Leaving Cert Subjects

Xgracie

I'm currently in TY and I have to pick my subjects soon! I'm not 100% on my subjects yet, I think I'll need over 500 points in the leaving cert (to do law) and I got all As and Bs in the junior cert.
We have to order 6 in preference (as when they're put into lines we may not get our top 3) and right now I'm thinking
1. History
2. Economics
3. Ag science
4. Geography
5. Biology
6. Business

But I would like more information as to what Ag. Science, Geography, Business and Biology are like? Which would be the best to pick? I have a good memory, didn't really like science for jc (but got a b) same with business

Thanks!

Anonymagician

Xgracie wrote: »

I'm currently in TY and I have to pick my subjects soon! I'm not 100% on my subjects yet, I think I'll need over 500 points in the leaving cert (to do law) and I got all As and Bs in the junior cert.
We have to order 6 in preference (as when they're put into lines we may not get our top 3) and right now I'm thinking
1. History
2. Economics
3. Ag science
4. Geography
5. Biology
6. Business

But I would like more information as to what Ag. Science, Geography, Business and Biology are like? Which would be the best to pick? I have a good memory, didn't really like science for jc (but got a b) same with business

Thanks!

If you definitely want to do something law related then I would say history and business are priority. In business you cover consumer law, industrial relations law, data law etc not to mention learning about how business functions in Ireland and all that.

If you know for sure about doing a humanities degree then you won't actually need science so if you really dislike it I'd recommend doing something you may enjoy more like geography. On the other hand, geography, history and business are all book intensive subjects.

I gave up science after 1st year as I realised it was never going to be of much use to me so I can't guve advice on those subject areas.

arcticthinker

Xgracie wrote: »

I'm currently in TY and I have to pick my subjects soon! I'm not 100% on my subjects yet, I think I'll need over 500 points in the leaving cert (to do law) and I got all As and Bs in the junior cert.
We have to order 6 in preference (as when they're put into lines we may not get our top 3) and right now I'm thinking
1. History
2. Economics
3. Ag science
4. Geography
5. Biology
6. Business

But I would like more information as to what Ag. Science, Geography, Business and Biology are like? Which would be the best to pick? I have a good memory, didn't really like science for jc (but got a b) same with business

Thanks!

Geography is a very easy subject, it's the easiest A1 but is writing heavy, biology is very memory intensive, I can't comment on agricultural science, economics is supposedly easy but I cannot confirm this, History is considered tough and very very writing intensive easily rivaling English in infamy , business is once again memory intensive but arguably easier then its junior cert counterpart due to no book keeping ,

if832uspx4eogt

arcticthinker wrote: »

Geography is a very easy subject, it's the easiest A1

This isn't true at all, there's no easy A1 in the Leaving Cert. Geography requires so much work, it's a long course.

spurious

The skills learned and needed in LC History would stand to you in Law.

DarraghF197

I would suggest not worrying about subjects related to law. They may have a tiny hint of benefit after school but, most of the time, it would simply end up that they don't help much at all.

If you are looking.good for points, Business and Geography would be a great option. Learn the simplistic course OBH and that's an A1. Geography is the same, but it wouldn't be as easy to get that 100 points.

I wouldn't suggest Biology as it seems very much like JC Science. And Ag Science is disillusional. Not as easy as you might think, and it's pretty useless as well.

You're not thinking of Accounting or anything else? I think that would be a nice breather to the heavily theory orientated subjects like History and Geography.

Economics is hard to get your head around first, but, once you put in the effort to figure things out, it becomes quite easy. Having great notes on it can lead to great results, but it wouldn't be a nice subject if you don't commit to it.

Xgracie

arcticthinker wrote: »

Geography is a very easy subject, it's the easiest A1 but is writing heavy, biology is very memory intensive, I can't comment on agricultural science, economics is supposedly easy but I cannot confirm this, History is considered tough and very very writing intensive easily rivaling English in infamy , business is once again memory intensive but arguably easier then its junior cert counterpart due to no book keeping ,

Anonymagician wrote: »

If you definitely want to do something law related then I would say history and business are priority. In business you cover consumer law, industrial relations law, data law etc not to mention learning about how business functions in Ireland and all that.

If you know for sure about doing a humanities degree then you won't actually need science so if you really dislike it I'd recommend doing something you may enjoy more like geography. On the other hand, geography, history and business are all book intensive subjects.

