<p>I'm an 11th grade IB diploma student and I'm starting to think about colleges. I have a few questions (and I'm a bit clueless, so please excuse any stupid ones!):</p>
<p>1- how does doing the IB program affect college admissions? It must be seen as a positive thing, but how much will it help? Do they realize that getting 7s in all subjects in the IB is extremely hard and take that into account when looking at the grades?</p>
<p>2- Good old CAS provides several ECs. However, is it better to focus on doing things from Creativity, Action or Service? Will a college be more impressed by an involvement in a service activity than an action one? Do things that count for CAS (both long-term and short-term) automatically count as ECs too or is there a difference? Should you send in your CAS folder/journal to the colleges you apply to?</p>
<p>3- is it a good idea to write your extended essay in the subject you're considering majoring in in college? Is it a good idea to show your EE to your prospective colleges?</p>
<p>4- What colleges have the best IB policies? Theres a list on the IBO website stating the policy of lots of colleges, but it is so huge and would take ages to read though... I've heard that the University of Tulsa is generous to IB students; what other places are also?</p>
<p>Florida schools have a reputation of being generous as well. Many schools give credit for 5 or above in both SL and HL classes. Some schools do not. Some schools offer advanced placement. You can check this on the web sites of schools you may be interested in. You have plenty of time to surf around and consider your choices. </p>
<p>You can send you EE if it highlights something you are truly interested in and highlights your research ability. Best to ask schools if they are interested in seeing it or not. Some may be interested and some may not.</p>
<p>I don't think it is necessary to send your CAS folder/journal but when you begin to think about what you have been doing in HS, you may want to put some or all of the activities on your resume depending on how important they have been to you. It may be hard to distinguish between what is purely creativity, action or service. Many activities fall into or cross straddle all categories. </p>
<p>I believe that schools are interested in seeing that you have taken the hardest course of studies offered at your school. The IB is one program that would definitely qualify.</p>
<p>SCREW ib waste of four years.....and i'm also dying doing my extended essay i've had to start over about four times.....I wish i would've just taken ap classes...and it barely helps when it comes to college admissions.</p>
<p>Well an admissions officer from UPenn recently came to my school, and she specifically asked us to raise our hands if we were doing the IB diploma (my school offers AP as well) </p>
<p>I think its not so much that the IB is <code>beneficial</code> for admissions.
its more of a MUST if your school offers it.</p>
<ol>
<li>IB is definitely a boost as far as college admissions goes, but it alone will definitely not get you in automatically or anything like that. The top colleges want to see that your are taking the most rigorous courseload available, so in this respect it will improve your application just as programs like AP do. Most importantly, you must realize that standardized test scores, grades, extracurriculars and personal statement are still very important.</li>
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<p>Keeping this in mind, I think it is ridiculous to say that IB is totally useless and a waste of four years. The truth is that the majority of IB students complain a lot during the program, just as some of the above posters seem to be doing. It's been my experience that, in the end, the majority of IB graduates—even many of those who didn't receive the diploma—are very glad that they went through the program. This is partly because of the boost in college admissions and college credit, but more importantly for the college preparation that it provides better than perhaps any other program.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>I probably wouldn't send CAS stuff to colleges—it's a lot of paperwork and you can always incorporate it into the personal statement. I'd recommend that you don't worry too much about CAS hours. In general, the extracurriculars and volunteer work that you are probably doing for college applications will already cover CAS. The 150 hours seems like a lot, and it seems complicated with all of the categories, but I think you will find that there is a ton of overlap. There are lot of things that count for CAS that you might not realize also. Many of my classmates ended up with over a thousand hours because the activities with which they were already involved counted for CAS.</p></li>
<li><p>That can be a good idea, but it's certainly not necessary. Pick something you are truly passionate about. In all of my college interviews my extended essay was something I could easily talk about and the interviewers seemed pretty impressed. As far as showing your EE to college admissions people, I would do so particularly if you are applying to a special college or program. For example, if you are applying to an engineering school or program it could definitely be advantageous to show them a science- or engineering-related EE that is very professional and of high quality. It really depends on the specific college, major, and EE, though.</p></li>
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<p>SCREW ib waste of four years.....and i'm also dying doing my extended essay i've had to start over about four times.....I wish i would've just taken ap classes...and it barely helps when it comes to college admissions.</p>
<p>IB is 2 years long here and it is a helluva load of heavy and difficult work...and I really like it. I love all subjects that I do and the emphasis that is put on your responsability and how you study what you like...I am a Junior in high school, first year of IB, I saw that Stanford gives good credits for IB, and IB seems to prepare exceptionally well for university. The EE is a sample of what you should be doing in the last year of university with your own research papers etc.</p>
<p>hey, i'm currently an IB senior too in an international school, so our counseling department has reviewed questions like yours over and over. i'll try my best to answer them.</p>
<p>1- In effect, the IB really isn't much unless you're applying to the top tier schools. Schools in the second tier won't recognize the IB because it's more european based rather than american based. Top tier schools do realize how rigorous the program is, and a few of them do prefer the IB over the AP because of the amount of writing that is in the program. Your IB scores won't matter much anyways, because you take the exams in june. However, if you do take exams as a junior, make sure you do well on them. Each school will convert your scores accordingly with their own system.</p>
<p>2- There is no need for you to send in your CAS folder. A more focused and committed EC is better than a broad, superficial number of ECs.</p>
<p>3- Unless the colleges ask for it (I know Northwestern does), sending your EE in isn't going to do a lot. In that case, no, you don't need to write it on your college major. The EE is intended for you to explore an area of your interest, not for college.</p>
<p>4- If you really want the MOST out of your IB, try the Canadian schools. UBC gives the most credit; they give credit for your SL courses! Others include UToronto and McGill. That's a big difference, because in the States, they only give you credit for HL courses in which you've received either 6/7.</p>