The Student Room Group

Confused about what i should take for a levels

Poll

What should I do?

Hey guys!

I just recently joined the community and i'm in yr 11 and I'm studying maths, all 3 sciences (triple), classics, history, latin, geography and english lit & lang. Soo, I need to pick a level subjects soon for sixth form applications and I'm really struggling with options.

I want to pursue law or med at uni. I'm thinking either criminal/corporate law or some sort of surgeon, likely neurosurgeon because i'm really into that and i'm not particularly squeamish.

The thing is they're so different from eachother that I think there is no good way to combine them...
My current predicted grades are 9 in history, 9 in english lit & lang, 9 in geography, 9 in latin, 8 in chemistry and physics, 8 in classics, 7 in bio and maths :/

However I'm confident that i can achieve all 9s in gcses, only one i would say the slightest possibility of not achieving a 9 in is maths but i'm trying guys. I know i sound insane but i have faith..

My favourite subjects are history and english, especially literature but i also do like biology and chemistry and the idea of medicine really appeals to me and i think i have the drive to get through it - i know it takes like 7 years in uni.

The thing is with biology and chemistry, I like them depending on what teachers i get for the year. Like in yr 9 I was literally scoring 9s with ease in biology because i had a great teacher and i was really liking the topics. Chemistry was the same. I only just dropped to a 7 in biology and an 8 in chem.

I also really really would like to avoid taking maths a level because i just hate maths. But I know biology, chemistry and maths is the typical way to go for medicine.

If i decided law, i would probably pick for a levels: history, english lit, politics, sociology/psychology/latin.
I wanna apply for unis like oxbridge, warwick, imperial etc in the future so i don't think doing my a levels half-heartedly is gonna work and i feel like i need to go all in.


Update 16/02/2026 - Hey guys, just wanted to let you know that I'm going to pursue Law and I've decided on doing History, Government & Politics, English Literature and Sociology for A-Levels. Thank you for all the advice. :smile:
(edited 13:23)

Reply 1

you could do ip law in the future. that could keep the science aspects of med whilst still doing law. you'd need a stem degree tho before converting to ip law

Reply 2

Original post
by riv080
Hey guys!
I just recently joined the community and i'm in yr 11 and I'm studying maths, all 3 sciences (triple), classics, history, latin, geography and english lit & lang. Soo, I need to pick a level subjects soon for sixth form applications and I'm really struggling with options.
I want to pursue law or med at uni. I'm thinking either criminal/corporate law or some sort of surgeon, likely neurosurgeon because i'm really into that and i'm not particularly squeamish.
The thing is they're so different from eachother that I think there is no good way to combine them...
My current predicted grades are 9 in history, 9 in english lit & lang, 9 in geography, 9 in latin, 8 in chemistry and physics, 8 in classics, 7 in bio and maths :/
However I'm confident that i can achieve all 9s in gcses, only one i would say the slightest possibility of not achieving a 9 in is maths but i'm trying guys. I know i sound insane but i have faith..
My favourite subjects are history and english, especially literature but i also do like biology and chemistry and the idea of medicine really appeals to me and i think i have the drive to get through it - i know it takes like 7 years in uni.
The thing is with biology and chemistry, I like them depending on what teachers i get for the year. Like in yr 9 I was literally scoring 9s with ease in biology because i had a great teacher and i was really liking the topics. Chemistry was the same.
I also really really would like to avoid taking maths a level because i just hate maths. But I know biology, chemistry and maths is the typical way to go for medicine.
If i decided law, i would probably pick for a levels: history, english lit, politics, sociology/psychology/latin.
I wanna apply for unis like oxbridge, warwick, imperial etc in the future so i don't think doing my a levels half-heartedly is gonna work and i feel like i need to go all in.

if you want to study medicine its essential you do chemistry and biology for your universities! 3rd option can be psychology if you're not into maths or physics. i know someone who did bio chem and english literature so as long as you do bio and chem you can do basicallly any other subject.

