Officially, an A-level in Critical Thinking is worth just as many UCAS points as an A-level in anything else. An A grade at A2-level is worth 120 points, for example, while a C grade at AS is worth 40.

However, when students choose their A-level subjects, it’s important that they are aware that some universities have an official policy of discounting Critical Thinking when calculating a student’s UCAS points. At the moment, this group includes Cambridge, UCL, and some departments at Bristol, but it seems likely that many other universities will adopt a similar policy over the next couple of years.

Because of this students should not take Critical Thinking as one of their main A-level subjects; you must take enough other courses to get to university even without Critical Thinking. However, this doesn’t mean that an A-level in Critical Thinking is worthless!

Critical Thinking may not have the same status as most other A-levels, but it was never intended to. An A-level in Critical Thinking shouldn’t be compared to an A-level in History, Law, or Mathematics, or even to an A-level in a less traditional subject such as Business Studies, Media Studies, or Performing Arts. It’s a completely different kind of qualification, and it is quite right that universities treat it accordingly.

That Critical Thinking doesn’t count in terms of UCAS points doesn’t mean that it doesn’t count at all. Many universities view Critical Thinking favourably; other things being equal, an applicant who has Critical Thinking will be preferred to one who hasn’t. This is because the skills that it helps students to develop are genuinely useful for students in higher education.

Some universities even set Critical Thinking-style entrance exams to help them to identify the best candidates; these aren’t worth UCAS points either, but doing well on them makes a substantial difference to an applicant’s prospects of getting an offer!