and music would keep quite a lot of options open and also sounds like it would suit your interests. Are these subjects which you excel at?
If you’re unsure between bio and chem or if music is a good fit id suggest looking at the specs for each subject and watching some reviews of experiences of other students on YouTube.
Do you have to take 4 subjects? 3 is fine and will allow you to spend more time on them, however if you’re intent on taking 4 or your school enforces it then a second science would open more STEM routes (taking bio and chem for example) or you could take an essay subject (if of interest) to open up humanities fields like law or history at uni.
Generally, if you dont have much idea, try and keep your selection quite broad but make sure you’re not choosing a subject purely because of that. Taking subjects you like is a much better idea!
Hope this helps and happy to try to answer any more questions if you have them! Hope you have a great day 🙂

Reply 5

vaguely_maple

OP

2

Original post by DerDracologe

The combination of maths, a science and music would keep quite a lot of options open and also sounds like it would suit your interests. Are these subjects which you excel at?
If you’re unsure between bio and chem or if music is a good fit id suggest looking at the specs for each subject and watching some reviews of experiences of other students on YouTube.
Do you have to take 4 subjects? 3 is fine and will allow you to spend more time on them, however if you’re intent on taking 4 or your school enforces it then a second science would open more STEM routes (taking bio and chem for example) or you could take an essay subject (if of interest) to open up humanities fields like law or history at uni.
Generally, if you dont have much idea, try and keep your selection quite broad but make sure you’re not choosing a subject purely because of that. Taking subjects you like is a much better idea!
Hope this helps and happy to try to answer any more questions if you have them! Hope you have a great day 🙂