For senior IB students, do you believe the rigor of the program was recognized in the admissions process?
I think so; I believe that AP Capstone will be regarded similarly in the future, though.
i know for SUNY Binghamton, where my daughter went to, they can get anywhere form 24 to 32 credits for the IB Diploma (depending on scores)…so they definetly know that you are doing high level work and are able to succeed in college.
You also know how to study, prioritize, work on a big project, do community service, etcetc
I think some on-line college programs will also give 32 credits for IB and/or AP then some more credit for what you learn in life. So, if you have babysitting experience, they may give you child development credits. And you can get credit for all kinds of life experience. You have to pay for the credits but you use your life experience instead of having to put time into classes. Ultimately you can get an undergraduate degree without that much effort or time. I think there is enough new information to learn that I think college should be all about learning above the high school level (and lets face it, IB and AP are all high school level classes), so I support my own kids’ achieving as much as possible beyond the high school level. But it can be much cheaper to shave off as time as possible as long as the degree is conferred.
As a senior IB student, I’d like to say that colleges do understand the rigor of IB courses, but they also want to see that you do well in those classes despite that rigor.
After seeing my daughter’s college admissions and her decisions, we would both undoubtedly say yes. Having said that, half of her diploma class failed out by the beginning of senior year and she’s still wracking up A’s and high B’s and she’d do it all over again - that’s according to her. The only bummer right now is that 2 of her preferred colleges require a certain IB score which of course we won’t know until early July. If you are not applying Internationally that shouldn’t be a problem. Toronto gave her an unconditional as well, so Canadian schools are much like US schools it would seem.
Thanks so much everyone. I agree IB is great in terms of credits, I meant in terms of admissions decisions. I do agre that it was recognized in some ways, and by other schools not so much.
I believe IB diploma candidate was a big factor in my son getting into Brown and Cornell. His standardized tests scores were low, but he excelled in IB classes and felt well prepared for the exams he just finished. He feels it was worth it.
@collegemom16 My daughter was accepted to her #1 choice (The George Washington University) after applying test optional (no test school submitted). She is in the top of her class in a full IB program (3 standard level, 3 higher level, extended essay, theory of knowledge essay and mandatory IB final exams). She was admitted to the Elliot School of International Affairs, the University Honors Program and received the Presidental Academic Scholarship. Because she is not a good standardized test taker, we took how out of the very large public school system because we feared she’d fall through the cracks.
She knows she’ll have to take the LSAT for law school but her confidence has increased with the milestone of graduating from a super rigorous IB program and the benefits she earned throughout her 4 years (IB MYP and IB DP). Winning the Wellesley College Book Award and being selected to attend a rigorous summer program with a foreign affairs focus program (18 students chosen from 600+ applicants) at Yale University were just a few of the earned benefits. These benefits had nothing to do with her SAT/PSAT scores. They told me/the school’s college counselor that it was her performance in the IB program.
I am a junior in IB and feel like there is no light at the end of the tunnel. I arrive home and start homework as soon as possible and still sleep at 11:30- 12:30 most days. IB has consumed so much of my life, I lack time for extracurriculars. This week alone, I finished my EE, had a 36 page lab report in chemistry to write, and had my IOC to prep for as well. At this point, I feel like going to a regular public school would have been a much better option and allow me to spend ample amount of time on extracurriculars I am passionate about and still get healthy sleep levels.
@Harryp17 It is so worth it. My daughter applied to 9 colleges. These included UChigago, Georgetown, Yale, Amherst and Wellesley. With the exception of Amherst and Georgetown, each college seriously considered accepting her with WITH A 22/1660 on her ACT/SAT. Our college counselor spoke with each admissions officer and they could not stop bringing up how well she did in the IB (4.16 GPA) and the resume she built with the IB. When she advised Wellesley that she would like to be removed from their wait list their response was “are you sure because you have a very good chance of being chosen with your resume/IB rigor.”
This meant the world to my daughter.
Thats great to hear, i am hoping i can get into most of my schools with a 4.0 unweighted in ib and 35/1570 act sat. Thanks for all the encouraging advice
@Harryp17 A large part of her success was hearing the Vanderbilt admissions officer say “angle your resume to your major”. If you know what you want to study take a look at your resume and make sure the activities most prominently displayed are those that speak to your major/interests. My daughters resume detailed international affairs, politics and leadership activities which spoke directly to the Elliott School.