I gave up science after 1st year as I realised it was never going to be of much use to me so I can't guve advice on those subject areas.

Thank you both loads!

spurious wrote: »

The skills learned and needed in LC History would stand to you in Law.

Yeah I love history too so I think I'll enjoy it!

DarraghF197 wrote: »

I would suggest not worrying about subjects related to law. They may have a tiny hint of benefit after school but, most of the time, it would simply end up that they don't help much at all.

If you are looking.good for points, Business and Geography would be a great option. Learn the simplistic course OBH and that's an A1. Geography is the same, but it wouldn't be as easy to get that 100 points.

I wouldn't suggest Biology as it seems very much like JC Science. And Ag Science is disillusional. Not as easy as you might think, and it's pretty useless as well.

You're not thinking of Accounting or anything else? I think that would be a nice breather to the heavily theory orientated subjects like History and Geography.

Economics is hard to get your head around first, but, once you put in the effort to figure things out, it becomes quite easy. Having great notes on it can lead to great results, but it wouldn't be a nice subject if you don't commit to it.

Thank you so much! I hated accounting in JC business! I wish I like it!

There probably won't be an economics class and however im still torn between history/geo/ag history/geo/business
History/ag/business

I know geography and ag cross over in 1 or 2 sections so would that be a handy combination? But the general consensus here seems to be that geography and business are best for points is that what you guys would recommend?
Thanks again!

DarraghF197

I could be wrong, but I just think Ag Science isn't as good as it seems. I'm not sure about your school, but in our's there's basically zero productivity with everyone constantly messing, I'd find that quite frustrating, after the first six months of fun.

It's quite overwhelming the theory in Geography, History, and Business. There are probably a lot who do those, but I steer away from any theory stuff! Economics would be a little nicer, if you had the option, but, presuming you wouldn't like Physics or Chemistry, there probably isn't much option for anything else.

Bazinga_N

Xgracie wrote: »

I'm currently in TY and I have to pick my subjects soon! I'm not 100% on my subjects yet, I think I'll need over 500 points in the leaving cert (to do law) and I got all As and Bs in the junior cert.
We have to order 6 in preference (as when they're put into lines we may not get our top 3) and right now I'm thinking
1. History
2. Economics
3. Ag science
4. Geography
5. Biology
6. Business

But I would like more information as to what Ag. Science, Geography, Business and Biology are like? Which would be the best to pick? I have a good memory, didn't really like science for jc (but got a b) same with business

Thanks!

I would say Business would definitely be of use to you in studying law as it's probably going to be your first exposure to Irish Law. You study 7 pieces of legislation in Leaving Cert Business and while it's obviously going to be different to studying Law at 3rd level, it'd definitely be of some use. Business is a nice subject as well. If you're logically minded and enjoy theory based subjects which I'm guessing, I'd recommend it!

I don't do History so I don't know much about the subject, but I'd agree with Spurious in saying that the skills you'd learn from Leaving Cert History would stand to you in University!

Just on the topic of Biology (it's the only one I do from your options besides Business), it's a lovely subject. It doesn't have many overly-difficult topics and all in all it's mainly just learning off pieces of information and regurgitating them on an exam. If you're looking to do a science subject but don't have a huge interest in science, I'd 100% recommend Biology. It's quite like business in the fact you can get by well by just learning stuff off.

Best of luck with your choices!

arcticthinker

Aaden Sweet Nature wrote: »

This isn't true at all, there's no easy A1 in the Leaving Cert. Geography requires so much work, it's a long course.

Trust me compared to biology or honours maths it's not, I finished the coarse in January, vs biology there is still an entire section to cover. And I said easiest, I didn't say easy. You walk in with 20% of the ly if you did your field work properly, and all the sections are simple to understand, A leads to B witch leads to C and D etc. 2 case studies per geography section will cover you.

AtomicKoala

Xgracie wrote: »

I'm currently in TY and I have to pick my subjects soon! I'm not 100% on my subjects yet, I think I'll need over 500 points in the leaving cert (to do law) and I got all As and Bs in the junior cert.
We have to order 6 in preference (as when they're put into lines we may not get our top 3) and right now I'm thinking
1. History
2. Economics
3. Ag science
4. Geography
5. Biology
6. Business

But I would like more information as to what Ag. Science, Geography, Business and Biology are like? Which would be the best to pick? I have a good memory, didn't really like science for jc (but got a b) same with business

Thanks!

