Talk to me about the IB degree/program
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Anonymous
| I'm trying to understand how it works and why it opens up more options for attending university outside of the U.S. Is attending a university in Europe or Canada not possible with an American HS diploma? TIA! |
Anonymous
| You do not need an IB diploma to apply to international schools. European Universities are well versed in dealing with applications from students outside of Europe. Your child’s grades will be what really matters. Extra curricular activities have no importance when applying to an international university. For example, we lived in Germany for many years. Most Germans do not attend IB International Schools. My children attended an IB school and their German peers who attended were all incredibly wealthy and most planned on attending university in the US or the UK (they attended so that their English would be perfect). Certainly there were those who applied to schools in Germany and the Netherlands. This is when their IB exam score came into play. It is the exam score, more than the IB degree that matters. Most Germans who are planning on going to university will attend gymnasium (secondary school) and then take the Abitur (a very difficult college entrance exam). That being said, there are many benefits to an IB school. Especially if your child starts in the PYP (primary school) and MYP (middle school). The teaching methodology is very different from how most US schools teach. If your child is interested in attending school in another country, they should do their best to get good grades and should really work in becoming fluent in the language of the country they want to study in. Hope this helps! |
Anonymous
|
I just stumbled across this thread because DD wants to study in the UK or Germany but will be graduating with a regular HS diploma. Does she need any additional testing to apply to German universities? Since she's fluent, can she apply to any university program regardless of language? I don't know how she would prove fluency since it wasn't her HS language. What other considerations might there be?
TIA - we're very new to this and don't know how to navigate this. Her HS counselor doesn't seem well versed in applying internationally. |
Anonymous
| For UK schools call the admissions departments of the schools she’s interested in. Back in the day I found them to be much more straightforward than US schools about entry expectations. The school I was interested in used a conversation table for US scores to A-levels. They told me what exams to take and what marks to get. |
Anonymous
| Are you in DC? Talk to WIS. Their admissions team is very approachable IME. |
Anonymous
| IBD is not a requirement for international Unis but it was originally designed for families of international diplomats and workers. |
Anonymous
So that international Unis are well aware of the curriculum. |
Anonymous
| WIS will only know the IB side. Call the universities on your daughter's list to learn whether or not the IB is favored |
Anonymous
| Also about if there are language documentation requirements for the German programs |