you're right, you do need to be all in for a-levels because they are intense. and you're planning to apply to very prestigious universities that expect nothing less than having a deep passion for the course you choose to study at thier university.

if you were easily getting 9s with bio and chem then you'll be fine but you will have ot a put a lot of work in for a-levels. a-level chem is literally another world

if you're still unsure which one to study i'd highly recommend you talk to some doctors as well as lawyers about their career paths. you can email them at their work email and i've found that most doctors are happy to talk to you about this. i'm not sure about lawyers as i haven't done this myself. i'd also see if your school can get you in touch with doctors and lawyers that do talks for students. one last thing- do work experience! lots of it! you'll get a feel for both of these careers and maybe that will help you pick. however you might not be able to see surgeries if you're under 18

hope you get some clarity!

Reply 3

thank you so much for answering, I really appreciate you taking the time. If you've spoken to doctors before, could you please recommend some who I could talk to and possibly their email address if you have it? Also do you do med right now?

Reply 4

Original post
by bunniastri
you could do ip law in the future. that could keep the science aspects of med whilst still doing law. you'd need a stem degree tho before converting to ip law

hiya thanks so much for replying, I was recommended something similar before related to perhaps specializing in dealing with medical malpractice but I don't really think I'm interested in that. Plus I don't want to do stem 😅

Reply 5

I’ve got a friend doing History, Chem and Bio going on to do medicine, so you definitely could go into medicine and still take History or Lit. I’m personally doing Maths, Physics and Eng Lit - original plan was to do Physics, then flipped to English. I haven’t found the unusual combination has blocked me too much - I’m now sitting at 3/5 offers for uni, so you definitely have time if you want to keep your options open!! I’m sure loads of people will say this, but take what you absolutely love. A-Levels are a lot harder than GCSEs - especially the sciences - so it’s really the best bit of advice I can offer. Best of luck with everything and any questions, please ask!!

Reply 6

Original post
by riv080
thank you so much for answering, I really appreciate you taking the time. If you've spoken to doctors before, could you please recommend some who I could talk to and possibly their email address if you have it? Also do you do med right now?

no worries at all im glad i could help. and no i fell short a grade for medicine, im currently studying biomedicine as a first year.
i'm afraid i can't share anyone's personal work email address or number as they were given to me while on work experience. however, you can always speak to your local GP and use official NHS channels to get in contact with doctors- basically sign up for work experience as doctors will be very happy to let you stay in contact with them after completing your experience.

Reply 7

Original post
by riv080
Hey guys!
I just recently joined the community and i'm in yr 11 and I'm studying maths, all 3 sciences (triple), classics, history, latin, geography and english lit & lang. Soo, I need to pick a level subjects soon for sixth form applications and I'm really struggling with options.
I want to pursue law or med at uni. I'm thinking either criminal/corporate law or some sort of surgeon, likely neurosurgeon because i'm really into that and i'm not particularly squeamish.
The thing is they're so different from eachother that I think there is no good way to combine them...
My current predicted grades are 9 in history, 9 in english lit & lang, 9 in geography, 9 in latin, 8 in chemistry and physics, 8 in classics, 7 in bio and maths :/
However I'm confident that i can achieve all 9s in gcses, only one i would say the slightest possibility of not achieving a 9 in is maths but i'm trying guys. I know i sound insane but i have faith..
My favourite subjects are history and english, especially literature but i also do like biology and chemistry and the idea of medicine really appeals to me and i think i have the drive to get through it - i know it takes like 7 years in uni.
The thing is with biology and chemistry, I like them depending on what teachers i get for the year. Like in yr 9 I was literally scoring 9s with ease in biology because i had a great teacher and i was really liking the topics. Chemistry was the same. I only just dropped to a 7 in biology and an 8 in chem.
I also really really would like to avoid taking maths a level because i just hate maths. But I know biology, chemistry and maths is the typical way to go for medicine.
If i decided law, i would probably pick for a levels: history, english lit, politics, sociology/psychology/latin.
I wanna apply for unis like oxbridge, warwick, imperial etc in the future so i don't think doing my a levels half-heartedly is gonna work and i feel like i need to go all in.

