WL IB vs McLean HS is it really just demographics

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Can anyone speak to Aps WL IB vs McLean High School? We have an all A student coming from a Loudoun middle school, and we are moving close in because of work. We are looking at two neighborhoods zone for WL or McLean. My spouse likes the IB program and things it’s even better than the AP focused McLean path. I’m a little worried about the size of WL and the low GS scores (which I admit are probably from demographics, but hard to puzzle out college readiness and acceptance only by a program at a high school vs a whole high school).

Is WL IB have the same academics as Mclean? The whole AAP thing seems to set FCPS as a place that really emphasizes differentiation. Does that continue in high school; so you have to meet certain benchmarks to be on AP at McLean? One of my concerns is the WL IB accepts any student who wants to take it, rather than having a qualifying exam or something, and even more so in their AP courses they encourage all students to take AP so they can claim “X amount graduate with AP credit”.

Anyone move from one to the other?

You can also look at Marshall HS, which has IB. Its boundaries are adjacent to McLean's. I believe the City of Falls Church is also IB.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Only about 100 IB grads at W-L each year who do the full program. W-L has both IB and AP. It’s a bigger and more diverse school and certainly well regarded. It’s more of an urban school where Mclean is very suburban and has a larger attendance zone too. W-L has a more down to earth atmosphere because of the population.

WL is not urban. Central Arlington is very suburban.

WL is most definitely urban.

Kids live close to Metro (blocks). Walkable. Head into DC on their own often.

Just listen to the sirens that go all day long---it is much more a city these days than a suburb.

[Anonymous]

When APS made the plans to replace the old W-L with a new building, they weren't anticipating as many kids. So they built a school designed for fewer kids than the one it was replacing, designed to maximize its location near the Ballston Metro. It's very congested with limited parking. First they dealt with the inevitable overcrowding by moving kids to Wakefield, but that's going to overcrowd Wakefield, so they are moving kids back to W-L and converting the AEC into an auxiliary with space for another 600 kids. What APS really needs is a fourth comprehensive high school but the will to make that happen isn't there.

[Anonymous]

Just call the guidance office at both schools and ask your questions.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just call the guidance office at both schools and ask your questions.

No guidance counselor will compare their academics with another school especially another school district.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just call the guidance office at both schools and ask your questions.

No guidance counselor will compare their academics with another school especially another school district.

No, but they will tell you about their school and what they offer, as well as the policies regarding classes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:WL IB does not accept anyone that wants to take it. You have to be accepted into the program. Quite a large percentage of students in 11/12 take partial IB. They take IB in 4 or so classes and then take AP classes or Dual Enrollment classes to fill out their schedule. Not to burst your bubble, but an all A student at W-L is quite common.

If you are in zone for W-L, you can enroll in the IB diploma program by right. DC is a senior in the program now. It is crazy crazy intense, but the college admission bump is out of this world. Not sure it was worth it in retrospect, but DC has gotten incredible college admissions results so far.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:WL IB does not accept anyone that wants to take it. You have to be accepted into the program. Quite a large percentage of students in 11/12 take partial IB. They take IB in 4 or so classes and then take AP classes or Dual Enrollment classes to fill out their schedule. Not to burst your bubble, but an all A student at W-L is quite common.

If you are in zone for W-L, you can enroll in the IB diploma program by right. DC is a senior in the program now. It is crazy crazy intense, but the college admission bump is out of this world. Not sure it was worth it in retrospect, but DC has gotten incredible college admissions results so far.

Congratulations to your DC. McLean also has very good college admissions for a NoVa public.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:WL IB does not accept anyone that wants to take it. You have to be accepted into the program. Quite a large percentage of students in 11/12 take partial IB. They take IB in 4 or so classes and then take AP classes or Dual Enrollment classes to fill out their schedule. Not to burst your bubble, but an all A student at W-L is quite common.

If you are in zone for W-L, you can enroll in the IB diploma program by right. DC is a senior in the program now. It is crazy crazy intense, but the college admission bump is out of this world. Not sure it was worth it in retrospect, but DC has gotten incredible college admissions results so far.

