Ib Vs Ap: What’s The Same
Both the AP and IB programs allow you to take a challenging course followed by an exam that you can earn college credit for. In some schools, they’re even the same course .
AP and IB are generally the most challenging courses available to high school students. Unless you’re able to sign up for local college courses or do advanced independent projects and research, AB and IB are likely the best way for you to begin preparing for college.
How Many International Students Are There
Westbourne is a distinctly British smaller school with 300 students. This enables to provide exceptional academic attention and pastoral care to each and every student.
- 72% of our students are British
- 16% are from Europe
- 12% from Asia.
Across our international student body, no one nationality dominates, we currently have 25 different nationalities amongst the international student community.
Key Differences Between Ib And Ap
Both the AP and IB programs offer challenging courses to high school students that you can earn college credit while doing. However, their philosophies and goals are quite different.
The AP program was developed in the United States to help high school students prepare for college by taking advanced courses, with no set program of courses. Students could take just one or even a dozen AP classes, depending on their school, schedule, and goals.
In contrast, IB was developed in Switzerland to be an internationally recognized diploma. To earn the diploma, you have to take a certain number of courses in a range of subjects. It is possible to take just a few IBs without earning the diploma, but IB was developed to be a set program of courses.
Now, let’s go over five key ways the two programs differ from each other.
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Ap Is Much More Popular Than Ib
The IB program is far less common than AP. More than 2.8 million students took AP exams in 2019, but only about 166,000 took IBs. Furthermore, AP reported in 2014 that over 30% of US public high students took at least one AP exam.
While AP is quite widespread, the IB program is rarer since schools have to be able to offer enough classes for the diploma in order to host an IB program. Adding IB is often more costly than starting a few AP classes.
As An Ib World School We Prepare For Your Ib Studies And Help You Achieve Up To 2 Igcse Qualifications
The IGCSE adds to the scope and quality of our Pre-IB provision. The key benefits include:
- Excellent preparation for the IB Diploma: If you are selected to take the IGCSE in Maths, you will gain a recognised qualification in Maths and be equipped for our 2 new IB Maths courses Analysis and Approaches and Applications and Interpretation
- Complements progression to the IB Diploma: Our IGCSE award in English either as a native and non-native speaker, enables you to be fully prepared for either our Group 1 or Group 2 course offering at IB level
- Flexible course options: the majority of students will be able to access one of our IGCSE English courses. More able mathematicians will also be able to access our IGCSE Maths course
- IGCSE awards: You can take up to 2 IGCSE qualifications. Our next cohort starts in September 2021
- Prestigious awarding body: Cambridge Assessment is a quality provider of the IGCSE
- Benefits future career aspirations: A specialist qualification in Maths and English complements university applications, supports professional development and strengthens career prospects IGCSEs are recognised by employers worldwide.
Compulsory subjects:
Optional subjects:
- You will select 3 of each per semester . We offer 4 Humanities subjects, 4 Sciences and 4 Arts subjects .
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Recap: Determining Whether Ap Vs Ib Is A Better Fit For You
Taking either AP or IB classes will look very good on your college applications, as it shows you’re challenging yourself with college-level courses. There’s no real preference or benefit from doing one program or the other, as long as you do well in your chosen courses.
As one admission officer at Northwestern stated, “One qualification is not better than another.”
However, you want to make sure that you are doing well in your classes and not overloading. There’s no point in taking 10 AP classes or the IB diploma if you get a low GPA and don’t pass the exams.
Finally, you want to be sure that other parts of your application are strong, especially your ACT/SAT score. Along with your transcript and GPA, your ACT/SAT score can have an enormous impact on your admission chances, especially at selective schools.
Do Ib Or Ap Classes Have Better Teachers At Your School
Does your school have the same or different teachers for AP and IB courses? What are their reputations? The quality of a teacher can make or break your experience in a class.
You can ask upperclassmen about their experience in certain classes, or see if there is a way you can look at syllabi from current and past years for AP and IB classes.
You can also ask your guidance counselor about the exam pass rates for different teachers. This can give you a sense of a class’s reputation and how many students are successful.
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Can Ib Students Give Jee
Engineering/IIT Entrances: IB® students are eligible to appear for the Engineering entrances like IIT JEE. They can appear for the entrance test even before their final DP exams and their admission on qualifying the entrance will be provisional subject to minimum equivalent 60% marks in PCM.
What is the IB test?
Assessment and Exams. The International Baccalaureate® assesses student work as direct evidence of achievement against the stated goals of the Diploma Programme courses.
Is the IB difficult?
