Hi Guys. I am attending an IB Diploma program this year and my Course selection will be:
English HL
Spanish B
Biology SL
History HL
Business HL
Math Studies
I am concerned of whether I should choose SL or studies math. If I manage to get a 6 in studies, what could I expect on the SAT? Thanks in advance.
What is your intended college major. Most science or technical programs do not view math studies as sufficient and will want SL as a minimum. Others will require HL.
Math studies is a great course if you intend to major in art, humanities, and is okay even if not ideal for most social sciences. SL is perfect for business, economics, all social sciences, and okay even if not ideal for stem. HL is one of the hardest math courses.
Don’t forget to take the corresponding AP test for your SL 's since most colleges don’t give credit for SL but will if you get a good enough score on the AP or Sat subject test (especially Spanish).
Law
But isnt IT hard to score high on sat/ACT math with just studies?
NO, why should it?
SAT and ACT only includes a handful of precalculus questions, everything else is arithmetics, statistics, algebra, and geometry.
Thank you, sir. Have you taken the ACT?
If you can handle the course load, take Math SL, since universities also account the rigor of the courses you are taking. They like to see that you are pushing yourself and not settling in for a joy ride.
And related to the SAT, some topics could be of difficulty having taken studies: complex numbers, trigonometric identities, etc.
Just do what’s best for you!
Actually, the sweet thing about the IBD program is that its students automatically get the 'most rigorous ’ check mark. 
@Ibrookie : do you live abroad? Law isn’t a degree you study for right after high school in the US. If you’re aiming for law at a UK university’s, they couldn’t care less if you took sl or studies, but they I’ll care that you have three HL 's from English, History, Philosophy, Economics, or Ethics.
If for the US, what math classes have you reached and what grade did you get?
I would always recommend SL- I thought about taking Studs, but now that I’m in college I’m SOOO glad I didn’t. My credit actually counts for something with SL! And if you change your mind along the way about your major (which you probably will) it’s always better. And it would be easier to go from SL to studs vs. the other way around.
I’m in Math Studies, and I love it because it’s easy and comfortable. However, it hasn’t helped me raise my score on the math section of the SAT. Yes, the SAT is mostly algebra, but some of the trigonometry truly stumped me. I would recommend you take Math SL if you can handle it. If you are not good at math and would struggle to pass, take Math Studies and do some extra studying for the SAT. As for colleges, most do not give credit for SL courses.
This is a late post, but my daughter took math studies and she found it immensely helpful with ACT math. Of course, she prepped HARD and practiced daily for months to get her goal score, but she said IB math studies was super helpful.
She opted for studies so she could take full AP Calc BC her senior year and she is doing fine.
Please do Math SL! Universities look at course rigor
^ the advantage of doing the full ib diploma is that you automatically get ‘most rigorous’.
@MYOS1634 - Guidance counselors have to indicate in the school report whether the courses taken by are ‘most demanding’, ‘demanding’, ‘average’, etc.
So you might do the full IB Diploma, but there’s a big difference in someone taking harder subjects Higher Level
^Sorry, that’s the kind of one-upmanship adolescents engage in, but it’s not the way college admissions work. Yes, there is a review of your curriculum as “most demanding”, “very demanding”, “demanding”, and “less demanding”. The benchmark for “demanding” is typically what’s required for the college-prep minimal requirements (20 carnegie units, with 16 academic units at college prep level). IBD candidates are automatically considered in the “most demanding” curriculum. In terms of rigor estimation, there’s zero difference between students who elect to take Math studies SL and Philosophy HL, and students who elect to take Math HL and Philosophy SL, etc.
Now, where the difference plays a role is relative to your major. If you pick Math Studies and intend to major in business, stem, or economics, you have a problem. But if your goal is any other major, Math Studies is perfectly fine and, in fact, an excellent preparation for the type of math you’ll take in college (“math for citizenship”, etc.)
^^ You’re clearly experienced in the field and have an alternative approach to the discussion, but having spoken to admission officers and multiple IB coordinators, this is a discussion/clarification I’d like to probe further.
Since the process is holistic, there is no one deciding, defining scale for ‘rigor’ that applies to all schools. Although what all admission officers follow - to the best of my knowledge - is an evaluation of whether the applicant is one–selecting challenging courses and two–keeping an upward trajectory of maintaining/increasing course rigor.
While Math Studies is absolutely fine, in cases where math is not a prerequisite, it really depends on the course load of the previous program taken. For instance, from the IGCSE system, if the student has taken Math Extended or even Additional Math, he/she is expected to continue with an increasing trend.
Yale’s Undergraduate Admissions page has a good way of stating it. “When the admissions committee looks at your transcript, it will not focus on whether you have taken any specific course. It will be far more interested to see that you have challenged yourself with difficult coursework”
I’d like to highlight two important keywords in the above statement. First “specific course”, and next “coursework”. Applicable to the IBDP, the course is the diploma, and the coursework is well, obviously, the course selection. And you can see which they are clearly “far more interested” in.
Now, as far as the academic program is concerned, the IBDP surely adds to the rigor. The next step of verification of course rigor is whether the applicant is taking courses he/she feels challenged by. (again per the website)
For example, an applicant whose native language is French; if this student takes French AB Initio instead of B SL (or even A SL/HL), the weighting of the grade will hold less regard to say someone totally inexperienced in the language taking the same courseload.
In this sense, yes, courses taken does prevail over the academic program in terms of rigor. Even if taking the IBDP has perks of ‘difficult’ already.
Lastly, if you don’t believe the sources above, I’d like to take it from the IBO itself. “Most institutions do not set minimum required scores for IB students. They prefer to take into account a combination of course selection and performance… Additionally, many US institutions look at performance in individual IB courses rather than the collective point total.”
“combination of course selection”, “individual IB courses”, “rather than collective point total”. So you might have a 45 with Math Studies, French AB Initio (a less challenging courseload for someone who has taken both subjects in academic offerings before) compared to someone who has a collective point total of 45 with the same subjects but presumably Math Core in IGCSE or never taken French, etc. And the latter will get the advantage for challenging themselves.
So yes, there is a difference between someone taking the IBDP with the easiest course selection available compared to someone pushing themselves, not a “one-upmanship system”. Looking forward to hearing your views.
Sources:
But, see, that’s the beauty of the ibd : its rules guarantee rigor. You can’t take your native language ab initio. You cannot take 'studies ’ SL classes only. You have to write an extended essay - an independent study you turn into a college paper.
Sure, you can take a language ab initio, you can take math studies. You will have one more SL exam for intellectual well - roundedness. Then you will take THREE HL 's. No matter what you chose for SL.
It’s like taking three A-Levels… PLUS three AS courses, plus Independent Research plus Philosophy (tok). That’s why, no matter what you choose for SL you’re considered to have a 'most rigorous ’ curriculum. (if you don’t do ibd, only three HL’s, the situation is different, but you may still get the 'most rigorous ’ box checked if you also take 3-6 AP s on top of those.)