Choosing A Levels - a different perspective please

tr3mor

Helix wrote:

Computing is a lot harder and it does get rather boring although I don't know if thats just my teacher. Computings really if you want to know how computers work (Processors, Programming, Binary etc.) whereas ICT is the actual use of computers (Spreadsheets, Websites, Databases etc.).

How the computer works is the interesting bit

ICT doesn't teach you anything that you can't pick up in a couple of hours anyway!

Helix

Yeah it is quite interesting but the way my teacher is he just bores me to death.

I think the easiness of ICT is why I enjoyed it. It made a change from the work I had to put in for my other subjects.

dora37

Thank s for all your replies.

He would like to go to Uni to do a sandwich course of possibly Maths/Spanish or Chemistry/Spanish, but beyond that he doesn't know.

We have attended both open evenings and though useful - speaking to the subject teachers, there is an understandable bias towards their subject - so not very objective!

We do not want to pressure him too much on picking a career at this stage as I don't want to feel he HAS to choose his future life now if he isn't sure.

As his school doesn't have a sixth form, we are dealing with teachers who obviously don't know our child personally.

We just want him to pick the right subjects for him and to enjoy college life!

We want to ensure that we give him the correct guidance - Oh the pressure!!

Hopefully his interview tonight will be helpful.

studentphil

Unless the sciences are a certain career path then doing something like Economics (plus maths and a couple of sciences)will give him more of a choice if say he wanted to do surveying or accounting as careers.

Is there not always a worry that IT and business are not seen as real subjects if you want to follow the sciences at degree level?

General studies is a waste of time especially if you want to go to a good university and do a decent subject! Much better doing Critical thinking instead.

Darksun

When I did computing A/AS-Level Computing a couple of years ago, the course was pretty poor and not all that useful (I'm now doing a Computer Science degree). Does he know what he wants to do at university? Maths is important for a lot of things, but some universities want you to demonstrate a range of skills. So if you're doing Maths, Chemistry and Physics, for example, something like Psychology, Philosophy etc will show that you have good skills in essay writing and presenting a good argument.

To be honest, A-Levels don't mean all that much for a future career if he's planning to do a degree. Something that demonstrates a range of skills, and above all, something that is enjoyable is the most important thing to base decisions on.

Rikki

studentphil wrote:

Unless the sciences are a certain career path then doing something like Economics (plus maths and a couple of sciences)will give him more of a choice if say he wanted to do surveying or accounting as careers.

Is there not always a worry that IT and business are not seen as real subjects if you want to follow the sciences at degree level?

General studies is a waste of time especially if you want to go to a good university and do a decent subject! Much better doing Critical thinking instead.

Alot of Universities will not accept General Studies at A level for an entrance grade.

lipidicman

Darksun wrote:

To be honest, A-Levels don't mean all that much for a future career if he's planning to do a degree.

People do look at A-Level grades even when you have a degree.

Rikki

dora37 wrote:

Thank s for all your replies.

He would like to go to Uni to do a sandwich course of possibly Maths/Spanish or Chemistry/Spanish, but beyond that he doesn't know.

We have attended both open evenings and though useful - speaking to the subject teachers, there is an understandable bias towards their subject - so not very objective!

We do not want to pressure him too much on picking a career at this stage as I don't want to feel he HAS to choose his future life now if he isn't sure.

As his school doesn't have a sixth form, we are dealing with teachers who obviously don't know our child personally.

We just want him to pick the right subjects for him and to enjoy college life!

We want to ensure that we give him the correct guidance - Oh the pressure!!

Hopefully his interview tonight will be helpful.

I always told my sons do what you enjoy and you will always work harder and go further. 16 is too young to decide on your future unless you have a specific career path in mind.

I thought his original choices gave him plenty of scope [#1].

kittiwoz

tr3mor wrote:

If he's doing maths then he should definitely do physics, there's a lot of crossover in parts of the subject.

I did both and I disagree. The crossover is really only in a few areas, mainly mechanics and a teeny bit with logarithms in that you use base ten log graphs in physics but you don't really need to know how to manipulate logs. I would tend to say that someone studying physics would find maths beneficial but not so much so the other way around.

I went on to study mechanical engineering and I found that this built on my my maths A-level far more than on my physics. In fact maths A-level at at least a B was a prerequisite for the course whereas physics A-level, while well regarded, was not a prerequisite at all.

dora37

Rikki wrote:

16 is too young to decide on your future unless you have a specific career path in mind.

My thoughts too, however that is all he gets asked.....his life mapped before him at age 15!

I will, like you, advise him to go with what he is good at and what he enjoys.