Subtitle: As university places at top UK universities become more competitive, studying extra A Levels seems like a no-brainer. The more subjects you study, the smarter you look in front of university admissions teams. However, this is a risk. Taking on more subjects can hinder, rather than help, a competitive university application. In an international context, a preoccupation with accumulating UCAS points also drives this tendency to study more subjects. The bottom line is that no amount of UCAS points or extra-curricular activities can outshine good grades. Hence, for most students aiming for the UK’s top university courses, where entry requirements expect no more than three A Levels, it is better to stick to three. Therefore, what needs consideration when picking subjects and what impact might this have on a student?
It has become undoubtedly more difficult to obtain offers from the top universities in the UK. In 2015, the University of Cambridge received 16,431 applications and eventually accepted 3,449 students, representing an application to admission ratio of 4.8. This rose dramatically by 2019 to 19,539 applications and an application to admission ratio of 5.5. A similar trend can be seen across the UK’s top universities. Imperial College London’s application to admission ratios are even higher, growing from 7 in 2015 to 8.5 in 2019. With undergraduate places remaining roughly constant, and competition growing for each of those places year on year, many students may opt to choose more A Levels in order to stand out from the crowd.
Of course, setting aside the desire to shine brighter than other applicants, there are also other reasons why students study four – or more – A Levels. Students aiming for university courses such as Engineering, Computer Science, or Mathematics may be required to study Further Mathematics and, as such, take Mathematics, Further Mathematics, and two more subjects. Other students might not be sure about their chosen degree course and might choose extra subjects to keep their options open. Importantly, some students might simply love all of their subjects and find it difficult to drop down to three of them. However, this is a risky strategy; increasing your academic workload solely out of love for a subject might prove to be a barrier during exam season, when you have to sit twelve exams, instead of nine.
Looking to the international sector, there is also a tendency to focus on UCAS Tariff points. This is a system of points that converts a range of qualifications onto a uniform scale. Some universities and higher education providers use the Tariff points as a way of explaining entry requirements. However, many other providers, especially the UK’s top universities, do not make offers based on Tariff points. Instead, each student will receive an individual offer based on the qualifications they are studying, whether that is the International Baccalaureate, A Levels, or other national qualifications. Furthermore, Tariff points are not used to place applicants in a table or order. In fact, most students probably cannot say how many Tariff points they hold. The system, therefore, is one that should be given little attention compared to A Levels and achieving good grades. If you are still driven to accumulate Tariff points, there are other less intensive ways to win these. For example, an A* grade in an A Level subject provides 56 points. However, an A* in an Extended Project Qualification offers 28.
As such, it is important to turn to the negative impact that studying extra A Levels can have on students. A Levels are an intensive course of study that require long-term dedication and motivation. Studying extra A Levels can add to the potentially overburdened academic pressure facing a student. This becomes even worse, if, due to timetable clashes, students must study their fourth, fifth, or even sixth A Level outside of school time, limiting opportunities for super-curricular subject exploration, sport, and other activities.
I say this speaking from personal experience. When initially choosing my A Levels, I chose four – Mathematics, History, German, and Government & Politics. Keeping my options broad, I lurched daily from studying the British Empire to polynomial division to the US Supreme Court. In time, I found that I had settled on my chosen course at university – History and German – and felt as though an extra A Level was unnecessary to my future academic goals. The advantages of dropping Politics were, for me, threefold.
Firstly, dropping my ‘extra’ A Level gave me more time to develop as a person outside of the classroom. I was able to keep a part-time job at a high street shop that massively built my communication skills and confidence. I was able to continue playing music and sport, allowing me to stay motivated and resilient at times when my studies were difficult. Without a doubt, extracurriculars were not simply another activity to take part in, but rather activities that helped my A Level studies.
Secondly, less time spent on an A Level gave me more time to explore my target university course and bolster my UCAS application. I had time to read new historical perspectives on the Thirty Years War, listen to lectures and podcasts, and build my linguistic proficiency. Once I had chosen to apply to Cambridge, this became even more crucial in the knowledge that I would have to sit two admissions tests and interviews. For students keen on applying to the UK’s top universities, it’s important to remember the significance of super-curricular subject exploration in eventually obtaining an offer. Adding more A Levels to your workload will have little impact if you do not also read and listen widely to new theories and developments in your chosen university subject’s field.
Thirdly, and arguably most importantly, studying three A Levels gave me a better shot of achieving higher grades on results day. UK universities do not ask students to study a minimum of four A Levels, but students who take four usually receive offers based on that. In other words, an offer might very well state that you need to obtain A*AAA in your four A Levels to enrol, whereas the equivalent offer for a student taking three subjects would be A*AA. I found this to be a classic case of ‘quality over quantity’, as only studying three A Levels gave me more time to commit to my existing subjects, giving me a greater chance of achieving the grades I needed.
On top of these reasons, it is important to note is that dropping an A Level did not reduce the amount of time I spent studying, learning, or developing as a person. In hindsight, I spent just as much time behind a computer or a book, but I was able to fill my time with topics that I had chosen myself, whilst also exploring new aspects to my school learning. I came to enjoy analysing historical sources rather than seeing them as a dreaded form of examination, I started to look forward to reading a new German novel, rather than stressing about different articles and cases.
Fundamentally, why I believe that this decision was the right one for me was because I made an active, considered choice that I believed was the best solution to allow me to reach my goals. I found a fourth A Level excessive, time-consuming, and decided that I would have more time to spend on extracurricular activities and ensure that I received the grades I needed to study at the University of Cambridge. However, this was my decision, and I am not claiming that three A Levels are better than four in all cases. As previously discussed, there are more than legitimate reasons to study more than three, from a school requirement for Further Mathematics students, to a desire to keep one’s options open before settling on a university course, to a pure, scholastic desire to keep learning and discovering. However, if you feel as though some of your school subjects are excess to requirement, or more of a burden than a benefit, it is wise to drop down to three A Levels.
The two years you spend before university are crucial in forming you as a person, preparing you for your future university and work life, and arming you with the skills required to succeed. The bottom-line is that, as a student, you need to ensure that you are in charge of your educational decisions. If you have chosen to study more than three A Levels, you have to be able to justify this decision to yourself. If you find yourself justifying your extra A Levels on grounds of UCAS Tariff points, or your ‘undeniable passion’ for the subject, it is clear that you ought to reduce your academic workload and boost the grades of your remaining subjects.
This does not mean that dropping an A Level is the key to success, but rather that, for students, thinking independently with active consideration about the best decision for themselves ensures they chart an academic path that will allow them to realise their potential and achieve their goals.
By Akshar Abhyankar (Cambridge History Student & Former President of OMS Hub)
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