<p>We are currently considering sending our children to ACS Hillingdon in London. Has anyone heard of this school? They offer IB or a highschool /AP. Is the IB a good choice for college admissions to the US? My children are American but have never lived in the US and are determined to go to college in the States.</p>
<p>I have heard of it. It is my closest SAT testing centre in London and seems like a really good school. One of my moms friends wentthere for school and ended up going to dartmouth but that was a good 20 years ago. A lot of the people I tested with went there and I think it’s good because they actually get SAT prep and stuff which people like me at normal English school don’t.</p>
<p>Pursuing an IB or AP program is not necessary for admission to colleges and universities in the US. Every year lots of US citizens educated abroad in different national school systems are admitted to US universities. They are considered domestic applicants because they qualify to file the FAFSA and can receive federally determined financial aid. Sometimes their foreign school records will be handed off to the international admissions officer for interpretation, but since most international admissions officers are familiar with foreign school records this isn’t a big deal.</p>
<p>Colleges and universities in the US can be fiendishly expensive. Depending on your family financial situation, you may be better off keeping your children in an inexpensive local secondary school and saving your money for their college education. Since you are living outside the US, your children will probably not be considered in-state residents for any public college or university. If you own property anywhere in the US, you should find out whether that qualifies your children for in-state rates. In many states they would have the option of moving to the US and establishing residency on their own, but they would need to be self-supporting for at least a year, and could not attend college during that time. Most parents aren’t comfortable with asking a 17 or 18 year old to do that. </p>
<p>The best resource for families in your situation is the local office of EducationUSA. Read through the website, and then pay a visit to the advising center closest to where you live. [EducationUSA</a> | Study Abroad, Student Visa, University Fairs, College Applications and Study in the U.S. / America](<a href=“http://educationusa.state.gov/]EducationUSA”>http://educationusa.state.gov/) If none of the counselors there have recent experience working with US citizens, they have colleagues in other offices who do.</p>
<p>Wishing you all the best!</p>
<p>If your question is just “Is an IB OK?” The answer is definitely YES! Students who have a full IB diploma often are able to place into second year courses at colleges and universities in the US. If they feel like it, they can also take the AP exams that are reasonable matches for the IB courses that they have been pursuing. Each college/university posts right on its website how it deals with IB results. Use the search function of the website to look for IB and you should find the information.</p>