Hi, I am a recent international graduate from highschool who wants to apply to U.S. colleges and universities (esp. top universities) at the end of this year in order to begin clases in late august 2016. My past highschool system was the hardest in my country so I got a GPA of 3.3 (out of 4) which is a very low grade for the colleges I’d like to get into. I am currently making a decision whether or not to take the IB DP to get high grades and offset my highschool grades. The problem is that I want to complete it in just one year because my family have decided I won’t have more than one year from now for high school programmes. Would it be possible to tell my future-school coordinator to negotiate with the IB Organization in order to let me complete the IB DP in one year? That is, to take the first 2 semesters examinations in november, and the take the last 2 semesters examinations in May 2016. I would have the time, because I do not have any duties as a graduate from highschool who hasn’t enrolled at any university. Also at my past highschool I learned college level sciences (physics, chemistry, and maths) so science and math courses wouldn’t be a hard task for me ( I have earned medals at international competitions in physics and math). Thank you! I’ll appreciate every reply!
“I have earned medals at international competitions in physics and math”
Then maybe your GPA is not as much of a barrier as you think.
Pay a visit to the closest office of EducationUSA, and ask the counselors there for their advice in your situation. They will be able to tell you which colleges and universities here have admitted students with your profile. https://educationusa.state.gov/find-advising-center
I’m going to be a Year 2 IB student, so I have a year of experience with the IB program. I’m not sure if the IBO will grant this request, since I haven’t heard of a precedent. Additionally, the EE, CAS, and all of the IAs do build up over time. Honestly, I think your grades are fine where they are, especially with all of your medals. Don’t try to take IB in one year or you’ll go insane.
The exams themselves are given twice a year, in May and in November. However, the courses require additional components for assessments which are completed over 1-2 years, depending on whether the course is an SL or HL class. I cannot imagine that the IBO would permit a student to compress the requirements of a 2 year HL class into a single year, nor can I imagine how a student would complete the various internal written and oral assessments for the courses in a year.
In the US, the diploma demonstrates to colleges that a student has taken the most rigorous curriculum available. If there are other ways to demonstrate that, then the diploma itself would be less significant, as a single factor, in college decisions.