<p>Can someone please explain to me how IB math works? Like how there's Math Studies, Further Math, and then HL/SL? Can you compare it to the AP maths? I know pretty much nothing about the IB programme, and my school doesn't have it. I'm really interested in it, though :)</p>
<p>Math Studies = joke class. Some of my friends take it and it’s a watered down version of our school’s trigonometry spread over two years.
<a href=“http://www.ibo.org/recognition/resourcesanddocumentlibrary/moreresources/documents/SLMathStudiesBrief.pdf”>500;
<p>Math SL = maybe the equivalent of trig, calculus, and moderate statistics
<a href=“http://ibo.org/recognition/resources/documents/SLMathematicsBrief2.1.pdf”>500;
<p>Math HL = trig, more in-depth calculus, statistics, etc
<a href=“http://www.ibo.org/recognition/resourcesanddocumentlibrary/moreresources/documents/HLMathematicsBrief.pdf”>500;
<p>Oh and as for your question “Can you compare it to the AP maths?”, I’ve heard that people who take SL Math can take the AP Calc AB exam without much extra prep and do well. Don’t believe everything you hear, I guess, but at my school the equivalent of “Math SL” is Honors Trig, AP Calc AB, and AP Stat (we don’t have an actual class for SL Math, we just take those courses). </p>
<p>I hear most people say AP Calc BC > Math SL and around Math HL. Further Math are for the true mathematicians. Math studies are lame</p>
<p>As others have said, Math Studies is a complete joke for those who either can’t handle or really don’t need math.</p>
<p>I think Math SL is roughly AP Calculus AB with a little statistics.</p>
<p>I took Math HL with the Calculus Option, and ended up taking the rough equivalent of AP Calculus BC with some Statistics. One difference is that IB Math HL doesn’t teach polar functions.</p>
<p>Further Mathematics HL is hardcore.</p>
<p>I tested for AP Calculus BC and IB Math HL and I found that the tests are very different. The AP test was pretty straightforward; plug-and-chug what you know and pick the best answer stuff with the exception of a few crazy problems that no one is supposed to understand. The IB test forced you to be creative because it presented unique problems that you’d never quite seen before that you had to apply your knowledge to, and there was no multiple choice so you had to be sure of yourself. </p>
<p>IB Math HL is extremely hard. </p>
<p>If you love Math it doesn’t have to be that bad, though. Math HL was the class I put the least effort because it was both easy for me and the work I did put in didn’t feel like work, and I ended up with a 5.</p>