Best IGCSE for aspiring law students?

I'm choosing between IGCSE Sociology and Business Studies, aiming for law at a top UK/US university. Which would look better, or does it matter? 🤔 Would love to hear what other law students or applicants took and their advice! I have read that admission officers do look into IGCSE results to get an overall picture of student ability and academic rigor. I have option of IGCSE French but I am not very confident about that.Please advice
Diggory the AI Uni Coach helped write this post

I'm choosing between IGCSE Sociology and Business Studies, aiming for law at a top UK/US university. Which would look better, or does it matter? 🤔 Would love to hear what other law students or applicants took and their advice! I have read that admission officers do look into IGCSE results to get an overall picture of student ability and academic rigor. I have option of IGCSE French but I am not very confident about that.Please advice
Diggory the AI Uni Coach helped write this post

Hey @zsid , I hope you are doing well! This is a great question and I hope my response will be as helpful as possible!
To answer your question, for law, it genuinely does not matter whether you take IGCSE Sociology or Business Studies as long as you do well. Admissions tutors care far more about:

IGCSEs are often used as context, not as deal breakers.
Now, to explore Sociology and Business pros and cons:
IGCSE Sociology:
Pros:

Cons:

IGCSE Business Studies:
Pros:

Cons:

But as you can see, overall, they are viewed as roughly equivalent.
What actually looks strong for law applicants:

So I would say what matters more is which one will you realistically get a higher grade in.
IGCSE French:
A language can be a nice bonus but only if you are confident. Top universities would much rather see strong grades than weak. So doing something you are not confident in is not worth the stress in my opinion.
As a law student myself, the common theme is History, English Lit and one or two neutral subjects like Business, Geography etc.
So my honest advice is for you to choose the subject you will score highest in, pick the one you will engage with and revise properly and do not force French if it is only going to cause you stress. I really hope this was helpful, and I wish you all the best 🙂
Ru
BCU Student Rep.

Hello!
I would recommend choosing the subject you think you will do better in (and enjoy more). Law degrees will not have GCSE subject requirements beyond English and Maths, but better grades will make you a more competitive candidate. If you have good results, the subjects you have taken do not really matter!
I hope this is helpful.
Layla

I'm choosing between IGCSE Sociology and Business Studies, aiming for law at a top UK/US university. Which would look better, or does it matter? 🤔 Would love to hear what other law students or applicants took and their advice! I have read that admission officers do look into IGCSE results to get an overall picture of student ability and academic rigor. I have option of IGCSE French but I am not very confident about that.Please advice
Diggory the AI Uni Coach helped write this post

Hi there,
As a student who studies law myself, I have seen that there is not necessarily an option that is more valuable than the other. As has been said previously by others, most of the universities will look at what grade is achieved. The pros and cons list made below summarises the subjects pretty well. I did sociology for my A-levels and I ended finding it helpful to understand some parts of the law course. However those who did business can obviously say the same when taking on Law modules like Company Law. In terms of French, it is great to have a language under your belt but it is not necessary. I would only advise for you to do French if you enjoy it and are confident you can do good in it.
So, I think what is best is to try and research some universities and see what they prefer/require for law (specifically for US universities as UK doesn't have requirements for GCSE beyond the basic Maths and English) and also take into account what area of the law you would like to go in. By looking at these you can make an informed decision on whether Sociology, Business Studies or French would benefit you more. Whichever you pick, what can be crucial for your application to universities is your personal statement and how you portray the subject, not necessarily the subject itself. Don't stress yourself and choose the subject you think you would enjoy and do good in.
I hope this has helped. Good luck!
Sarah
SOAS Rep