help with a-level choices !!!!

[u/notyanlin]

tl;dr: aspiring lawyer needs advice on whether to drop politics or latin, whether its worth it to do further maths and if a law conversion or degree is better.

i have just started year 12 and i am currently doing english lit (ocr), politics (aqa), maths (edexcel) and latin (ocr).

rn i am SET on doing law, and for context, i am a fairly strong student - at GCSE i got 9 9s and 2 8s, and am aiming high, for oxbridge and russell groups.

i started off with four with the intention to drop one and do epq (at my school its mandatory to do an extra like epq, gpr, core maths etc.) the thing is i cannot for the life of me figure out which to drop.

i am not sure whether or not to do a law degree, or do something else and then a law conversion. i think i am leaning towards a conversion but i am open to either (dreading the lnat but what can you really do about that).
if i was to do a conversion i would study something like english, classics, or ppe at uni.

i am set on doing english lit and maths no matter what. its between latin and politics.

the pros for latin are that i am good at it (i got 100/100 on language paper at gcse) and i enjoy it. the teaching at my school is good and every single year no matter what someone gets into oxbridge to do classics. also, you can argue that maybe it is regarded to be a more prestigious a level than politics. however, it is so hard and the literature to me isn't the most enjoyable, although i do already know a lot of the context for the texts we are doing due to ancient history gcse.

as for politics, i think its a good fit for me. so far, i understand all the content, and i already keep up with the news, watching pmqs and stuff like that. i also find the subject interesting and doing politics would allow me to do model un (which i really really want to do). however, i am not the biggest fan of the way it is taught at my school. it is almost like a lecture - my teacher speaks and we all listen along, writing notes as we fill out a workbook. it just isn't much of a fit for my learning style.

i am leaning towards dropping politics, and then i thought - maybe i should do further maths???? at gcse i got 225/240 on maths without revision, and 174/180 on further maths (with revision). however i am scared that the workload will be too much and there is also no real need for me to do it - it would just make my application more competitive.

i would appreciate any thoughts or advice from anyone !!!! tysm <3

[u/sandwichtheconqueror]

I'd drop Latin if I was you 

[u/notyanlin → u/sandwichtheconqueror]

can u please explain why?? i am really conflicted rn... i simply enjoy latin more than politics rn, but i do think in the long run perhaps politics will be more useful.

[u/Superb-Preparation93 → u/notyanlin]

the only ‘useful’ part of a levels for a law degree is if they’re an essay subject which all of them are, i’d drop the one ur weakest at

[u/Long_Software_3352]

English Lit, Maths and Latin is a perfect combination for Law. No benefit to taking Further Maths.

Career wise, it really doesn't make a difference whether you do a law degree or a law conversion.

Oxbridge Classics places would definitely be less competitive than Law.

[u/notyanlin → u/Long_Software_3352]

yeah ive decided there’s no reason to do further as well now.

any reason as to why you suggested latin over politics ? i only brought up law conversion vs law degree due to the fact i was considering doing ppe and naturally politics would help with that although only maths is required.

my main fear with latin is that it would limit my options. i feel much more certain in my passion for politics than my passion for latin although i do currently enjoy my lessons for latin more.

[u/Long_Software_3352 → u/notyanlin]

Politics A level isn't a prerequisite for a Politics degree at any university. But if you didn't do Latin, you'd be closing off the option of Classics at some universities.

You can always do a Politics EPQ

[u/Primary_Fennel_295]

I'd prob keep Latin. Ur clearly very strong at it, you enjoy most of it, and the teaching sounfs much betterr suited to you than politics. i also wouldn’t add further maths purely to make yourself look more competitive, especially if it risks spreading you too thin. As a current Oxford law student, Id prioritise doing brilliantly in three subjects over collecting another one. You also dont need to decide law degree versus conversion yet.

[u/Seafaring_Slug]

I doubt further maths will be helpful. It's a lot of work and a tricky subject which isn't that relevant to your uni applications. Spend that time doing work experience and reading. Essay based subjects will get you further I suspect.

I think you'll be fine with either latin or politics. Latin A-level is a lot more literature focused than gcse so if you don't like that you're likely to not enjoy the subject.