If you want to do Law, I'd say History is a good bet. Tedious, information heavy, and you'll have to be good at analysis (and maybe good at outside reading), to get an A1 - not dissimilar to Law at all.

Business might have some limited use but honestly I despise it!

I would definitely say do Biology before Ag Science - likewise I'd also say doing a science to be quite important, as you never know what you may decide to do. Biology also requires the ability to recall a large amount of knowledge, and if you lack this skill law probably isn't for you anyway. So I'd say take Biology.

I'd advise you to avoid Geography, it's completely irrelavant, and it'd likely be a more difficult A than Biology.

So I'd say:
1) History
2) Biology
3) Business/Economics... or another science.

Mahmoudsaid_1

Take what you're good at

ShaneCliff

Ag Science: useless, your class on average will be made up of idiots. Don't do it, unless you're doing it for the points!! Think about it, not every subject you do has to be a potential career, some are just to get an A1 in.

Biology is a difficult-ish course, that being said I love it and am hoping to go study it further in September. You need to know your definitions for everything really well, your teacher must be able to summarise the book well or you will struggle desperately to get the course finished before the LC. It's easy enough to get high grades as every year is just constant repetition. It's all down to you doing exam papers, exam papers, exam papers... That's the key. It's such an interesting subject. You must have interest in the subject from day one though, or you'll zone out, and wonder why are we studying this crap. I love Bio., and would definitely advise you to do it.

Business: is just constant learning, I hate it, there's hardly any time to think in the exam so you must know the course v.well. Your answers must have a certain layout to them, or you'll waste time and marks. Overall, I, personally, find it difficult. The subject should give you a good feel whether you'll like law or not, as you'll cover the EU and laws relating to that etc.

Economics: is supposed to be quite easy, and meant to be quite a short course too! So plenty of time to revise and do exam papers in 6th year.

Bazinga_N

ShaneCliff wrote: »

Ag Science: useless, your class on average will be made up of idiots. Don't do it, unless you're doing it for the points!! Think about it, not every subject you do has to be a potential career, some are just to get an A1 in.

This is incredibly unjust of you to say. Agricultural science is obviously of huge benefit to anyone interested in the agricultural sector, zoology, veterinary medicine, botany and any other areas of science and agriculture it touches on. How would this deem it 'useless'? If a student has an interest in any area the course touches on, it's a perfect subject for them to take on. Generally people who achieve A1's or get points are ones the ones who enjoy studying the subject and genuinely like it. Thus, saying you should only do it for the A1 is pointless, as if you have no interest in the subject, your chances of getting an A1 decrease drastically.

ShaneCliff

Bazinga_N wrote: »

This is incredibly unjust of you to say. Agricultural science is obviously of huge benefit to anyone interested in the agricultural sector, zoology, veterinary medicine, botany and any other areas of science and agriculture it touches on. How would this deem it 'useless'? If a student has an interest in any area the course touches on, it's a perfect subject for them to take on. Generally people who achieve A1's or get points are ones the ones who enjoy studying the subject and genuinely like it. Thus, saying you should only do it for the A1 is pointless, as if you have no interest in the subject, your chances of getting an A1 decrease drastically.

I see your point, but I don't know a single person that did veterinary in college that did Ag Science for LC, they all did Biology and Chemistry instead...
Of course Ag Science is useful if you going doing something in that sector, so I do take that remark back, but other than that, it's regarded as a far inferior science to the others.
Your chances do decrease of getting a high grade if you lack serious interest in the subject, but it's still easier to get a higher grade in Ag than if you were to do Biology and to not be fully committed to that subject. It's an easier subject to high grades in. Ag Science does require you work, but not as hard as the other sciences.

AlfaJack

I want to do veterinary and I'm going Ag Science, Biology and Chemistry just saying

Anyways I'm very happy I picked Ag Science. There is a huge cross over between Ag and Biology except it's just a simplified version. I think like 25%(?) goes towards your experiment copy and project, which, if you do properly, you can easily get full marks in.
Yes there's a few messers in my class but there's also a load who are in it for the A. It's mostly a learning exam like Biology but a lot of it is common sense too