I am a form 4 student, trying to decide whether to drop add math and focus on my three main sciences, but my school doesn't allow dropping subjects so my plan is to drop it when SPM. Sorry if I am mistaken cause I am relatively new to this whole thing.

The thing is that I have already decided what to do in my future career, which is to be a Forensic Pathologist (someone who operates on dead bodies to find the root cause of death) and I can't see add math being useful in this line of field. I am good at biology, but my physics and chemistry is almost failing.

Disclaimer: I am by no means dropping normal math as I still see some benefits to it when it comes to business. I see no useful benefits that add math can help me in my future endeavors, other than looking good in the eyes of conventional employers as being good at add math somehow naturally means that you are smart. Of course to be fair, I did find some usefulness in Add maths in terms of business like for example: progression and elimination method thingy. But being good at add maths literally has no sway in your future career, all the time I asked teachers or tutors whether add math is useful in their career and they all just said that it is just another subject that looks good and doesn't determine whether your future.

My cousin also said that it is better to drop add maths than get a worst average in your report card. As far as I know, she is amazing at add math but ended up dropping it the last second. Even without add math she ended up being some sort of manager in a computing company like Intel whatnot.

So with all that being said, should I drop add math. If not I want to see your perspective but it has to be about a career in Forensic and about the whole STPM or SPM that kinda thing. I am already determine to leave this country as soon as possible so that means if I am lucky, studying abroad in a country where I can further increase my Forensic career and my knowledge of anatomy.

PS: sorry if I somehow seems arrogant or if there are grammatical errors as this is my first time and I am typing this whole thing in the toilet.

yes. add math will not make you rich or get a job easily.

Try to study add math..

Yes, you will not use it at all on your field of interest, but the technical question you face and practice in add math will open up your mind and thinking into solving problem..

For example, you see a question, then you know what are the potential formula to use.. then you go from there..

Is not about add math, but it is about opening your mind and brain thinking power to problem solving, practical and logical thinking..

And i believe this set of skill is very much needed in doing forensic.. add math just help u to put things into a lot of different perspective, you get to see more dimension

Try study what is requirement to enter the field by most of reputable university that offer Forensic Pathologist local and international. From that, it should help you to decide. From min. requirement and the advantage to be acceptance by that uni for that faculty.

"But my school doesn't allow dropping subjects so my plan is to drop it when SPM"

If i not mistaken, you can drop it. just dont registered it..

This is my POV, I could be wrong.

-Biology is mostly memorising facts / anatomy.

-Add maths / physics / chemistry requires understanding principles, applying it in different scenarios to get answer.

Based on the above 2 things I pointed, out you sure you can be a competent forensic pathologist, which require you to deduce and find out causes of deaths?

Or just a memorise and spit out kind of forensic pathologist?

Just my 2 cents.

Kid, unless you’re extremely good, chances are you won’t get to pick the jobs/careers you want.

Your best option is to maintain a pass for the subject you’re weak in while striving hard on the subjects you’re excelled at.

Kudos on you on having this ambition. I did a quick check on requirements to become a forensic pathologist. You'll need to do a medical degree as well before specializing in this field. I suppose if you have some seniors or friends or relatives in medical fields, ask them if it is necessary to have add maths in the spm/stpm (further maths?, Not sure as i did IB instead). Maybe they can advise you better than us.

I think the problem solving skills you acquire in add maths can be very useful. It trains your mind to analyze and solve problem, usually using the data given. Problem solving skills are useful even in forensic pathology.

nasihat from uncle: you only f4, I until mid f5 also D,E only... but after getting hints it clicked and then managed got A1 in trial and spm. You got 2 years to learn base for tertiary edu, 9/10 subjects not that much compared to what you'll learn at Uni later.

useless subject. waste of time i rather focus other subject score A

yea school didnt allow to drop. very pld fashion

If you do your add math everyday.. you will see the obvious pattern...

u still need addmath to qualify for matriculation
even stpm pun advance math sama je macam addmath extra sikit sahaja

Good idea ...might as well drop history also .. for what? Not useful for your future career ... Drop moral, drop physics drop geography and everything ... don't waste time study what you don't need .. actually might as well drop school bro ... Steve Jobs, Mark Zuc, Bill gates all dont go to school 1 sia

addmaths hard but easy to pass in spm
take it as a challenge

I once failed add math in form 4,i just couldn’t understand anything.
But i managed to get A in spm after some intense homework, exercise you start to see the pattern.
I do agree that i haven’t find any application for it in my career so far

you want a scholarship?
some list add math as a requirement

You will study add maths again in your university degree. Worst of all, you will need to pass the paper or else no degree for you

Like it or not, Add maths will haunt you until you graduate

No need to drop. Just make sure you fail so hard in SPM so that subject gets omitted in your cert. No real harm.
Nobody is going to ask or know that you once took add math and get rekt.

