As an educator, I am getting more and more concerned about the increasing number of students choosing to do three A-levels instead of four at the beginning of Year 12. The chart below shows a significant decline in the proportion of students sitting 4 A-levels since 2010, with the proportion halving from 9.6% in 2010 to 4.8% in 2022.
Graph shows the proportion of students taking 4 A-Levels
This is particularly worrying for private school students. Although they are provided with more opportunities and resources to pursue their academic endeavours, the majority still choose the minimum amount of work required for UCAS.
The same students then usually aim to apply for top Russell Group universities, but struggle to stand out among their competition. The more troubling fact is that most private schools now actively promote their students to take 3 A-Levels, after parents spend thousands on their children’s education. Parents then start blaming universities for taking fewer private school students. In reality, if two students, one from a state school and one from a private school, are both doing 3 A-Levels and seem to have otherwise similar applications, who would you give a place to?
The truth is that if you are an academically ambitious and diligent student and want to increase your chances of gaining a place at a top university then I would encourage you to do 4 or more A-Levels. This will already place you in the top 5% of students in the UK.
Here are a few more reasons why you should do 4 A-Levels:
1. Demonstrate passion for academic work and resilience
When I was a school student, I wanted to do as many subjects as possible so I could enhance my knowledge across different fields. My timetable just couldn’t fit more than five subjects! Back then (10 years ago) it was more of a norm to do 4 A-Levels and 5 if you really wanted to. Now the norm is only 3 A-Levels and in rare cases 4.
By doing more A-Levels you directly show universities your love for learning and academic work. It also shows that you can withstand the academic workload, preparing you for future university studies. Study will only be more rigorous at university level!
2. Stand out from the crowd
There is a record-high number of students applying to universities. The majority of applicants will only have 3 A-levels. AS-levels were abolished in 2015 and with the upcoming cancellation of personal statements and some entrance exams, it is a mystery to me how universities are going to differentiate students from their peers. One way to stand out and to increase your chances of an offer is to simply do more A-levels.
3. Develop time management and organisational skills
Students are usually shocked by a suggestion of doing 4 A-Levels. The usual response is how can they manage to fit in the workload of 4 subjects. In reality, the school timetable is designed to accommodate up to 5 A-Levels. Hence, by doing only 3 A-levels, there are so many free periods which in all likelihood will be spent chatting to your friends or on social media. Taking 4 or more A-levels will instead teach you how to manage your time and organise your work accordingly.
4. Keeping options open
It is quite common to be unsure about your career path when choosing A-levels. If you're undecided between a few different future directions, choosing four A-levels can keep multiple doors open. In addition, if you find one subject difficult or unenjoyable, you can always drop one and stick to doing three A-Levels.
In summary, there is less academic individualism among school students compared to my school days 10 years ago which is exemplified by students doing a bare minimum number of A-Levels from the start of Year 12. This can be used to your advantage and therefore I highly recommend doing more A-levels, especially if you are planning to apply for top universities.
Any questions or thoughts, please get in touch!
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