AP vs. IBAnswered
at my school, they offer AP classes and IB classes. Does one look better on my applications or are they normally equal to each other? I am planning on taking both but I do not know what one I should ¨"focus" more on.
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3 answers
IB is a lot more rigorous and though than APs, colleges definitely recognize and value that but you need to figure if that is a good decision for yourself. Do you think that the effort is worth it? Are you genuinely interested in those classes?
IB will leave you a lot less time for ECs too, and just hobbies and socializing in general. You shouldn't undervalue that. You will be stressed, and you're supposed to have some fun in high school and hang out with your friends.
You should make this decision depending on how you've been doing in classes so far, how strong your study habits and work ethics are, and also really on your priorities and interests.
If you want my advice, doing something you genuinely enjoy is insanely easier, and saving yourself the stress might be worth it in the long run.
With all that said, to answer your question more directly though, yes, colleges tend to value IB classes more, if they're offered to you too.
I'd recommend taking APs!! Colleges have different policies with IBs and it's all very confusing whereas APs is more straightforward. APs also give you a GPA boost, not sure about IBs. AP is also a lot cheaper than IB, and if you have reduced or free lunch, AP exams are only five bucks each. APs are also much more flexible in terms of what classes you can take. Also, not all colleges give credit for standard-level IBs.Here's a site with more info:
It depends on what your goal is. If your goal is to be able to skip entry-level courses in college, then AP's are your best bet, since more colleges will accept them as credits than they will IB credits. That said, AP's can be quite difficult, and studying for the test could be quite stressful. If your goal is to take more in-depth, paced classes, then IB would be a better fit. IB's can range anywhere from easier than AP to harder than AP, so choose carefully (generally sciences and history will be the more difficult IB's in my experience). Overall, my idea of AP's versus IB's is that AP is a lot of content, very fast, and generally pretty surface level; while IB is the same complexity of content, but less of it, slower and more in-depth. Also, since IB's are a two-year commitment, that's another consideration, but from what I've heard IB's are a bit more forgiving on the exams (in terms of what qualifies as a passing grade).
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At least at my high school, IB's have the same grade bump as AP's, but that can certainly vary from school to school.