I am a sophomore at a quite competitive high school, and up to this point I have straight A’s. My school has an IB diploma and a pre IB diploma program (I did the pre IB diploma last year but didnt this year, largely because there wasn’t a GPA advantage) but IB diploma does have an advantage for weighted GPA. However, I don’t know if I would be able to do IB diploma and still get straight A’s while continuing to peruse my extracurricular at my current rate , is it worth compromising grades for rigor? I am also very scared of my next semester, to be able to enter IB I will have to do Spanish 3 honors, chemistry honors , English 2 honors, as well as my two AP’s Im currently taking A day B day, which will be quite a tough schedule. IB will also require me to take IB Spanish 4 junior and 5 senior year, which is not my strong suit, and the math and science courses also scare me A LOT. I do have rigorous options besides IB, my school offers a huge variety of AP classes. Would you recommend I do IB diploma? I know it’s a complex question, if you have any questions just ask. Here are my current and past classes. I don’t really know where I want to go to collge, UNC Chapel hill is likely my first choice, I might look at NYU, UVA, or Emmory, or NC state.
Freshman- (all pre IB if not otherwise stated) )Earth env science, Biology, Geometry, Civics and Economics, PE, Psychology (honors), World history, Geometry.
Current: Spanish 2 (not offered honors or pre IB) Algebra 2 (honors), US history (honors) AP gov (A day b day) AP human geo (A day b day).
Next semester (to do IB): Chemistry (honors) Spanish 3 (honors) English 2 (honors) AP gov (A day b day) AP human geo (A day B day).
My daughter’s IB dept head always says this “APs get you to college but IB gets you through it.” My daughter is a senior and she said she found first year pre-IB challenging but the rest is just hard work. Nonetheless, she does feel confident about going to college with her study habit, the research and writing skills that she learned from IB courses.
There are competing perspectives in this question: (1) whether the Diploma is an advantage in college admissions and (2) whether it is worth it for you, for your education and preparation for college.
The answer to the first question is – it depends. High school guidance officers complete a form which goes with your application where, among other questions, they are asked about the rigor of the student’s curriculum – was it “the most rigorous curriculum” available in your school. At my son’s school, for example, only IB Diploma students get the coveted “most rigorous curriculum” recognition. AP and IB certificate kids are characterized as one step down from the full Diploma in terms of rigor (though there are exceptions, for instance, when kids aren’t full IB because they are taking college math because they are too advanced for the IB math curriculum). So, a question to find out from your high school guidance is, do they treat AP students as the same level of rigor as full IB Diploma kids, or do they make distinctions among them. Time to talk to your guidance counselor about your goals for college and your courses. They have the experience to know whether – if you are instate in NC, for instance, whether the full IB Diploma is necessary for UNC admissions.
The second question is, is there value in taking essentially a liberal arts curriculum, complete with independent research, service, arts and physical activity (CAS), in preparation for college. My Diploma kid would say yes, because he loves his classes, loves the material they read, the discussion, the teachers. He already does service, music and a sport, so meeting CAS is not a problem, and he is interested in his Extended Essay project, though not thrilled about spending a lot of winter break writing it. His gpa dropped in both 11th and now 12th, because no matter how hard he works, he can’t pull As in his IB Science and Math classes. He wasn’t aiming top 20 university, so that drop hasn’t hurt him. He has still gotten significant merit scholarships at the liberal arts colleges he has been accepted to. So yes, IB is tough and it could hurt your gpa, depending on how your school does weighted grades. But the value in preparation for college can be its own reward.
Good luck to you.
It depends on the number of AP’s at my school, and the individual guidance counselors get to make that decision over how rigerous our schedule it is when we apply to college. Another question: would it be better to take easier IB classes (studies rather than methods for instance) doing IB or harder classes not doing IB?
I would strongly recommend talking with your guidance counselor. I imagine there is a consistent policy within the guidance office about how various academic programs are described. If your school has Naviance, ask your guidance counselor to help evaluate whether full IB could be a benefit for acceptance at the schools you are interested in.
As for taking easier classes within IB, you still have to meet the requirement of 3 HL, 3SL, with 1 class from each of the 5 required subject matter areas (basically, english, history, foreign language, math and science) and then 1 extra class from either arts or one of the 5 core subjects. So, if you are strong in humanities type subjects, take your HLS in your strongest areas, and take your SLs in, for instance, math and science. Does it matter if you take Math SL or Math Studies SL? Perhaps if you are aiming for Northwestern, but probably not if you are aiming for Emory, U NC etc. My kid is in Math Studies, and finds it challenging enough, lots of statistics and an independent research project. Being in Math Studies as opposed to Math SL hasn’t hurt him at all, he has gotten large merit scholarships at the schools he has been accepted to (mid range liberal arts colleges). He works very hard to balance the work load on top of his sport and music, but he also enjoys the classes (mostly) and is proud of his hard work.