Not exactly. You don't have to apply for "Pre IB" in 9th-10th but do have to meet the pre-reqs to be in the diploma program even if it's your home school

Prerequisites for the IB Diploma Program
Algebra II (preferably intensified) or greater in 10th grade. Less than Intensified Algebra II will greatly limit potential IB Diploma Program scheduling options.
Spanish, French, Arabic, Chinese or Latin IV in 10th grade
A’s and B’s in all subjects (7th-10th grade)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:WL IB does not accept anyone that wants to take it. You have to be accepted into the program. Quite a large percentage of students in 11/12 take partial IB. They take IB in 4 or so classes and then take AP classes or Dual Enrollment classes to fill out their schedule. Not to burst your bubble, but an all A student at W-L is quite common.

If you are in zone for W-L, you can enroll in the IB diploma program by right. DC is a senior in the program now. It is crazy crazy intense, but the college admission bump is out of this world. Not sure it was worth it in retrospect, but DC has gotten incredible college admissions results so far.

Not exactly. You don't have to apply for "Pre IB" in 9th-10th but do have to meet the pre-reqs to be in the diploma program even if it's your home school

Prerequisites for the IB Diploma Program
Algebra II (preferably intensified) or greater in 10th grade. Less than Intensified Algebra II will greatly limit potential IB Diploma Program scheduling options.
Spanish, French, Arabic, Chinese or Latin IV in 10th grade
A’s and B’s in all subjects (7th-10th grade)

Interesting. I see this on W-L's IB page. Not that many FCPS students complete a fourth year of a foreign language by 10th grade, and the IB schools there don't suggest it is a pre-requisite. W-L seems to like promoting its IB diploma program as a "school within a school."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:WL IB does not accept anyone that wants to take it. You have to be accepted into the program. Quite a large percentage of students in 11/12 take partial IB. They take IB in 4 or so classes and then take AP classes or Dual Enrollment classes to fill out their schedule. Not to burst your bubble, but an all A student at W-L is quite common.

If you are in zone for W-L, you can enroll in the IB diploma program by right. DC is a senior in the program now. It is crazy crazy intense, but the college admission bump is out of this world. Not sure it was worth it in retrospect, but DC has gotten incredible college admissions results so far.

Not exactly. You don't have to apply for "Pre IB" in 9th-10th but do have to meet the pre-reqs to be in the diploma program even if it's your home school

Prerequisites for the IB Diploma Program
Algebra II (preferably intensified) or greater in 10th grade. Less than Intensified Algebra II will greatly limit potential IB Diploma Program scheduling options.
Spanish, French, Arabic, Chinese or Latin IV in 10th grade
A’s and B’s in all subjects (7th-10th grade)

Interesting. I see this on W-L's IB page. Not that many FCPS students complete a fourth year of a foreign language by 10th grade, and the IB schools there don't suggest it is a pre-requisite. W-L seems to like promoting its IB diploma program as a "school within a school."

My bad—PP is right about prerequisites. But if you do the courses and get the grades, it’s yours. DS says it doesn’t really feel like a school within a school. Lots of non-IB students take IB courses here and there. The workload for the full IB program is incredibly intense. It’s a different thing than 6-7 AP courses a year. DS glad he’s done it, but he doesn’t look back with fondness. If we had to do it over again, I might push him not to do it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:WL IB does not accept anyone that wants to take it. You have to be accepted into the program. Quite a large percentage of students in 11/12 take partial IB. They take IB in 4 or so classes and then take AP classes or Dual Enrollment classes to fill out their schedule. Not to burst your bubble, but an all A student at W-L is quite common.

If you are in zone for W-L, you can enroll in the IB diploma program by right. DC is a senior in the program now. It is crazy crazy intense, but the college admission bump is out of this world. Not sure it was worth it in retrospect, but DC has gotten incredible college admissions results so far.

