<p>Can you help me understand which is more rigorous-- the AP exam or the IB High Level exam, particularly in such subjects as biology, or English Literature, or economics...</p>
<p>As I understand it, the IB program is a two-year course in a given subject, so I would imagine the exam is very much more detailed than the AP counterpart (for instance, in psychology). But I am not sure, since the IB starts in 11th grade, and the AP is supposed to cover the material from the first year of university (am I right in that?).</p>
<p>In our school, the IB students take six courses, (as well as TOK and Extended Essay and CAS). I understand it might make sense to take an AP Exam from an area outside the curricula (one of the sciences that you didn't choose, for example) but would it be a good idea to take other AP exams-- Calculus, Music Theory, World History, or would these be too easy if you took IB Math Higher Level, IB Muisc, etc...</p>
<p>All the IB Hl Exams are pretty much killers. IB further maths is a suicide pill. AP is like between Sl and Hl. Sl < AP < HL; in terms of difficulty, however it really is the same. HL just gives more info.</p>
<p>From what I’ve heard, it depends on the subject. For example, in physics and foreign languages, AP physics C covers a higher level of material than IB physics HL, because AP is calculus-based physics; the AP foreign language exams may not cover more, but are more challenging and more difficult to pass. However, for example, IB economics HL will cover much more detail than AP Micro or macroeconomics, and as lemone said, IB further math covers way more than the AP calculus exams.</p>
<p>It’s hard to compare the exams in general because there are internal assessments and external assessments. There’s definitely more detail in IB HL courses as well as the complexity in testing procedures. HL exams are generally more complicated than AP but they often contain different material. Thus, you would gain knowledge by taking both the AP and IB class</p>
<p>No, the reason they don’t accept Sl exams is because it doesn’t cover all the first-year stuff. The course itself is 90% equivalent. So if you have taken Sl, you should do very well in the first year since it’s almost like a repeat. Basically, I think Sl is like an AP course, but the exam won’t earn you the credit because other wise everyone would take Sl instead of HL</p>
<p>SL is NOT equivalent to AP. Part of the reason colleges do not accept SL scores is because of the internal assesment component (A person could score a 4 on the basis of having a perfect internal assesment, and only answering maybe 20% of the test. I know, I’ve done it)</p>
<p>Another reason is because of the options. In history and sciences, there are options (which in the higher level are core). The school, not colleges, choose what options are covered in the course. Many colleges disagree with several of the option choices, and therefore allot not to provide credit.</p>
<p>AP Questions = more straightforward, but a lot harder</p>
<p>IB Questions = annoyingly poor worded questions that turn simple questions into difficult questions. But due to the nature that it cover 2 years instead of 1, it may be more difficult.</p>
<p>Bottom Line - does it matter, AP Math BC score 4 and 5 gets Calculus Class credit at UCLA.
IB Math HL scores 5 and above gives 5 units of calculus but does not erase specific math classes from the schedule.</p>
<p>It depends on the college. Look up “AP credit” and “IB credit” at the colleges you are interested in.</p>
<p>Whether AP or IB HL is “worth more” depends on the specific subject and the college. IB SL is much less commonly granted college credit (though Vanderbilt does give credit for IB SL).</p>