I suggest you make an appointment with your guidance counselor, and perhaps ask if your parent can be there as well, to review course selection for spring. Only you, your counselor, and your current teachers, can really assess how well you can handle the demands of IB next year. IB would not help you for college admissions if your grades become Bs and Cs instead of As.
I have, the school does not really have a uniform policy, it is up to the guidance counselor’s, I have already asked this question. They said it will ultimately be their determination, but that if I took a sufficiently rigorous curriculum outside of IB it certainly would be considered most selective. In addition, my school does have naviance and kids in IB do get in at a higher rate (in part because for class rank IB has a very large advantage, for junior year alone straight A’s outside of IB is the equivelant roughly of 3 A’s 5 B’s in IB) but it is hard to determine causality there, as the kids in IB tend to be smarter and more motivated anyway. I dont expect my grades to all drop in IB, in English and history (I have already taken honors US history, the other IB students havent, and I have always done well in English ) but I anticipate that in Spanish, Math, and Science, I will struggle to get A’s, although pre IB wasnt all that hard in those subjects.
Anyone else have any advice?
There is an IB board you could post the question on as well. And search for threads on IB vs. AP – variations of this question come up every year.
Hello! I’m currently a HS senior IB Diploma candidate, and I always tell myself that if I could go back to the end of sophomore year, I wouldn’t do the IB Diploma. My school is an IB school (we only have 3 AP courses), so IB is the only way to take rigorous courses. Honestly, IB isn’t overly difficult (you get used to it after a while, and it really does improve your study habits, time management, etc.), it’s just that I believe that it’s unnecessary and doesn’t help as much for college admissions. AP is easier than IB, people do better in it, and they get more college credit. The only thing I’m grateful to IB for is that I know I’ll be ready for college (I know people who did IB that said that the first two years of college were easier than IB).
If you choose to do IB, make sure to take HL’s (Higher-Level courses) that you actually care about. Also, you could just take all IB classes instead of doing the diploma, because for some it’s a bit overwhelming to have 6 IB classes, extracurriculars, good grades, AND do the Extended Essay (4,000 words). If you do the Diploma, DO NOT PROCRASTINATE on your Extended Essay (I’ve learned the hard way…). It honestly isn’t hard, just make sure to choose a topic that interests you, meet the deadlines, and meet with your supervisor so they know that you’re working.
Honestly, if you’re a good student and you’re up for the challenge, you should do IB. I’m well-rounded in all subjects, and I’ve managed to get all A’s/A-'s over the past two years. However, there are a lot of other people I know who struggle to get good grades in this program, so consider this in your decision. Also, it depends on the IB program at your school. My school has a lot of great teachers who have taught IB for several years, but your school may not, so get all the information you need before deciding. Make sure to ask current seniors for their honest opinion of IB and whether it was useful for them with applying to college
Good luck!
**Also, don’t take Studies classes if you’re going to do IB. Those classes are ridiculously easy, it’s better to challenge yourself if you do IB.
Isn’t the choice between these two based on whether the student will take additional math in college (take math methods) or not (take math studies)? From what I understand, math studies covers more topics that may be useful for a student who does not take additional math, but at less depth and less concern about preparation for college math, while math methods covers more traditional precalculus and introductory calculus topics to prepare the student for math in college.
A couple of things: first off, my school only offers IB diploma, not taking A la carte IB classes (they are VERY strict about this). Secondly, we are required to take HL English and History (we get to pick the other HL, but English and history are my two best subjects, I dodnt mind this ). You are also in order to stay in IB required to be progressing towards getting the IB diploma. I am not sure if I will take math in college (I still dont know what to major in, Im not bad at math, but its certainly not my best subject) but that is a decision I will just have to figure out over time. Anyone else have any advice? And thank you to all of you have posted, I really appreciate it!
Oh, and also at my school its eight IB classes A day B day (each class every other day, four each day), not six that we take, so we do get 3 electives if we do IB, which are required to be IB electives (limited exceptions for kids taking AP’s but only in very specific cases)
If you major in science or engineering, you will have to take additional math in college. You will also have to take calculus and statistics if you major in economics or business. Other social studies majors may require math and/or statistics courses and/or major-specific quantitative methods courses. Humanities and arts majors generally do not require math, although some schools may have math general education requirements that require calculus or some such.
