How important are your A levels in terms of University places?

Question

Hi, how important is the AMOUNT of alevels you do in terms of university places? I am doing 4 but i really want to drop 1, but will some one with 4 alevels get chosen over me? And how important is Maths as thats the one i want to drop, i want to study business management in uni?

Answer 1

Its not really the quantity of how many alevels you do. Each A-level counts as ucas points and each course at university asks for a specific amount of ucas points. So the more alevels you do, then the more points you can technically get. however if u take one less and devote more time to each one then you could do better overall. Maths is a very hard alevel so unless you particularly love it or are good at it, i personally think that it is not crucial to your business course.

Answer 2

How important Maths is depends on the other A levels you're doing. If you're already doing Business at A level, and have a good grade at GSCE Maths, you should be fine. However, if Maths is your only business-related A-level, you will need to stick with it. (people who are poor at Maths tend to fail the accountancy part of a business degree)

Most business courses are oversubscribed, so you're unlikely to get a place unless you're doing a related A level.

The number of A levels isn't as important as the total points you get from your final results, but your main three A levels should NOT include General Studies or Critical Thinking, as these aren't generally counted in your main score.

eg if your offer is 200 points with 160 from A level, Gen Studies or Critical Thinking cannot count towards the 160 points, but can be used to top up to the 200 points after your other subjects have been counted.

Answer 3

Hi Vex,

Your A-level results decide if you get a chance of a place or not at your chosen university. For business studies, Maths is normally a requirement, try to stay with it if you can.

The decision is made normally from three subjects, that give a total number of points. The points are calculated by the grades you get. Normally the uni will specify that two specific subjects are included in the calculation E.g. 240 points from Maths, English and one other subject.

Check to see what the admissions requirements are.

Hope this helps

Good luck

Answer 4

University places depend on a points system. A = 10 points, B = 8, C=6 etc etc. The more A'levels you do the more points you potentially have. E.G the Uni you want to attend might ask for 26 points.

Speak with your tutors and see what they think. It all depends on why you want to drop it. I would have thought maths would be very beneficial for business management.

Answer 5

It isn't the amount, it is what you take. Cambridge and Oxford require 3 of the subject that pertains to your chosen degree. Some universities only require 2 A levels. The best advice is to look at the website or phone the university you'd like to attend, order their prospectus and see what are the requirements. It's better than asking strangers who have no vested interest in your studies.
Good luck.

Answer 6

The UCAS system assigns a points value to each grade you recieve for your A-Level subjects.

Each university then determines the points and the subjects required to study each course based on subscription and difficulty. So courses like medicine and law have much higher points requirements due to over subscription and difficulty.

So you could drop an A-Level, but you have to make sure you maximise your points with your remaining subjects.

Answer 7

Breadth is important . However, you can drop one at the end of year 12 and concentrate on those most important to your course. maths would certainly be useful for A/S as you cannot function in the business world without a reasonable grasp.

Answer 8

you better carry on with the maths for business managements,thats a key subject when studying for any kind of business,english,

Answer 9

You generally need 3 good passes

Answer 10

sure they are going to aslong as you're envisioned the grades you want at A2 factor. some truly aggressive classes e.g drugs, dentistry, vet will probable not imagine your AS outcomes are ok yet maximum will be high-quality with those see you later as your envisioned A2 are ok