23rd February 2011 9:00
By Blue Tutors
The Royal Society of Scientists is calling for a Baccalaureate style qualification to be introduced instead of A levels, because so few students are now taking 2 or more sciences at A level. Many universities require 2-3 science subjects at A level for undergraduate science courses, which limits the number of students who continue with sciences at university. The Royal Society believes that because most students study only 3 A levels, it’s becoming increasingly unlikely that at least two of them will be Mathematics, Biology, Chemistry or Physics.
Worryingly, just 17% of A level candidates in 2009 took one or more science A level, and in England, only 17% of schools entered a student for A level Physics. UK universities currently produce fewer than 10,000 home graduates in Sciences, which is a worrying statistic when we consider that any country, but particularly one shrouded in Economic uncertainty, needs scientists to play a key role in future development.
In Scotland, a greater proportion of students study Highers in science subjects. It’s claimed that this because those students generally study 5 subjects, and the increased choice means that students can still study 2 or 3 science subjects, and not dedicate themselves to science and nothing else. This is similar to the International Baccalaureate, where students must study 6 subjects, and some science options are compulsory.