In the event that my college did require Calc or I choose to persue a subjec that did , do you think if I did math studies I would be ready to take Calculus 1 in college?
Possibly, but less likely than if you took IB math SL instead of IB math studies SL (it could also matter if you take calculus for business majors versus calculus for math, physics, and engineering majors). Most colleges offer math placement tests for entering frosh who are not bringing in IB math HL or AP calculus credit.
Okay, one last question, how many more B’s junior year do you think I could afford to get doing IB than if I didnt?
My younger kid moved to a new high school junior year. She went the IB route because it was considered to be most rigorous curriculum at her new school. Prior to that, she went to a very competitive private school in the NE. The IB curriculum did not prepare her for most of her SAT II tests, nor AP exams. She had to study on her own to take those tests. She also didn’t find IB courses to be particular difficult, just a lot of busy work and very rigid. She read most of literature books when she was a sophomore at her old school. She was a humanities student, so she took SL for math and physics, but HL for foreign language, English and History. My older kid went to the same private school as my younger one (the old school), and she took APs and advanced courses at her high school because IB was not offered. She did well in college without being in an IB program. As you could tell, I am not an IB fan. If you have another option (like AP courses) that’s the way I would go. But if you need to be IB to get the “taking the most rigorous course load” then you have not choice but go that route if you want to get into a top tier college.
DS, now a college graduate, wishes he had not done the full IB diploma. He felt it was too stressful, too rigid, too much busywork, and placed him in a fixed cohort of students that didn’t allow him time to socialize with others. In hindsight he would have preferred taking a mix of IB and regular courses. Some IB courses were good, others weren’t.
As a student from a small full IB school, here’s my $0.02.
Some IB subjects are largely skills-based - this is a category that includes both your first language and your foreign language. You’re primarily developing your ability to express yourself, and all you’ll be tested on in final exams is a few texts you’ve studied, generally introduced from the fall of your senior year onwards. The workload for these classes is, minimal.
If you’re going to take math, take SL at the very least. Studies includes units on telling the time and rounding, and is considered a joke even at a school which bans admissions tests in its charter and has a student body that reflects this fact. HL is mostly for students who expect to do a lot of math in college - engineers, STEM applicants, and the like - and isn’t necessary in most cases. This is another subject that’s more skills-based than content-based, although plenty of practice is needed if you’re hoping to get a 7.
You don’t need to take history for the IB, although a social science is required. This can be history, economics, or geography, among others. Be warned that the geography component isn’t as simple as naming capitals (if only), but involves analysis of issues like globalization, freshwater needs of various countries, global food supplies, health worldwide, economic and social trends of the last 50 years, and more. These subjects tend to be content-based, but also formulaic. Following a certain structure each time you have a test will earn you high marks.
The sciences are very content-based - I’ve probably spent as much time revising IB biology as I’ve devoted to every other subject combined. The biology/physics/chemistry choice is down to personal factors, but as a general rule you should avoid physics if you aren’t confident in your math skills, and steer clear of biology and chemistry if you don’t trust your memory to internalize a 500-page textbook.
Your 6th subject can be from any of the aforementioned groups, or it can be an elective like art/music/drama. Pick something you’re interested in, and capable of earning a passing mark in at the very least, because otherwise the next two years aren’t going to be pleasant.
The extended essay is 4,000 extremely formulaic words, and will write itself. The same can be said of the TOK essay and presentation, except both are shorter. Anyone with a decent number of extracurriculars will have no trouble completing the CAS component.
I didn’t have some of the issues people here have mentioned (small social group, too rigid, etc) because everyone at my school took IB subjects. I did find my socializing curtailed, but that’s because I chose to do 4 HL subjects (a choice I would not make if I had to go through the IB again), including 3 in biology, geography, and economics that are quite content-based. The upside of this heavy workload is that at some schools on my list, I’ll be a few credits from junior status before taking a single class. Had I wanted to, I could’ve passed all my classes while putting in 1/4 of the effort I did, although my grades would’ve been mostly in the 5/7 range rather than predominantly 7/7.
As other posters have mentioned, many IB students find the first year or two of university to be a breeze - I consider that worthwhile, but then it’s easy to say so when I’m 3/4 of the way through my own IB program. Ultimately, it’s your decision whether you choose the IB or AP, but I think both will teach you some useful skills.