dd cannot decide a levels.. psychology, philosophy or sociology?

[slartybartfast]

well she shoudl be doing two of the above, as well as a double art.

[slartybartfast]

she is chosing A levels, that shoudl read.

[TheHoHoHonlyWayisGerard]

I did all three. Sociology is easy, I did two years in one. Philosophy is interesting, as in psychology. I'd say phil and psych for future prospects. What does she want to do?

[slartybartfast]

oh thanks ho ho
she wants to do something in the Art world.
but she is only able to chose 2 of the above as the art she wants to do is double.
i did sociology in one year evengin class

thanks for the info.

[PlentyOfPubeGardens]

Philosophy would be the most useful if she wants to go to art college.

[PlentyOfPubeGardens]

Are these the only three subjects she's considering?

[slartybartfast]

yes these are the only 3.

[twentythirteen]

Psychology is a dead end if she wants to work in the NHS ultimately, ok if goung private, and is boring at university level in this country.

[TeamBacon]

Philosophy should compliment art, and I think psychology over sociology any day

[Pochemuchka]

I did all three too.

Gerard has summed it up exactly as I would. Philosophy can help with critical, creative and abstract thinking.

Sociology was the easiest but least useful IMO. She'll cover similar-ish stuff in social psychology modules.
I'd go for philosophy and psychology.

Very jealous - I'd love to be back studying all that again!

[slartybartfast]

am quite jealous too,
and why not go for it po?

thanks for all advice. will tell her.

[slartybartfast]

Maths no
Geography no, not doing gcse
History does not appeal to her
French not doign gcse
English - again, not relaly appealing to her but might be persuaded.

[slartybartfast]

and the art is a double exam so that seems the way she is heading

[PlentyOfPubeGardens]

Eng lit would be a good choice. Is the art A level or Btec?

[overthemill]

important things are:
what does she like/enjoy studying?
what does she want to do at Uni (if she does)?
and what are requirements of those Uni courses - check on UCAS website.
some course requirements are very prescriptive

[slartybartfast]

art is btec yes,
good tip about the ucas. website.

[TeamBacon]

Is she thinking of doing art foundation? Check entry requirements for that as well.

[Pochemuchka]

Would love to slarty.

Funnily enough, having worked in psychology for 10 + years I'd love to do art. (Best get the Dc into school first!)

If she's headed down the art route then she's best off doing subjects she has an interest in as well as being useful.
I started doing English literature and maths and dropped them like hot potatoes as I was bored rigid! (I am aware that my experiences are very old so feel free to disregard !)

Wishing your dd all the best!

[APMF]

I found sociology very interesting and it opened my eyes to a lot of things like crime and social deviance. However it is perceived to be an 'easy' subject by Uni admissions. That is something you need to be aware of.

[PlentyOfPubeGardens]

If she has a choice she'd be better off doing art A level. The btec course is not as highly regarded, even though it's supposed to count as a double. DD did the Btec and DS started it but has now switched to A level. He says the Btec was far more prescriptive and, while it covered a lot, none of it was in-depth. I suspect that those who do the Btec come out with very similar portfolios. The portfolio counts for a lot if she wants to go to art college - as long as she has enough UCAS points to be considered, a portfolio that stands out is the most important thing, and they're more interested in ideas than technical accomplishment.

I went to art college with no A levels at all but if I was a youngster choosing A levels now, I would ideally do art, another creative subject like photography, either philosophy or eng lit and then either business studies (most in the art world are self employed/freelance and this would have been so useful) or the extended project thing.

Good luck to your DD. I'm quite jealous.

[JoanByers]

I dropped out of Psychology A Level after a week. It was dreadful. Replaced it with Physics.

I did do Philosophy, proper academic subject.

No idea about sociology.

[slartybartfast]

thanks for all advice.


so the btec isnt so well regarding as the A level? that is a worry.

[fraktion]

I would do art A-level, philosophy and psychology with another 'academic' AS.

[slartybartfast]

well i spose if she has to change the sociology to psychology then a rethink is on the cards anyway.

[Alibabaandthe40nappies]

I wouldn't do any of them at A level personally - my degree is in Philosophy.

I think they are all subjects that are best taught at degree, no-one I know stuck with either sociology or psychology at A level - too much to cope with but you never really get into the detail of the subject because there isn't enough time.

I would recommend doing a more academic subject.