If you are going bio route you are pretty safe anyway.

I don't have add math in cert. Hell I only get B for math mod but continue diploma&degree in agriculture, then enter industry for a while, then left; did masters in Pathology and now settling down in Academia. Maybe can do phd one day if I watch less porn.
The only (nonbasic) math that matter is statistics and Economy. Fortunately, it's a fun kind of math that you can easily see its purpose and relate. Don't remember any time I regret being stupid in add math and failing it.


Things and opportunities could be better with add math, but what I'm saying is, you can hardly fail either, especially when you have clear goal.
Thats my experience though. Others might disagree.

This post has been edited by failed.hashcheck: Aug 21 2022, 10:54 PM

You need to widen your perspective. Sure, maybe add math is useless for Forensic Pathologist. But saying "add maths literally has no sway in your future career" because some teachers and tutors said so is outright wrong.

Bro add maths isn't as hard as people says it is

Just go to Khan academy on YouTube

Guaranteed you'll be able to understand everything easily

malaysia... unless academic/lecturer/professor, science subjects are failure.

Engineering is saturated.

Better get accounting or finance and work in bank.

or go into IPG become SJK/SK teacher. Surely a good life if become primary school teacher.

Forensic pathologist is doctor specialised in doing autopsy. So u need to become a doctor first.

U don't really need add math to become a doctor. But add math is so easy compare to medical degree.

forensic pathologist is medical doctor -> specialization into forensic science

u should think about your college level education first

if dropping add maths help u with obtaining scholarship (less subjects then higher chance to be a full a student) then go ahead

if not i'll just recommend u to take it, i failed my add maths in high school yet manage to scrap a b3 or b4 in spm, its that easy

bear in mind that, i would still expect no less than 3.5 cgpa in stpm/a-level education if u wanna become a doctor. u will need that to survive in medical degree

saya cadangkan ambil account lagi ok...jgn drop add math...

nanti ada luck masuk matrikulasi

SPM subjects is not about how good you are at certain subjects but rather is to judge how good you are at handling challenges.

To put it really bluntly: SPM is just the very very tip of the iceberg. If you can't handle it, you'll have a really tough time in Uni even with the subject you excelled in SPM. Even more so with the syllabus today is alot easier and streamlined than before.

don't drop add math. uni maths is going to be much tougher and if you want to do science based courses in uni, it's better to do add maths in SPM

i scraped through my add maths in F4 with like 40-50 marks, but in the end got A1 for add maths in SPM

Hello, I think you should take add math. It would be much easier to get scholarship too. (If you can get A).

You need to learn and master the basics from add math in school so that you can survive mathematics in university/college. If you drop add math now, you will have to spend more time to learn the basics again and will fall behind compared to your friends.

Add math is not a difficult subject. Trust and believe in yourself. I am sure you can get A in your SPM. I used to be so scared of add math because of people around me said it is hard and impossible to pass. Thanks to my strong mental health I overcame all that. You can do it!

Do 10 add math question daily and then you will find the fun and will not question whether add math is a meaningful subject or not.

In my life, I find add math very useful. Thanks to that I did not struggle in math during matriculation and was able to focus on other subjects.

If you cannot handle add math but want to further your studies in science then it would be a very risky decision unless you have strong connections.

add maths is not that hard lah. just need to do exercise. in fact, the maths studied in the subject is very basic can apply to many fields. although nowadays don't need to solve by hand cuz got many software to solve for us. lol. but it's good to understand how it work at the basic level. and train your analytical skill.

This post has been edited by ipohps3: Aug 22 2022, 01:21 AM

Take time to understand it. Problem solving is fun.

And I apply parts of it to my daily life and work. Not everything, but parts of it.

Take the advice of those who commented already. They're pretty good.

For me... Msian education system is all about proving that you can be able to be fed all diff types of subjects (some friggin useless) and still regurgitate them all correctly.

Takes a lot of EQ and critical thinking to do so. And will prove useful to employers to show you are well-rounded.

Give it a try for a year or so. Then decide at the last moment if you really can't. Even better option is to take tuition. It worked for me.

During my year in STPM, the science stream consist of 2 type of class double math+maths+chemistry+physics and maths+biology+chemistry+physics
The maths shits add maths, and the double maths 4X the add maths.

if you drop Add maths, and are failing in your physics and chemistry you sure you can get a place to study these with just a high grade in Biology?

Requirement to go in uni dont just look at one paper. You might drop everything and get shit for STPM/SPM then go take A levels or something similar but you will still need to pass the maths and all the required papers to get a placing. Maybe some 3rd rate school will accept if you pay a lot to go in, but might not pass you, just milk the students by repeating until you scrap a pass.

