Alright, so, like literally everyone else on here, I too have dreams of the Ivy League, Stanford and MIT. But I’ve got a disadvantage… I’m a Canadian! Now, the question I have is should I take IB, AP or do dual enrolment at a local community college. My school offers none, and you can’t take AP courses until grades 11 and/or 12 in my province. Currently, I am thinking of doing half IB/half AP, mainly because there are certain, very specific courses I succeed in. I also contemplated going for the IB diploma whilst self studying Ap. My average is in between 89 to 100 percent, which is considered an A in my province.
I would not take community college classes over IB or AP classes. They would not have the same rigor. I’ve never heard of a Canadian student doing dual enrollment at a community college. Canadian community colleges do not have the same focus as a US CC.
Of your options, the IB diploma sounds like the most rigorous option. It’s a well recognized program with international standards.
While getting 5’s on AP exams would look good to any university, do not expect high end universities/colleges to give you credit for them. SAT subject tests will look just as good and are given several times per year, vs once a year for AP exams. A high score on subject tests will look just as good as a 5 on an AP exam.
Thank you so much for the reply!
What about IB? One of the reasons why I am skeptic about it is; what if I get a low mark? I do better at standardized testing, and I have taken the PSAT, and got a 1520 (yay! - but cannot qualify for national merit scholar as I am not American), so I think it’s safe to assume I will do decent on the SAT. I guess my question is, what if I get a low predicted IB score, but high SAT and SAT subject tests scores? Would I have a chance academic wise?
I respectfully disagree with the comment above — if you take classes at a very well respected community college, they look better then AP or IB classes, because cc classes are actual college classes with college professors and other college students. It takes a maturity and independence to succeed under those conditions, and colleges see that.
The best thing to do is to reach out directly to the colleges and universities you’re interested in attending and ask them point blank, if given the choice, AP or cc class? Most will tell you the ‘official’ answer is that they look the same, but pick up the phone and call them — I’ve spoken with a number of universities admissions directors on behalf of my son, and every single one of them has been surprised and impresssed he’s taken 5 community college classes and gotten and A in each one — as a sophmore in high school.
Remember, community college classes stay on your permenat college record, meaning you’ll show them to colleges and universities for graduate school as well. The grades matter. Unlike an AP or IB, if you get a bad grade it won’t follow you after high school, any CC grade will carry over, and be calculated into your overall GPA if you apply to medical school or law school, etc, where GPA expectation is very high.
If money isn’t an issue — and you know you want to come to a U.S school — I would look into taking Online community college classes via Santa Monica College in California, which has a great online class selection and is a very well respected community college. It will also show U.S colleges you are serious about your commitment to study in the United States. Just make sure to check ‘ratemyprofessor.com to read about a professor before enrolling into the class — that website has a valuable source of information for my son.
I’m actually Canadian even though I currently live in Los Angeles, and ironically my son is looking into Canadian universities for college. They’re cheaper than U.S schools, and frankly Canada is a much better country to live in than the United States 
If you need any more information, don’t hesitate to ask, but again, remember community college courses are the ‘real’ deal — if you sign up for one, commit to getting an A. It’s gojng to be on your educational record for a long time
This is the email for the high school concurrent enrollment program — I’m not sure how it works for international students, it doesn’t hurt to reach out them and ask
If you have any interest in Computer Science, I highly recommend Professor Hurley’s CS 3 Introduction to Computer Science course. It was a fun course (involved a lot of watching ted talk videos) and it was very manageable. My son loved it, it was only light computer programming, it was more about the history of computers and the many ways in which computers are ingrained into our lives. It’s a great first online class to take
I believe there are lots of great schools (Stanford, Harvard, etc) that offer Online courses available to high school students. My son has been happy at SMC (and they’re free for him in California), so I haven’t looked into it, but he has a friend taking online courses through Stanford…might want to look into those options as well.
Thank you so much!!
I have looked at Stanford online school, and I am planning on taking a course there. I cannot enrol full time as it is too expensive. Which brings me to another point, the reason I am all for US universities is because a) more opportunities, and b) better for law due to the opportunities. UBC is more fit for pre-med, and U of T is a GPA destroyer (I plan on attending law school). Of course, there are other universities, I’m just using these as an example. I want to major in political science, international relations, or economics. I’m quite interested in philosophy too, so if you know any professors at Santa Monica that teach said courses, let me know! I hope to apply soon 
@bh2021 Are you familiar with Canadian community colleges? They are not at all like US community colleges. They certainly don’t have the rigor of an AP or IB class. Canadian universities in general don’t accept their credits.
For pre-law, I’d do IB and take AP exams as well as IB exams. Does the school do grades as well as predicted IB scores, if so I wouldn’t worry about the predicted scores. They don’t matter for US students who do IB because grades are what matters.
I second @bouders comment that “community colleges” in Canada are not synonymous with those in the US. They generally have a technical/professional focus and are intended for students not planning a university education.
@bh2021: what you say is 100% true for academic community colleges in the US. In Canada, even C courses aren’t recognized as sufficient preparation - they need to be U/M, because 'community colleges" aren’t a first step toward a 4-year degree except for very specific, clearly identified partnerships.
SMCC is one of the best CC’s in the country btw and if op can afford to take online classes from then that would definitely be a possibility.
@flipside256 :
The full IB program will be the most rigorous of your choices - otherwise stick to typical U/M classes. No need to take APs, however adding high SAT subject test scores will help you.
Since you’re interested in Philosophy, look into LACs and Catholic universities such as Fordham, Georgetown, etc. but also St Michael’s, UScranton, etc.
@nw2this ,
I’m not sure, but from my understanding, I think they would do grades. Well, percentages, because in Canada we don’t have grades haha.
So, should I aim for the IB diploma, or take dual AP/IB? If I do dual, I would not get the IB diploma. If I aim for the IB diploma, I may not be able to take AP classes. I can self study, but I heard universities don’t like that, especially when there are AP classes available.
Yes, I am planning on taking SAT subject tests. Do you think low IB scores can be partially excused if I have high SAT and SAT subject test scores?
Admission to the Ivies is holistic. They do no “excuse” anything.
No. If you can’t score 38 or so on the IB, you’re better off taking an AP curriculum (if offered). But really a consistent U/M curriculum (6 academic classes every year, minimum) with high percentages and SAT subject scores to back that up will suffice. THat’d be better than self studying. If AP classes are offered, by all means, take them, but make sure you take all the core classes; if IB, coordinate HL choices with your stated major:
- 4 units of English, 4 units of History/social science at HL
- Foreign language through level 4 (or AP) - I assume that for you it’d be French.
- Biology, Chemistry, Physics at any level (Physics can be taken at “regular” level even) + an SL science, which for a social science/humanities student could be Environmental Science or ESS (or DT or HESH, but these are less commonly offered)
- Maths: Applications&Integrations, either SL or HL
- one more social science or Humanities class for your 6th class
If another curriculum, you’d need the same number of core classes but obviously you’d adapt to the AP or U/M curriculum.
Not dual AP/IB, full IB but take AP tests when the material is the same like for English, French, Psychology, etc. It helps for schools that give credit for AP but not IB. Also, AP courses in your first 2 years before starting IB if possible.