CAP looks like a good program but random college #32 is less likely to know what it is, whereas IB has a cohesive definition understood by every college. I'm sure there are schools that take a lot of CAP students, and I'm sure the AO explains it, but if I were reviewing the transcript I might be more inclined to think a random, kind of nebulous "communications" program was less rigorous than one that I knew required advanced classes in foundational studies.

It’s important to bear in mind that CAP is a *Communications* magnet, so it’s not really an apples-to-apples comparison with IB. We tend to think of it as the Humanities alternative to the STEM magnets like SMCS or Wheaton, but the CAP electives definitely focus on things like journalism, TV production, documentary filmmaking, or stage.

My Eastern magnet kid decided against CAP because the really cool magnet classes were largely an extension of the stuff they found most stressful at Eastern—interviewing people, potentially being on camera or on a stage, and generally putting yourself out there.

My student has been able to get the high-level English, history, and interdisciplinary Humanities work they wanted through the IB program, with a lot less of the stress they felt at Eastern. I just don’t think they were mentally prepared for things like cold-calling professionals to ask for an interview.

Don’t get me wrong, it was really good for them, and they powered through it and were all the better for the experience; and I know in hindsight they’d still choose Eastern over the home middle school.

But they had no desire to continue that kind of work at a higher level in high school. Especially since they could get the parts they enjoyed most—the analytical discussions, critical thinking, and high-level writing—through IB.

So be sure your student takes a careful look at the CAP electives and typical projects, to be certain that’s what they want.

Colleges recalculate weighted classes and I'd be surprised if they give an extra point to classes like drama that are required for CAP. I don't think this should be a reason for deciding between one program or the other but at Springbrook your child will definitely have more required classes that colleges will weight as honors/AP/IB.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:IB can also offer courses in anthropology, econ, psych, environmental science, languages, etc. I'm sure you can take those as electives as well, but with IB, they'd be weighted classes.

A CAP student can probably stack their schedule with AP classes for rigour and weighted grades, but an IB program has that built in to nearly every class.

FWIW, basically every HS class is weighted at this point. The CAP classes are all weighted, and then most kids are doing Honors or AP science, Honors or AP math, and AP world history or human geography.

I'm not saying OP shouldn't choose Springbrook, but weighted GPA doesn't need to be one of the concerns.

Blair offers an extra period for CAP and SCMS students, so they can take even more classes to pad their GPA. Downside, you’re taking more classes.

Anonymous wrote:IB can also offer courses in anthropology, econ, psych, environmental science, languages, etc. I'm sure you can take those as electives as well, but with IB, they'd be weighted classes.

A CAP student can probably stack their schedule with AP classes for rigour and weighted grades, but an IB program has that built in to nearly every class.

FWIW, basically every HS class is weighted at this point. The CAP classes are all weighted, and then most kids are doing Honors or AP science, Honors or AP math, and AP world history or human geography.

I'm not saying OP shouldn't choose Springbrook, but weighted GPA doesn't need to be one of the concerns.