Thats great, i have a lot of activities related to the medical field on my resume. Thanks for all the advice.
the ib program really isn’t worth all the fuss that they make it up to be. Ap may be your best route and now that there are so many new options for specific fields under stem and other things that are similar ib just doesn’t seem like it is the golden ticket. The recruiters who will try and get you to join the ib school from middle school will tell you it isn’t all that much work but i can tell you these people lie to your face because as soon as you get there they pile on hours of homework per night. I am a junior and I have such little free time I haven’t met up with my friends in months, haven’t had a job and haven’t been able to just truly relax. Your life will begin to revolve around your school work. colleges also see that you left the IB program and that may raise some red flags for them. It is definitely a double edged sword because you lose so much free time, sleep, social interaction. If you have the option to try the program i would try it at a middle school before trying to jump right in but, even my friends who went to the IB middle school say that it didn’t prepare them well for the program. I currently have a 5.3 GPA weighted but i have to work my butt off every night. I have at least 2-3 hours per night and you don’t really get that much recognition for the amount of work required to finish the program. Parents don’t understand my mom just gets super pissed when i get anything below a B and just acts like it isn’t that hard. The curriculum doesn’t really align with college curriculum either. I have a low act score of a 24 after my first time taking it and you just feel like there is no time to prep at all. I guess the moral of the story is now what you are really getting in to before you indulge in the actual program. I would talk to current IB juniors and seniors who are similar to you and have same goals, interests, work ethic etc… Sorry that this is so long i just felt like i should help others avoid the same mistakes if the program is not right for you. Hope this helped 
From what I have seen, I would agree with alot of your assessment. The other issue is that I think if a student is looking at the hard sciences, AP is the preferred way to go. I think IB really prepared my D for college, but I think she would have had that period of adjustment the first semester and been able to do fine as well. Just my 2 cents, but I do agree with you.
I would add that the sciences issue is a problem for IB DIPLOMA kids maybe moreso in the USA. I know that certain kids will do multiple HLs outside of the diploma in some schools so they CAN do HL in 3 sciences PLUS math (whatever, or etc). The diploma as set up in some (many? All) US schools that obligate kids into 2 yrs (therefore mostly results in HL) of English and social studies in junior and senior year are the schools that punish science + math IBD kids. I didn’t even think of a kid opting to do multiple HLs and fill the gaps in with APs until after first kid was out of the program. How schools won’t call that most rigorous on a transcript, I don’t know. My kids’ school maintains that ONLY diploma kids get the most rigorous trick. I call BS. These kids come into HLs having already got 1, 2 or 3 sciences in AP via freshman and soph year. It Isn’t an either or for those kids. The diploma was meant to produce a more rounded curriculum, that doesn’t work for everyone.
At our high school you can’t take most of the AP or IB sciences without taking the first year honors class first so doing a bunch of AP sciences freshman and sophomore year is not possible. Agree that diploma program is somewhat limiting in that sense at US schools. My kid was pretty typical- HL Chem, HL English, HL Hota, SL Spanish, Math, Econ. Then she applied for chemistry at UK university and found they looked for HL math plus 2 sciences. Which would be very difficult at her school.
Hi! I’m am currently an IB diploma candidate senior and I just thought I’d share my thoughts. Everyone that I know that has graduated full or partial IB has said that college is so much easier because of it. However, I go to a school that offers IB but not AP so it is frustrating that the most classes I can take is 6, while kids at other schools are takin 8+ AP classes and potentially recieving credit for all of them. Although I am biased, do think that the IB program is more challenging than AP because of internal assessments, CAS, EE, etc. But I do think that whether or not I receive much college credit, I have gained the ability to manage school, varsity sports, clubs, and a part time job and feel very prepared for college. Let me know if you have any questions!
As the mother of an IB Diploma graduate and an engineering student - no, it wasn’t worth it. IB does not count more for engineering admissions than AP, it doesn’t count less either but watching the stress and workload of IB on some pretty solid students ratchet down their GPA - nope, not worth it.
My son on the other hand is extremely proud of his diploma, has his IB medal on his key ring, found his roommate first day of band class wearing his IB sweatshirt and beams when he talks about IB experiences. He doesn’t remember the pain and suffering in the fall of senior year. Kind of like childbirth - once it’s all over and you have a successful outcome, they forget the pain - but I was there watching and remember vividly.
AP if you’re going science/engineering - either if you’re going liberal arts.