Subject choices by students are driven mainly by enjoyment and usefulness, with perceptions of difficulty a lesser decision-making factor.

This is the conclusion from Ofqual research into whether perceptions of subject difficulty at GCSE and A Level might affect the subjects students choose to study.

The research showed that:

• Subject difficulty is taken into consideration when making qualification choices, but only in the context of individual student strengths.
• Student choices are more focussed on enjoyment and usefulness to satisfy university or career ambitions, rather than perceptions of subject difficulty.  Students recognise that they are sometimes discouraged by their teachers, parents or friends from choosing subjects thought to be too difficult for them.
• Teachers do influence student choice but teacher advice is based on what each student would enjoy and find useful for their future plans.  Some teachers did occasionally discourage students from making certain choices because a failure to achieve high grades could have negative consequences for the school’s performance measures.
• School policies are also influential; some schools choose not to offer certain subjects because they are seen to be too difficult, therefore preventing take up in those areas.