<p>I am thinking about taking AP classes but I found another program. It is IB. I have no idea which one should I take now. As I heard from my tutor, I think that AP is more acceptable than IB. So I would like to see you guys' opinion about it.</p>
<p>you'll hear both... personally, as an IB student, i get a lot more work than my AP friends, and i think it is better preparation b/c we study how every subject interacts and are required to take Theory of Knowledge, do community service, and write an EE and it all leads to an IB diploma (assuming you are taking all 6 subjects or more)
if your school isnt an "IB school" you cant do IB though, im assuming yours is?
any decent college will know both, most say they dont have a preferance, its hard to know
for IB, you have to take all the classes and part of your score (on a 1-7 instead of 1-5 scale) is determined partially by some in class essays ect, instead of just one big test. for AP, you can "self-study," which is just picking up the AP book from barnes and noble and taking the test without taking AP classes (im doing this, as are a few other IB students I know)
its hard to compare the two though, b/c they are two different philosophies--while you can often get university credit for IB, thats not the point, the point is understanding (not just memorization) in a wide variety of subjects.
AP is more common in the US, although IB is pretty respected, and IB is def. more common abroad, and thus has a more international viewpoint, something i think is really important.</p>
<p>hoped that helped, sorry im so biased... honestly, i dont think AP is any less "acceptable" than IB... both are very good programs</p>
<p>If you like to pick and choose which advanced classes you want to take, do AP. If you prefer a structured set of classes, do IB. IB is not "harder," but it does involve a great deal more work. It is quite possible to do IB and take AP classes as well. </p>
<p>There are two types of IB classes- standard level (SL) and higher level (HL). Standard level courses take one year; higher level courses take two years and often cover more material their their AP counterparts. Only HL exams will get college credit, so it's a good idea to take the corresponding AP exams for SL classes. IB also includes a sort of capstone course called Theory of Knowledge (TOK), which functions somewhat as a philosophy course tying IB classes together. </p>
<p>There is also something called the IB Certificate, where you take three IB classes (instead of the usual 6), do 75 hours of community service (instead of the usual 150), and don't do the Extended Essay (4000 word essay). This allows you more freedom to choose which IB and AP classes you want to take. </p>
<p>If by "more acceptable" you mean that AP is more well-known, I would certainly agree. I was shocked to find that one of my state schools didn't know what IB was, although most top colleges do.</p>
<p>uh....it's about 2 times harder to get a perfect score on the IB exam then on the AP exam. I self-studied some AP subjects (cuz i'm IB) and did hecka well on it, while in IB tests I did not get asingle perfect score.</p>
<p>i know i am biased, but i have taken both courses and i think IB is slightly harder (at least the HL's) and demands a whole lot more work.</p>
<p>I was referring to the difficulty of the classes rather than the exams. I really don't think you could say that IB English is any more difficult than AP English, for example. The Oral Presentations and World Lit Papers may mean more work, but it's not more difficult. AP Physics is actually more rigorous than IB Physics HL because IB doesn't require you to know calculus. I took 7 IB exams (4 HL) and 8 AP exams and found the material to be much the same, although HL tended to go more in-depth (mostly due to the Options).</p>
<p>Do IB. There are not as many kids doing this program ... you would stick out among applicants.</p>
<p>I saw a lot of people were BIASED about this. I think both of these programs are equally GOOD. And don't be shocked if your school don't know what IB is.</p>
<p>Well then, you guys maight want to hear this fact:</p>
<p>There is no credit for people who don't complete IB courses and recieve IB diploma and who not taking HL class.</p>
<p>I actaully have skimed through people's resumes and looked for IB and AP courses that they were and are taking. 75% of them take AP classes and another 25% take IB classes. This is the truth and fact. Most students take AP classes.</p>
<p>I currently take AP classes. I want to say I'm not biased or anything. The fact that I've said earlier was the most common courses that people take.</p>
<p>Ah I don't mind if you think I'm biased.</p>
