I’ll be in 8th grade this fall. I want to start looking at potential classes for highschool, but I’m not sure what is the difference between AP, honors, IB program. What are the best options to in order for me to land in top of my class and get a high GPA. I should say how do they do it. I know all top students get better opportunities when applying for financial aid. Any advice?? I’m a fast learner, but don’t want to aim too high then not handle it.
Honors/Gifted classes are basically just harder versions of what everyone else is learning. Usually gifted classes are the slightly higher high school level classes, then honors, then CP. If you want to be ahead, try taking gifted or honors instead of Cp because it’s more challenging and Colleges will look at that.
AP, however, is a different ballpark all together. Advanced Placement classes are equivalent to college classes, and can count for college credit if you pass the exam. AP human geography is a good place to start, because it’s a relatively easy class (I took it back in freshman year and got a 5 on the exam >:D< ). I would definitely recommend taking AP classes if you want to get ahead, and colleges definitely notice them.
Additionally, most schools know that AP classes are harder, so they usually add weight to your grade, so your GPA doesn’t suffer. Since you’re a fast learner, I’m sure you can handle it (maybe start with one AP like human or environmental freshman year?), but if you’re still unsure, you could take the psat in October and see what your AP potential is from the College Board (best website ever).
IB, or International Baccalaureate, I don’t know much about because I don’t think my school offers it. You could probably check ibo.org for more information.
Hope this helps! 
It all depends on the high school. I don’t totally agree with @FourWalls727 about honors classes only being harder versions of regular classes. At my school, honors classes are more like college level classes. I took 2 AP exams at the end of my junior year (while taking no AP classes, only honors) and I’m not going to lie, they were pretty easy. I’ve also taken real college classes, and I don’t see how AP classes can say that they are “college level.” They’re definitely not as hard as college classes that I’ve taken based on the AP tests.
It is true that usually, if a school offers both honors and AP classes, then AP would be the way to go since it is often more rigorous. At my school, however, honors classes are weighted just as much as APs are at other schools.
If you can find a school with an IB program, I’d say that’s the way to go. Since you have to dedicate all 4 years of high school to it, it shows much more than taking scattered AP classes. The IB classes are also, in my opinion, more equivalent to college level classes than AP classes are.
There has been a lot of research conducted by top universities (Stanford included) about the uselessness of AP classes and how they have gone downhill; now their more about teaching a test than teaching a valuable curriculum. But if you are truly interested in an AP class, go for it.
Here’s a link about the Stanford research
https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2013/04/23/new-study-challenges-popular-perceptions-ap
Just to put it into perspective: I come from a school that doesn’t offer any AP classes. However, the honors classes are so rigorous at my school that students have very high ACT and SAT scores. For example, although getting a 33 on the ACT is in the 99th percentile for the country, it is about the 90th percentile for my school. Colleges will look at your course rigor in respect to what your high school offers; if your school doesn’t offer AP classes, they won’t expect any to be on your transcript.
So, in short, one cannot blindly say that AP courses are better or worse than honors or IB programs. You have to discover that with concern to the school. First, find a school with a great reputation and then take it from there. Don’t find a school that offers AP classes and then show up there and find out that it has a terrible rep.
One thing that many people are naïve about on this site is the fact that honors classes do not have a set curriculum; however, AP classes do. That’s why one can’t say that an AP class will be harder than an honors class. At my school, I’ve learned more in my honors classes than any of my friends have in their AP classes. Take that for what it’s worth.
Wow @ap012199, your school is pretty different from the schools in my area. Our honors classes aren’t rigorous enough while our ap classes are VERY rigorous. I guess it varies from place to place.
Anyway, @Guschavez rigorousness varies from school to school, like ap012199 said. Depending on the school, both ap and honors classes could be the way to go. Just look at the difficulty once you enter freshman year, and decide your path from there.
@FourWalls727 is right about that. It really depends on the school; there is no set hierarchy for honors/AP/IB classes.
I’m at a school where both AP and IB are offered. It really just matters on what your circumstances are. IB tests are much more expensive to take ($300) while each AP is about $100. See if your school district has funding or a grant. For example, at my school the IB tests are free.
AP tests are scored from 1-5
IB tests are scored from 1-7
Note, I take both AP and IB courses
If you plan on going to a local school (Division 2, JuCo, NAIA, etc) I would recommend taking AP courses. They tend to transfer over better at the local level. If you want to go to Ivy League or other top schools it doesn’t really matter if you take IB, AP, or a mix…just make sure your course load is rigorous.
There are some great scholarships for IB. For example, the university of Nebraska has a very good scholarship for students with an “IB Diploma”. ($56,000 and 28 credit hours). AP also can count for college credit
Here is a link to it, just scroll down until it says IB
http://admissions.unl.edu/why-unl.ASPX
In terms of actual workload, I find that IB courses have substanicouly more homework than AP courses.
Also, there are multiple levels of IB courses. There is “HL” (the hardest level), “SL” (second hardest level), and “Studies” (DO NOT take studies, they are not accepted for credit at many institutions). In addition, most IB courses are 2 year courses, unlike AP, which is 1 year.
Just keep in mind
-what colleges you are looking at
-scholarships/credits
-which teachers are teaching the course
Reply for Neil MO — What advice can you give me. I’m heading to 8th grade. I just got my azmerit scores and got perfect on math and almost perfect on reading. What can I start doing now to give me better opportunities in highschool? I really need scholarships.