Not exactly. You don't have to apply for "Pre IB" in 9th-10th but do have to meet the pre-reqs to be in the diploma program even if it's your home school

Prerequisites for the IB Diploma Program
Algebra II (preferably intensified) or greater in 10th grade. Less than Intensified Algebra II will greatly limit potential IB Diploma Program scheduling options.
Spanish, French, Arabic, Chinese or Latin IV in 10th grade
A’s and B’s in all subjects (7th-10th grade)

Interesting. I see this on W-L's IB page. Not that many FCPS students complete a fourth year of a foreign language by 10th grade, and the IB schools there don't suggest it is a pre-requisite. W-L seems to like promoting its IB diploma program as a "school within a school."

My bad—PP is right about prerequisites. But if you do the courses and get the grades, it’s yours. DS says it doesn’t really feel like a school within a school. Lots of non-IB students take IB courses here and there. The workload for the full IB program is incredibly intense. It’s a different thing than 6-7 AP courses a year. DS glad he’s done it, but he doesn’t look back with fondness. If we had to do it over again, I might push him not to do it.

The IB diploma program isn’t more demanding than 6-7 AP courses a year. In fact, if you load up on SL courses it’s probably less demanding. For that reason, most AP schools discourage kids from taking 6-7 AP courses in a single year to avoid burnout. You are starting to sound ridiculous.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:WL IB does not accept anyone that wants to take it. You have to be accepted into the program. Quite a large percentage of students in 11/12 take partial IB. They take IB in 4 or so classes and then take AP classes or Dual Enrollment classes to fill out their schedule. Not to burst your bubble, but an all A student at W-L is quite common.

If you are in zone for W-L, you can enroll in the IB diploma program by right. DC is a senior in the program now. It is crazy crazy intense, but the college admission bump is out of this world. Not sure it was worth it in retrospect, but DC has gotten incredible college admissions results so far.

Not exactly. You don't have to apply for "Pre IB" in 9th-10th but do have to meet the pre-reqs to be in the diploma program even if it's your home school

Prerequisites for the IB Diploma Program
Algebra II (preferably intensified) or greater in 10th grade. Less than Intensified Algebra II will greatly limit potential IB Diploma Program scheduling options.
Spanish, French, Arabic, Chinese or Latin IV in 10th grade
A’s and B’s in all subjects (7th-10th grade)

Interesting. I see this on W-L's IB page. Not that many FCPS students complete a fourth year of a foreign language by 10th grade, and the IB schools there don't suggest it is a pre-requisite. W-L seems to like promoting its IB diploma program as a "school within a school."

My bad—PP is right about prerequisites. But if you do the courses and get the grades, it’s yours. DS says it doesn’t really feel like a school within a school. Lots of non-IB students take IB courses here and there. The workload for the full IB program is incredibly intense. It’s a different thing than 6-7 AP courses a year. DS glad he’s done it, but he doesn’t look back with fondness. If we had to do it over again, I might push him not to do it.

The IB diploma program isn’t more demanding than 6-7 AP courses a year. In fact, if you load up on SL courses it’s probably less demanding. For that reason, most AP schools discourage kids from taking 6-7 AP courses in a single year to avoid burnout. You are starting to sound ridiculous.

NP here. IB diploma program is different from taking IB courses. For the diploma, theres a required number of HL and SL courses, with 6-7 IB courses a year . Then there’s the extra stuff on top of the courseload, like the activities and capstone extended essay. I’ve had a kid in the IB/AP mix path and another kid in IB diploma program. It seemed very different for each my kids - the diploma program was, let’s say, holistic to be kind. It was a lot of intensity and not sure it’s worth it.

[Anonymous]

It’s interesting that people will call a top AP school a “pressure-cooker” if kids take a large number of AP courses, but it’s fine if they have a similar workload in an IB diploma program, apparently either because IB claims to prepare students to be “global citizens” or because it makes otherwise average high schools look better. Personally, I’d prefer a program where kids and families have more discretion to select courses that challenge and appeal to them.

[Anonymous]

I don’t think you can load up on SLs at WL? Need to take a mix or SL and HL, and there is a limit of 2 one year classes only. Trying to let DC enjoy freshman and sophomore year before IB kicks in. Anyone here able to recommend which IB classes are WL were amazing and worth it (versus those that were maybe mistakes)?