Advanced Placement International Diploma - Worth It?

<p>For anybody who is unfamiliar with the APID - </p>

<p>"The Advanced Placement International Diploma (APID) is a globally recognized certificate for students with an international outlook. The APID challenges a student to display exceptional achievement on AP Exams across several disciplines"</p>

<p>My understanding is that you have to score a 3 or better on 5 exams, including two languages, one math/science, one course offering a 'global perspective' (e.g. World History) and one additional course.</p>

<p>So anyway, I'm hoping to apply to some universities in the US, a couple in the UK, and some safeties in Australia. I don't know whether to build my junior and senior schedules around attaining this diploma, I mean, is it really worth it? Would universities actually care about an international diploma, or is it just an addition to your application?</p>

<p>US and UK universities certainly don’t care. I can’t say anything about Australian universities.</p>

<p>Some countries have standardized national curricula that enforce a certain breadth of study in high school before students may attend college. Some of these countries may recognize a combination of AP exams as equivalent to the country’s own college-prep curriculum. The course combination for the IB International Diploma may or may not be sufficient for that purpose. (For example, 2 AP language exams, 2 APs in math and sciences and one other AP would make you eligible for admission to a German university. This combination of APs is more restrictive than the requirements for the IB International Diploma.) </p>

<p>Other countries, including the UK, prefer depth over breadth. UK universities often expect a number of AP exams related to your prospective major, but they couldn’t care less about unrelated APs.</p>

<p>You need to check the admission requirements of the universities you are actually interested in attending, for the specific major you want to study. If you are still undecided, at least check a few universities in each country and a few majors at each university to get some idea of the requirements.</p>

<p>Australian universities won’t care. If you want to go to Australia, do IB or HSC/VCE/TEE/SACE and score in the top 0.5% for law/medicine, the top 1% for other prestigious courses, or the top 10% or so for ordinary arts/science degrees.</p>