If you go thru these shit in school, you will probably find it easy when you go for the A levels, or if you skip it now, you might struggle with it later.

It wouldn’t have matter.

U still damn young and SPM is the ticket for you to enter uni.

There’s might be a chance of you to even consider another field instead of science jobs so don’t too bother about this add math thing.

Just do what u feel like doing

my advise is not to drop.

thou u mentioned u have decided what to do in future career, but u never know, u are just in form 4, there are years to come before u really stepping into work field.

and IMO, Malaysia secondary school add math isn't really that hardcore having said that.

Just drop add maths. Less stress and enjoy your young time.
I got A+ in Add Maths also don't know for what. Never use also. Waste money pay for tuition.
Ended up in IT line with zero fcuks on math.

Yup. Stupid teachers. If you want to become an actuary, quantitative trader, statistician, etc u need to have good add math results before you can apply for math degree or quant finance. Those jobs are paid way more doctors

AddMath knowledge is essential foundation to all science courses. You will end up having to use the knowledge in any of the science-related field of work.

Do not avoid it.

Going to private uni? Drop as u need.
Government uni? 10 marks from CCA. so work on it.

Btw, add math is about logic. Mastering it will help. Get a tutor may help.

dont drop la... Just do it. add math is foundation for applied maths.. you cant simply drop subjects once you fixed your major..

no dont...u just need to survive

I say just suffer through it.

Back in my day I was also damn hopeless in Add Maths, but because I was already planning to drop Accounts and the school had a minimum number of subjects you have to take, etc.

Lots of tuition, long story short, got a B for it in SPM.

Rumour has it that the marking for Add Maths got very low bar. I dunno if that's still the case these days, but ehh

i didn't go to my add maths exam. end up getting TH (black colour). better than a RED F haha... no problem, don't need it now.

Damn it.
I failed my Sejarah in SPM. I thought my night mare is ended.
And Sejarah hunted me in college again.

I study it very hard to make it just pass.

Even after so many years, sometimes I woke up in the middle of the night dreamed that I failed my Sejarah in college.

depends on what you are going into in uni.
if you are going engineering or computer science, add maths is necessary

you wont apply most, its just to get through the course.
in the working world however, maybe apply 10%? for me, didnt even apply any since i went a different path

I dropped English for Science and Technology for SPM.

When my classmates are having that class, I went to Library with my friend and lepak there for 1 hour.

I had a hard time with add maths too in f4 but in f5 i realized f4 add maths are kacang. So in f5 i started reading some materials for matrix & stpm maths and learned some tricks and patterns for SPM add maths - although u can’t apply them directly in your SPM exam.

From my personal observation, add maths may mean nothing in your SPM cert but it is going to be very useful in tertiary education (depends on your courses)

Some ppl also said it is easier to get into matrix or uitm if you have add maths

I'll be blunt. Many don't give a shit about AM. Especially once you leave SPM, most subjects you took won't matter.

I flunked AM way back in F4. Couldn't grasp shit. Thankfully there was a elderly tutor that had the correct teaching method and I finally scored a B in my SPM.

After that? None of my jobs require AM. Chances are that you won't even remember those formulas after all the fervent study sessions and revisions.

Do yourself a favor and focus on acing your other subjects. Once you've reached that stage (uni or studying) in the future, you'll thank yourself.

SPM is just a gateway to your college and uni journey. After that, it's all about the cert once you start looking for a job.

This post has been edited by UserU: Aug 22 2022, 07:52 PM

Why? EST was one of the easiest way to secure an A in SPM. Also take the Science & Additional Science subjects if you are already taking Bio, Phy & Chem. Guaranteed As

Take add maths kid, don’t drop it
Btw, nowadays can drop add maths ah if you took science subjects?
The subject is gonna be useful when you decided to switch your tertiary education

Anyway, add maths wasn’t that hard lol

If you cannot even handle add maths now, you most likely will be a failure in life in the future.

But no worries, many "easy" jobs for you to do.

Drop everything best. Just start opening up animal dead bodies and see how they died to prepare well for your career best and can decide for themselves what they want. I want this. I don't want that.

Today we see society who think they know well what they want at the age of 12 or 16 and decided forever go on that route.

Add math is more than add math. It shows you can tackle area you're not familiar with. You really think all top surgeons love history and BM? Since they'll become top surgeon and work overseas?

Young boy, your life will not forever be that one job. You'll have many jobs especially world is changing now.

nothing is hard during study if you compare to working life.

drop that add math if you very sure your future career do not need that.
nothing wrong about it.

Not many will see it as how you view it. Scoring the A on their grade matters more to them.

To be honest, not many are able to practice the analytical & problem solving skills into their real life or working environment. In the end, many just blame the subject as useless subject.