You will also need to write an Extended Essay , participate in Theory of Knowledge and indulge in Creativity, Activity and Service . IB is one of the most demanding courses that one can attend for their high school. The intensity of IB is one of the factors which makes it appear difficult.
Ib Exam Changes Due To Covid
Because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the IB has decided to extend the adaptations which were put in place for 2021 to 2022. May 2022 IB assessments will have two routes, exam and non-exam, depending on which your school chooses. Stay up to date with the latest information on what this means for IB diplomas, course credit for IB classes, and more with our our IB COVID-19 FAQ article.
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What Do Colleges Think Of Ib And Ap
As it turns out, colleges don’t automatically consider AP or IB harder or more impressive on a transcript. Since IB is a rarer program, they can’t penalize students for not taking it. Plus, there are huge differences in how both AP and IB courses are taught and graded at high schools across the country.
Because of the differences in IB/AP course grading, collegesespecially the most selective onesjust want to see that you have taken the most challenging course load available at your school. So instead of worrying about AP versus IB, you should worry about taking the most rigorous classes your high school offers.
For example, Princeton says on its admissions website, “Whenever you can, challenge yourself with the most rigorous courses possible, such as honors, Advanced Placement , and dual-enrollment courses. We will evaluate the International Baccalaureate , A-levels, or another diploma in the context of the program’s curriculum” .
Princeton is more interested in how hard your schedule is considered at your school rather than whether you chose AP or IB.
So if your high school just has APs, then you should take some AP classes. If your high school has just the IB program, you should take some IB classes or, even better, go for the diploma. If your high school has both, you can take a mix.
How Do They Fit With Your Scheduling And Extracurriculars
Would doing the IB diploma prevent you from a certain extracurricular, such as yearbook, debate, or band? Are APs and IBs offered as the same class at your school? Are you ready to commit to an IB diploma, or would you prefer the flexibility of AP classes?
These are questions you should consider before signing up for either AP or IB classes. Ask your high school if they have suggested four-year plans for advanced students. This will give you an idea of what your schedule might look like and how it could conflict with any extracurriculars you want to participate in.
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What Is The Difference Between Ib And Ap
Whereas AP exams are typically all or mostly multiple choice, IB exams are mostly written, essay-based. IB classes tend to have a wider worldview as well, making you read loads of foreign books, learn foreign history, and study a foreign language.
AP classes focus more heavily on the test material. IB is a more well-rounded education, in my opinion, because you’re required to submit a written component that will count toward your ultimate IB score in addition to taking the exam at the end of the course.
For example, for science classes, you must complete extensive lab reports. Meanwhile, for history, you are required to do an extensive report on a specific subject that aligns with the history you’re learning about, and you get to choose the topic you write about. I learned about European history, and my report focused specifically on Allied prisoners of war in Europe in WWII.
In terms of popularity, IB is far less popular than AP in the United States. In 2019, 2.8 million students took AP exams, with around 2.7 million of these being in the US. By contrast, only about 166,465 students took IB exams in May 2019, and 88,000 of those were in the US.
IB is also more expensive than AP classes. For IB, there’s a $119 fee per exam . Though this is a lot of money, it’s much less than the tuition you would pay for the same intro-level college course.
Ask your local IB school what their policy is by calling or emailing the IB coordinator .
What Is Ib An Overview
The International Baccalaureate program was designed in Switzerland in the 1960s. Its purpose was to give students around the world a chance to earn a rigorous, internationally recognized diploma, which they could then use for entry into universities.
To earn an IB Diploma, you have to go to an IB-approved school and meet the requirements, which include taking classes in the six subject groups, passing the IB exams, and completing three additional core requirements.
But what if you don’t want to do the Diploma? It’s also possible to take a few IB classes without doing the full-blown Diploma Programme, though each high school has its own policy on this.
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What Is The International Baccalaureate Program
You’ve probably heard of this thing called IB, or International Baccalaureate. You might have heard that it’s kind of like the Advanced Placement, or AP, program.
I myself am a recipient of an IB Diploma from Suncoast Community High School in Riviera Beach, Florida. I know the program from the inside out. In this article, I’ll give you a factual overview of IB as well as my opinions.
Delivering A Powerful Continuum Of Student
The IB continuum of programmes are designed to develop well-rounded individuals who can respond to todays challenges with optimism and an open mind.
For over 50 years, our four programmes provide a solid, consistent framework and the flexibility to tailor students education according to their culture and context.
IB programmes enable teachers to develop resilient, self-motivated young people who have the knowledge, skills, and sense of purpose they need to thrive throughout their lives and contribute to making the world a better place.