There are no required subjects for law, essay subjects can be preferred by unis and essay writing skills are absolutely essential.
For med you should do bio and chem, only Cambridge required maths/physics in addition to this as far as i know.
Just from reading your post, you seem far more drawn to the content of essay subjects like history and English. The fact that your performance in sciences depends on the teacher to some extent might indicate that you’d struggle with a level because you have to spend a lot of time working independently so this might be a difficulty for you. Also i would warn you that fields like med or any other science are always going to involve some maths even if it is not required for entry, especially stats related stuff can come up in a lot of biosciences and in science a levels themselves there is quite a lot of maths (in chem more than bio i believe).
What do you like about medicine/biology and chem? Asking yourself that can really help- youll either realise that you dont really know or youll have a quick answer in mind because these subjects mean a lot to you.

Reply 8

Original post
by riv080
Hey guys!
I just recently joined the community and i'm in yr 11 and I'm studying maths, all 3 sciences (triple), classics, history, latin, geography and english lit & lang. Soo, I need to pick a level subjects soon for sixth form applications and I'm really struggling with options.
I want to pursue law or med at uni. I'm thinking either criminal/corporate law or some sort of surgeon, likely neurosurgeon because i'm really into that and i'm not particularly squeamish.
The thing is they're so different from eachother that I think there is no good way to combine them...
My current predicted grades are 9 in history, 9 in english lit & lang, 9 in geography, 9 in latin, 8 in chemistry and physics, 8 in classics, 7 in bio and maths :/
However I'm confident that i can achieve all 9s in gcses, only one i would say the slightest possibility of not achieving a 9 in is maths but i'm trying guys. I know i sound insane but i have faith..
My favourite subjects are history and english, especially literature but i also do like biology and chemistry and the idea of medicine really appeals to me and i think i have the drive to get through it - i know it takes like 7 years in uni.
The thing is with biology and chemistry, I like them depending on what teachers i get for the year. Like in yr 9 I was literally scoring 9s with ease in biology because i had a great teacher and i was really liking the topics. Chemistry was the same. I only just dropped to a 7 in biology and an 8 in chem.
I also really really would like to avoid taking maths a level because i just hate maths. But I know biology, chemistry and maths is the typical way to go for medicine.
If i decided law, i would probably pick for a levels: history, english lit, politics, sociology/psychology/latin.
I wanna apply for unis like oxbridge, warwick, imperial etc in the future so i don't think doing my a levels half-heartedly is gonna work and i feel like i need to go all in.
Only Cambridge requires Chemistry, Biology and Maths. But more than 80% of Oxford applicants had A-Level Maths and 20% A-Level Further Maths.

Reply 9

Original post
by riv080
Hey guys!
I just recently joined the community and i'm in yr 11 and I'm studying maths, all 3 sciences (triple), classics, history, latin, geography and english lit & lang. Soo, I need to pick a level subjects soon for sixth form applications and I'm really struggling with options.
I want to pursue law or med at uni. I'm thinking either criminal/corporate law or some sort of surgeon, likely neurosurgeon because i'm really into that and i'm not particularly squeamish.
The thing is they're so different from eachother that I think there is no good way to combine them...
My current predicted grades are 9 in history, 9 in english lit & lang, 9 in geography, 9 in latin, 8 in chemistry and physics, 8 in classics, 7 in bio and maths :/
However I'm confident that i can achieve all 9s in gcses, only one i would say the slightest possibility of not achieving a 9 in is maths but i'm trying guys. I know i sound insane but i have faith..
My favourite subjects are history and english, especially literature but i also do like biology and chemistry and the idea of medicine really appeals to me and i think i have the drive to get through it - i know it takes like 7 years in uni.
The thing is with biology and chemistry, I like them depending on what teachers i get for the year. Like in yr 9 I was literally scoring 9s with ease in biology because i had a great teacher and i was really liking the topics. Chemistry was the same. I only just dropped to a 7 in biology and an 8 in chem.
I also really really would like to avoid taking maths a level because i just hate maths. But I know biology, chemistry and maths is the typical way to go for medicine.
If i decided law, i would probably pick for a levels: history, english lit, politics, sociology/psychology/latin.
I wanna apply for unis like oxbridge, warwick, imperial etc in the future so i don't think doing my a levels half-heartedly is gonna work and i feel like i need to go all in.