I do agree with your view, in real practical life, the ability learned in Add Math will enable you to solve the obstacle face with multiples approaches & usually we will opts for the most easy, fast & cost effective solution.

as a working person, i consistently use Biology, Chemistry, Physics & Add Maths in my daily work.
every day, sure got question or issue linking back to these 4 basic subjects in my work.
it will be either basic knowledge or advance engineering shit or some microbiology shit. I'm specialized in biology, so i need to read up more on physics stuff when issues occur.
so please take all your science subjects. it will be useful one way or another. knowledge gained stays with you forever.

reminded me of my old time, my F4 & F5 maths, i sleep in class a.k.a no need to study, too easy, and i get A1 for maths. while add maths, even how hard i study throughout my middle senior school, i barely pass the 40 mark and i only able to score a B4 in SPM, it was a shame for me that my maths was too good but my add maths like shit. like other /k suggest, add maths is critical thinking on solving a problem. just take it~

Check the course requirements in public university or jpa (if you want to further study thru jpa); see if add math is required. I was bad at add math during spm, managed to get C5 only. Tried for jpa (study in Japan), but failed since my spm add math didn't reached the minimum (B5). Luckily the computer science in local uni only require C6 or something. But if I failed add math back then, big chance I will not further studies in CS. I would say for SPM, you checked the requirements for the course you wanted first, before deciding to flop a subject. No need to score perfect A or something, unless you're aiming for some scholarship

If you get A in Add Math, You will easily get A in Modern Math.

I would say follow your passion.
if you have no passion, where do you find the motivation to drill through that. I am major in maths,physics,and electronics, i can tell you it all comes to passion. I am mid age now, i cna tell you, those knowledge and deduction skills and logical skill, is vital to survive in this competitive world.

Maths + study of matters = logic, imagination, calculation skill.

when insurance seller/trusts fund sellers bullshit you, you can summarize and crack their marketing plan (inside your head) and know how the money flow, what they want.

when you pay your minimum CC, you know what you are paying (leveraging your future life), where the interest comes from
bank loan, mortgage loan etc etc...

Statistical literacy helps you with NOT wasting time/money on placebo supplements/ ideas / dumb kopitiam boastful talks.

If you are good in bio, at least that means you have good memory i suppose?
what good does memory do without other modules like calculation,deduction,imagination???
And good memory is a very blessed gift, you can learn and do not forget easily, which means things you learnt will stay with you much longer.
and when you use them, they become much more refined and stays with you.


if you have more tools, you can mix them together and think of things others are not possible.

Add maths is just the fundamental, you havent go to engineering maths, that shit break down your brain. but once you drill through them.You drill through them, your perspective will be very different.

I dont like language, but i overcame it, now i can write letters in any languages... speak respectfully in malay/eng/chn with good command of vocabularies.

Unless your time can be spent on your other passionate project/activities which you think is more productive. otherwise, if you have the time, overcome this hardship, you will not regret.

Good memory is a very very good gift, embrace it and use it wisely. dont let it go to waste

This post has been edited by DirectorLee: Aug 24 2022, 11:47 AM

Agree with u. Also no need to worry if u r in "cablekuat/bapakpunya" group. Add math not hard to pass. I never pass while in school. Just seek help from my teacher, he teach me doing graph thing (only thing i can do bcause it come with picture ez to understand) & i got C in spm. In dip & deg but i realize add math not that hard (dont know if their teaching method or me being lazy to learn while in school). Just try, fail is just another learning process.

If you are firm in your decision for future course, at least make sure you can get enough credit for minimum entry to qualify for your course.
Have you check local uni requirements and oversea uni requirements?
At least take them as minimum requirement even if you have enough money to go for oversea uni.
Real life is absolutely different from CSI drama.
You gonna need to up your game in chemistry too.[Borderline won't do]
I'm no longer sure how the latest scoring goes, but I have never score more than 30 in ADD MATH IN SCHOOL BUT I got a credit for ADD MATH in SPM. [Bonus credit, wasn't expecting it] I doubt oversea care about History/Moral or other mini subjects unlike local.
I had to re-sit for my BM even I got A1 through F4 & F5.

While majority things we study in school is useless when come out into real-life, at least cover the basic so you can more options even should you decide to change course in future.

I don't think you should drop add maths...based on my own experience it is really easy to score for add maths in the real SPM.

During normal exams/ trial SPM my add maths grades are usually around 30%-50%.

But during the SPM exam itself i think they marked up the grades, even with my half-boiled add maths knowledge they grade me A for SPM.

Besides, extra skill and knowledge never hurts.

It's called grading on a curve. It's a standard practice everywhere. And yes, it's typical that the cut off for A will be lower because of this.

This post has been edited by imnotabot: Aug 24 2022, 01:36 PM

Just drop it, you can take up Calculus in University, way more time to dedicate to the subject at that time.