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Where Can You Take Ib Classes And Get An Ib Diploma
You can take IB classes and get an IB Diploma at many local schools.
Currently, there are 942 IB Diploma Programme schools in the United States alone. In total, 5,263 schools around the world offer IB programs. This includes the Diploma Programme as well as the career program and programs specifically for elementary and middle school students.
You can also take certain IB classes online through Pamoja Education.However, you cannot get your IB Diploma online because Pamoja does not offer any Group 4 classes.
Will IB be useful in college?
The Complete List Of Ib Courses And Classes
What are all the International Baccalaureate courses available to take? Here, we give you the complete list of all Standard Level and Higher Level IB classes.
Every IB school is different, so your own school might not offer all the IB courses below. However, these are all the classes the IB has created a curriculum and test for. There are in total 57 classes . I have categorized them by the categories that the IB defines as the six subject groups.
Here’s a you can use to jump to the different subject groups:
To receive your IB Diploma, you must take classes from all six categories. Note that you may study an additional science, individuals and societies, or languages course instead of an arts course. You must also complete what is known as the core, which includes an additional class called Theory of Knowledge .
I’ll dive into more detail on each below.
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Should You Change Schools For Ib
We’ve talked about deciding between AP and IB at the same school. But what if your local high school doesn’t offer IB and you’re considering switching to a school that does?
Remember to consider the time it will take to commute!
I had to make this decision myself. My district had three high schools, but only one offered the IB program. That high school was pretty far away from my neighborhood, but it drew tons of students specifically for the IB program, and a lot of my friends were going there because they wanted to get into good colleges. I strongly considered going to that high school just so I could do the IB program.
I eventually decided to go to my neighborhood high school that offered only APs. Going to the other high school would have involved at least an hour of commuting each day, and it would have strained my family’s schedule.
Since I saved time by not commuting, it was actually easier to get involved in after-school extracurriculars like debate and Model United Nations. I was also able to keep taking piano lessons and doing service workactivities I had done since I was littlebecause my schedule wasn’t squeezed by commuting.
Because I took the most challenging program available at my high school, I didn’t hurt my admission chances. In fact, I might have improved them by having more time for extracurriculars.
Looking for help studying for your AP exam?
What Are Ib Exams
For each of those six core classes, you also have to take an IB exam.IB exams are given in May . They have two parts: an external assessment and an internal assessment.
The external assessment is the more traditional exam portion and consists of two or three “papers,” typically done on the same day or a few days in a row. A paper is essentially an exam section, and they usually have a combination of multiple-choice, short-answer, extended-response, and data- or case-analysis questions.
You won’t spend much time bubbling in answers on an IB exam.
The papers are graded by independent examinerssimilar to how AP exams are graded by certified AP graders.
The internal assessments, however, are done by the teacher. These can include oral presentations, practical work , or other written work. Around 5% or more of the internal assessments will also be graded by a moderator appointed by the IB, and based on this moderation, the grading curve of that subject at the school will be set.
IB exams are graded on a scale of 1-7, with 6 and 7 considered an A, and anything 4 and up generally considered a passing score . Most colleges give IB credit for scores of 5 and higher.
To earn the IB Diploma, you need to score an average of 4 on each exam to get the minimum 24 needed points. You can learn more about IB exams on the IB website.
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Ib Vs Ap: What’s Different
Although both programs offer challenging courses for high school students, there are a lot of differences in how they do so.
Popularity
Advanced Placement is by far the more popular program. In 2019, 2.8 million students took AP tests.
By contrast, only about 166,000 students took IB exams in May 2019. The Diploma pass rate was 77.81%. Some families opt for the IB program over the AP program as it’s rarer and can help set students apart in the admission process.
Diploma
IB was designed as a diploma program . Meanwhile, the AP program was designed around advanced classesnot a diploma.
Class Curricula
IB curricula are stricter for teachers. IB has certain required assignments your teacher has to grade, such as oral presentations, as part of the internal assessment. In contrast, AP teachers have a bit more freedom in how they may teach an AP course, just so long as they’re effectively preparing students for the exam.
Difficulty
IB Higher Level courses are often considered more difficult than APs, whereas IB Standard Level courses are considered the same as or easier than APs. Keep in mind that how difficult a class is to pass at your school will vary depending on the teacher and their curriculum.
Exam Content
IB exams contain more writing and application of ideas, whereas APs are more about proving what you know. This is why AP exams have more multiple choice, while the IB exams feature more short-response questions, essays, and case studies.
Cost
College Credit