<p>It all depends. The coursework can be small or large depending on your school. Like they say, it's easy to be biased according to the course path the people replying are taking. (Therefore, you should take Advanced Placement programs instead of that Eurotrash substitute :) ) Just Kidding. It will not look any worse or better because colleges see these two programs as equivalents. So be a procrastinator and take the easier one.</p>
<p>Doesn't matter.</p>
<p>I agree with Gryffon5147</p>
<p>Everybody is baised according to the corse path that they are taking.</p>
<p>It is so true.</p>
<p>I'm taking both, and frankly like AP much better.</p>
<p>it's all about short-term vs. long-term </p>
<p>for AP, it's all about the exams and college credit; do less work (compared to IB), memorize the info, take the exam, get credit, DONE</p>
<p>for IB, it's more about actually understanding and not as much memorization, it's more about WHY and HOW rather than WHAT; there's relatively more work (compared to AP) and you can still get college credit</p>
<p>also, for IB you will have written a 4,000 word paper all by yourself by the time you graduate, which I think is pretty cool; THAT could definitely make you stand out in college admissions </p>
<p>for certain subjects, such as Math HL, IB is more about breadth than depth
Math HL covers Calc BC, but also complex numbers, probability distributions, etc.</p>
<p>I'm biased towards IB because I'm taking 7 IB classes this year, while you rarely hear of anyone taking more than 5 AP classes in one year, if even that many; also, with IB, i get to take a super-hard math class that according to my math teacher, less than 100 students around the world take =P</p>
<p>are you taking hl or fl?</p>
<p>hl about 250+ people take</p>
<p>fl about less than 75 people take</p>
<p>wait if you are taking 7 ib classes that means you are take fl ....welcome to the elite fl club. :)</p>
<p>You don't have to do community service if you are doing the certificate program. Though maybe they changed this since I completed mine.</p>
<p>Also there can be some leeway with the certificate, for example, I took for 4 certificate classes and received grades on all of them even though you are only supposed to be allowed to do 3. Though I did 2 HL and 2 SL.</p>
<p>Personally, while I agree there is a bias, those who say AP is just as good, are misinformed. Maybe for college admissions, they are weighed equally definately, but the fact that it is MUCH harder to do well on IB and the course load is more intensive proves that the difficulty level is higher. I think IB personally prepares you much more for life and college level classes. If you just want college level credit, than do AP. IB is administered as an international program and carries a lot of weight in the international community. All of the grading is external and international which means the curriculum you learn is the same across the globe. If you were doing full IB, I can't imagine taking AP classes on top unless they were THAT easy. Full IB is honestly a life style a lot of people get burnt out doing it. I do think that it may be more geared to a European/Intl. learning community where this is less emphasis on EC's and ultimately that is why I dropped Full IB and went down to certificate, because I was heavily involved in things outside the classroom as well. Anyway, this is my perspective, and I'm sure there are some really intense AP classes, but I would choose IB any day.</p>
<p>meg, you make quite a lot of generalizations...</p>
<p>i'm in full IB and i wouldn't consider myself burnt out....and i know a lot of people, including myself, that can balance full IB (with As) AND ECs</p>
<p>gqunit, thanks! i just call it further math, but i'm guessing fl is further level?</p>
<p>just wondering, what state/country are you in because so few people around the world take that class? i'm in MI</p>
<p>yup. further level. our teacher, however, isn't qualified to teach it right now so me and this one dude have to self-study it (which is ok, considering that it's my seventh test)</p>
<p>If you get the IB diploma it is definatly better than taking AP classes. IB is not offered at many schools so it is very prestigious.</p>
<p>AND IB has an international focus. I like international. You like?</p>
<p>I'm not making generalizations, I'm giving observations of people I have known and met who take full IB because it's a very large program at my high school. One person from my highschool took full IB and went to Yale and some people take a year off (or more) after completing. I didn't say EVERYONE gets burnt out, and you definately prove otherwise, but I know a lot of people that have and do.</p>