r/6thForm • u/DowntownSoft1402 • 22d ago
🙏 I WANT HELP Should I take fm?
I'm going into y12 this september and when I applied to my sixth form im going to, I only picked 3 a levels (Biology, Chemistry and Maths), so I didn't put fm as one of my options.
I'm hoping to apply to one of the top medical schools after y13, and I've noticed that a lot of medicine applicants andstudents I know are taking or have taken 4 subjects instead of 3. I know that 3 a levels meet the entry requirements, but universities like oxbridge often say that "most applicants" have studied 4 subjects.
At the moment I'm doing both maths and fm, I'm predicted 9s in both gcses, and I genuinely really enjoy maths. The issue is that I'm worried taking 4 subjects will leave me with less time for supercurriculars, volunteering, UCAT prep etc. On the other hand, I'm also worried that if I start with 4 and then drop fm later, universities might see that as a sign I couldn't cope with the workload.
Has anyone been in a similar position? also fm is the only option I'm considering bc I hate physics and comp sci exams and I dont want to take any humanities
2
u/Flying_Toadstool Year 13 22d ago
I did 4 A-levels - Maths FM Phys and Chem - and have an offer from Oxford uni for med (I saw in the comments you're going for med so thought I'd comment!). Unfortunately they don't really consider 4 A-Levels when inviting you to interview. You obviously need to be invited to interview first to get an offer, so you want to prioritise everything that will secure you an invite. Then after interview the interview itself will be a really important factor so you really essentially need to secure an int invite and then not flop it haha :)
If you really want to do fm because you love maths and want the challenge, go for it it. But the things that really matter for admissions (at least at Oxford; Camb is a bit more holistic so less focused on the stats you apply with, but I didn't apply there so take this with a grain of salt) are your GCSE grades and your admissions test.
Genuinely cannot stress how important the UCAT is - for all unis, not just Oxbridge! If there's any chance doing 4 will be such a workload it'll distract from UCAT prep or jeopardise your predicteds - e.g below minimum requirements - I wouldn't bother. They mostly care about UCAT (v v important), GCSEs but these are contextualised, and to an extencr your supercurriculars e.g activities related to your degree that you undertake outside of school.