Students doing their A Levels always like to claim that their subjects are the hardest, even if they may seem easy to other people. Whilst it is true that all A Levels are hard, there are still some which seem to be much harder than the rest. Hopefully this post will settle once and for all which ten A Levels are the hardest of them all.

1. Modern foreign languages

Anyone who takes Spanish, French or German will tell you that the amount of time a language requires is huge. Not only do you have to learn mountains of grammar, there’s also specific vocabulary for each topic and you have to develop your other skills like speaking and listening. Studying a language definitely requires a lot of dedication!

2. Further maths

It's quite obviously that further maths is going to be a difficult A Level, despite having one of the highest percentages of people achieving A*s. This takes your regular maths a step further so usually it is only taken by the most confident mathematicians!

3. History

This is another subject with absolutely tonnes of information to learn, unfortunately this one also requires you to find the perfect essay structure and amazing exam technique. Finding the best way to write your essays takes time and practice, hence why it is seen as such a difficult A Level.

4. Physics

Any science is always going to be difficult and physics is no exception. You have to have a good grasp on the application of concepts as well as maths, something which can become complicated quite quickly when you put it all together.

5. English literature

Just like with history, you’ll have a lot of quotes to learn from all of your material and you’ll have to figure out your perfect essay style too. Essay demands change massively from GCSE to A Level so it can take a lot of practice to find your style all over again which will allow you to achieve those top marks.

6. Chemistry

This is often referred to as the hardest science due to the massive amounts of knowledge required coupled with the need to be able to apply it to so many different situations. Some of the concepts you’re required to learn are quite complicated when you first come across them and sometimes there are more exceptions to the rule than there are examples that follow it!

7. Maths

Whilst it isn’t as difficult as Further Maths, it definitely still deserves a place on this list. Depending on how you coped at GCSE (and whether you took Further Maths GCSE) it can be a huge jump between GCSE and A Level. Maths will always require you to spend a lot of time practising until you can apply your methods to any problem that the exam board throws at you.

8. Psychology

Despite being considered a ‘soft’ subject by the majority of universities, it is still difficult to revise for. You’ll have to memorise details of several core studies for A2 as well as be able to plan your own experiments and know details about the different research methods. Even though the content isn’t difficult, there is definitely a lot to get through!

9. Biology

Some people may consider it the easiest science, but that does not mean it is a walk in the park. Biology tends to be more content-heavy as there is usually less maths to go alongside it. This means that you’ll not only have a massive pile of content to memorise, you’ll also have to perfect your exam technique so that you can apply the content to any of the scenarios that they choose to throw at you.

10. Music

Another subject considered ‘soft’ by most universities, when in reality it requires a lot of talent. In order to achieve the highest grades you need to be able to play pieces that are both complex and entertaining as well as learning all of the theory to go alongside it.

Of course this list is not exhaustive and there are so many other difficult courses as well. We based this list on the general opinions of students but it will be different for everyone depending on how much you enjoy a subject and whether you’re just naturally talented at it. There isn’t really an ‘easy’ A Level so we wouldn’t worry too much if you think you’ve picked four difficult ones.