Why don't you look up which A levels are required y those med schools and law schools

Reply 10

Original post
by riv080
hiya thanks so much for replying, I was recommended something similar before related to perhaps specializing in dealing with medical malpractice but I don't really think I'm interested in that. Plus I don't want to do stem 😅

Medicine is STEM as there is a lot of biology, which is a science.

Reply 11

Original post
by StormyInk202
no worries at all im glad i could help. and no i fell short a grade for medicine, im currently studying biomedicine as a first year.
i'm afraid i can't share anyone's personal work email address or number as they were given to me while on work experience. however, you can always speak to your local GP and use official NHS channels to get in contact with doctors- basically sign up for work experience as doctors will be very happy to let you stay in contact with them after completing your experience.

oh okay that's alright, good on you for protecting their privacy though. I've tried to look at volunteering at my local hospital but they said that they are full right now and i don't anticipate them having spots again anytime soon

Reply 12

Original post
by Muu9
Medicine is STEM as there is a lot of biology, which is a science.

oh I guess that makes sense. I used to consider it STEM but then a teacher from UTC Heathrow sixth form came to talk to us at school about going to UTC Heathrow for sixth form and that they offer stem and engineering but when i asked him about medicine, he said that they don't do medicine because apparently he thought medicine wasn't stem??

Reply 13

Original post
by Muu9
Why don't you look up which A levels are required y those med schools and law schools

well i did already get a lot of answers about cambridge and oxford on the thread but thanks for the advice
Original post
by riv080
Hey guys!
I just recently joined the community and i'm in yr 11 and I'm studying maths, all 3 sciences (triple), classics, history, latin, geography and english lit & lang. Soo, I need to pick a level subjects soon for sixth form applications and I'm really struggling with options.
I want to pursue law or med at uni. I'm thinking either criminal/corporate law or some sort of surgeon, likely neurosurgeon because i'm really into that and i'm not particularly squeamish.
The thing is they're so different from eachother that I think there is no good way to combine them...
My current predicted grades are 9 in history, 9 in english lit & lang, 9 in geography, 9 in latin, 8 in chemistry and physics, 8 in classics, 7 in bio and maths :/
However I'm confident that i can achieve all 9s in gcses, only one i would say the slightest possibility of not achieving a 9 in is maths but i'm trying guys. I know i sound insane but i have faith..
My favourite subjects are history and english, especially literature but i also do like biology and chemistry and the idea of medicine really appeals to me and i think i have the drive to get through it - i know it takes like 7 years in uni.
The thing is with biology and chemistry, I like them depending on what teachers i get for the year. Like in yr 9 I was literally scoring 9s with ease in biology because i had a great teacher and i was really liking the topics. Chemistry was the same. I only just dropped to a 7 in biology and an 8 in chem.
I also really really would like to avoid taking maths a level because i just hate maths. But I know biology, chemistry and maths is the typical way to go for medicine.
If i decided law, i would probably pick for a levels: history, english lit, politics, sociology/psychology/latin.
I wanna apply for unis like oxbridge, warwick, imperial etc in the future so i don't think doing my a levels half-heartedly is gonna work and i feel like i need to go all in.

You could do biology and chemistry, then an essay subject (e.g. history, English, or psychology) for your 3rd subject.

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