The Observatory publishes a new themed report on motivations of Year 12 students for choosing A level Mathematics

Stephen Lee, Senior Research Fellow 

A new themed report from the Observatory’s secondary/advanced longitudinal cohort has now been published on the topic of motivations of Year 12 students for choosing A level Mathematics. 

The report introduces the Observatory’s post-16 cohort study on A level Mathematics students in schools and colleges, and details a large-scale survey of Year 12 A level Mathematics students. The short report focuses on a small number of key areas from this survey, namely: 

1. Future study/work intentions of Year 12 A level Mathematics students 

2. The value of mathematics as a motivation for choosing A level Mathematics 

3. Encouragement, advice and experiences as motivations for choosing A level Mathematics 

4. Year 12 A level students’ confidence in and enjoyment of mathematics 

Year 12 student survey key findings

The report presents analysis of data from 7,176 Year 12 A level Mathematics students in 119 schools/colleges. Data was generated through a carefully designed and piloted online survey that was distributed to partner institutions in February 2025. (The cohort study school sampling technical report details how the schools were sampled.) 

The report has key findings in three areas:  

• 77% of Year 12 A level Mathematics students indicated they will likely go to university, 9% start employment or work-based training and 11% had no clear plan 

• Of those who plan to go to university – 7% want to study mathematics, but 67% want to study other subjects that include mathematics, showing the utility of A level Mathematics for many university courses. 

• 93% of students said they chose A level Mathematics because it will look good on their university application, whatever course they apply for, and 92% said it will look good on their CV, whatever job they end up applying for. 

• Asked who or what influenced them to choose to study A level Mathematics: 

• Parents were an influence in choosing A level Mathematics for 60% of Year 12 A level Mathematics students and teachers were an influence for 51% of students. Of those that received careers advice, 49% said it encouraged them to take mathematics.  

• Around a quarter of students choose A level Mathematics because their friends chose mathematics, or because of an out-of-school enrichment activity or visit. 

• Enjoyment and confidence may also have been factors in students’ decision to take A level Mathematics, with 86% having usually enjoyed studying mathematics and 77% expecting to get a high grade in A level Mathematics. 

Summer 2025 saw record certifications in A level Mathematics and for the second consecutive year the subject had over 100,000 entries. This analysis provides new insight into students’ motivation for choosing to study A level Mathematics. It is just one small element of the wider cohort study, so do look out for further publications with more detailed analysis and insights. 

Author information

Stephen Lee is a Senior Research Fellow at the Observatory for Mathematical Education.

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