<p>I'm an IB Diploma junior looking to add courses that I'd love to take (if my school offered them) as self studies. Right now, I have:
IB HL: Chemistry, Physics, Math
IB SL: English, Mandarin, Psychology</p>
<p>So far--this is my third week of school--I'm getting and A/A- average in my IB classes, which should put my GPA at around 4-4.1 (my cumulative is 4.04).</p>
<p>And I plan on adding:
AP Macro/Microeconomics (I have some foundation in econ)
AP World History (history is my favorite subject...unfortunately it won't fit on my IB schedule)
AP Statistics (something I personally find interesting...regardless of what people say)
AP Calculus BC (I just like math)
AP Environmental Science (I took AP Bio last year and really loved the Ecology part, so I'm interested in more ecology).</p>
<p>My counselor was shocked at my suggestion; she said I'd never make it through the six IBs alone... I'd love a second opinion, so do you guys think that this schedule is manageable if I put in maybe 1 hour everyday per subject?</p>
<p>One hour everyday per subject? So you want to spend an extra 5-6 hours studying for APs on top of your regular workload? I don't know much about IBs, but if they're anything like APs, you're going to have a crapload of work on your hands if you're planning to take all of those. On the other hand, though, you probably won't need 5-6 hours per day to study for those, anyway, as long as you start early.</p>
<p>ABSOLUTELY NOT! No no no no no no and double no!</p>
<p>Trust me when I say this but the IB diploma program is a high school's students HELL but it is also a necessary evil. If you know how to balance your school life w/ extracuricular activities, you are one step ahead. But it will not be easy. Most of the work in IB comes from long term assignments (extended essay, TOK papers, internal assesments (IA's) and oral presentations). If you want to do well on these you have to prepare yourself for A LOT of work. Last year, I got lured to self-studying from reading abt CC ppl who self-studied, got 5's and got lots of credit/awards for it. So, I set myself up to study for 2 AP's, in addition to taking 7 IB classes. Little did I know that my most of my teachers would suck and I'd have to study some stuff myself.
OK you got to know that studying for the AP EXAM is WAY different from studying a subject independently. Most ppl here "self-study" for the AP exams by reading a prep book for a month or two. I think IB is so comprehensive and so well-known to colleges that self-studying AP's (the actual courses, not the exams) would be rendered unnecesary. I think if you really wanted to self-study a course, just pick one of your favorites (like history or economics) and study that.</p>
<p>I would suggest getting rid of </p>
<p>-Calculus b/c ur already taking HL math which would prepare your for the AP exam (and plus if you get a 6/7 in that exam you wouldnt have to worry about AP calc)
-Statistics b/c its too easy and u r taking HL math
-Environmental science b/c its too easy + u will get absolutely NO credit for it</p>
<p>This leaves history and economics. I suggest history b/c it is SO interesting (i took the class) but for econ you really need to be motivated to learn all the information. </p>
<p>If you read the thread "Self-studying AP's: improving your app" you'll find that self-studying is more for ppl whose school lacks IB or AP classes.</p>
<p>There's no reason for you to self study. You'll get college credit for your IB classes and you're already taking a full load of IB. Focus on extracurriculars and standardized tests now.</p>
<p>If you want to self study then I think you should. But you do already probably have more than enough academically for college.</p>
<p>Some of the easier ones could be done with little effort. Like environmental science. If you are good at ecology or just science in general. About 3-5 hours the week before will almost guarantee a 5 for you. Stats and the economics classes are also easy, especially if you start early.</p>
<p>Calculus and World History may actually take some effort though, especially with your workload. If you are up to it, then you should definitely do it. However, if partway through the year, you feel as if it is too much, you can always drop a subject or 2. Once you get started you will know if its is possible to do. Its not like you have to sign up now or anything. If you feel as if you are not prepared, you can always stop, or even study a little more and take it senior year.</p>
<p>AP Statistics and AP Calculus BC might work as you take HL Math.
Which option does your school chooses to do for HL Math?
If you do the series & differential equations option then most of the materials overlap with the BC curriculum.
And AP Stats is just EASY compared to core stats in HL Math.
So these two probably won't be a problem as long as your school teaches the right option for HL Math.</p>
<p>Environmental Science is doable, not hard at all imo (especially easy because you took AP Bio).</p>
<p>Economics & history though are both pretty difficult subjects considering the amount of material you must memorize.</p>
<p>I really suggest you take the corresponding AP Exams for the SL subjects you take because most colleges don't care about SL and give you no credit for it.
AP Psychology is easy if you are taking SL Psychology.
AP Chinese might be a little bit harder than SL Chinese (Do you take Chinese B?), but you only need to be able to type instead of write the characters so that's a lot of weight off your shoulder.
AP English Lit is pretty similar to SL English (I assume you take English A1?)</p>