03carlotas Posted May 13, 2016 Report Share Posted May 13, 2016 Hello everyone , I keep changing my mind about what subjects I want to choose thats why I really need advice. I want to study Neurobiology as an undergraduate degree in an Ivy League University, and then either a Phd in Neurobiology or an MBA. For Ivy League Universities they don't have entry requirements other than to trigger yourself with choosing hard subjects, on the other hand, I would also like to apply to UCL as its known for being very good in Neurobiology. These are my subject choices for now: ENGLISH A LIT. HL SPANISH A SL (Spanish is my first language but maybe I should drop this to B HL but then I would start with 5 high levels) HISTORY HL (Ivy League prefer History I think) / BUSINESS HL BIOLOGY HL MATHS SL ECONOMICS/CHEMISTRY HL (probaby better for neurobiology but know to be extremely hard) They ask for over 40 points, so I need to find a balance between hard subjects and getting very good grades in them. What do you think about my subjects? Can you give me feedback about the ones you took? How should I plan myself to be succesful? Thank you so much Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kw0573 Posted May 29, 2016 Report Share Posted May 29, 2016 I think in your previous posts, most of the issues have been addressed. HL Chemistry is not an easy course, and you should not approach it purely from memorizing facts/observations. You should take time to understand the subtle details and that's truly what makes it difficult. Apparently you can memorize your way out of Biology HL but it doesn't work nearly as effective in Chemistry HL. Some schools may require only chemistry or only biology or both. In a post you mentioned about SAT subject tests. I think they were quite basic (or had very generous curves). I took the math IIC, physics and chemistry subject tests beginning of Year 2 and I don't think I prepared for them extensively. Just looked over physics and chemistry questions to see what topics I don't understand and I think I went into the exam knowing (albeit not well) 90% of content. I heard Economics HL is better than SL because of the calculation-based paper 3. As long as you are not freaked out by math and you can usually do well in paper 3. To be successful at IB, do your homework regularly; don't fall behind; skim through your textbooks before coming to class; start studying for tests early; read the IB official guides for each subject and the markschemes/markbands/general rubric. Some general well-being tips include join clubs you are interested in and exercise regularly. Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gaby Posted May 29, 2016 Report Share Posted May 29, 2016 On 13 May 2016 at 9:02 AM, 03carlotas said: Hello everyone , I keep changing my mind about what subjects I want to choose thats why I really need advice. I want to study Neurobiology as an undergraduate degree in an Ivy League University, and then either a Phd in Neurobiology or an MBA. For Ivy League Universities they don't have entry requirements other than to trigger yourself with choosing hard subjects, on the other hand, I would also like to apply to UCL as its known for being very good in Neurobiology. These are my subject choices for now: ENGLISH A LIT. HL SPANISH A SL (Spanish is my first language but maybe I should drop this to B HL but then I would start with 5 high levels) HISTORY HL (Ivy League prefer History I think) / BUSINESS HL BIOLOGY HL MATHS SL ECONOMICS/CHEMISTRY HL (probaby better for neurobiology but know to be extremely hard) They ask for over 40 points, so I need to find a balance between hard subjects and getting very good grades in them. What do you think about my subjects? Can you give me feedback about the ones you took? How should I plan myself to be succesful? Thank you so much Why would you take 2 HL Humanities (language and a social science), instead of 2 science HLs if you want to study neurobiology? And also, if you're scared of the difficulty of a high school subject, Ivy League or UCL might not be the right place to go, cause your first year modules alone are gonna be much harder than 2 years of Chemistry HL. Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandwich Posted May 30, 2016 Report Share Posted May 30, 2016 I would definitely take Biology and Chemistry if you want to study what is essentially a branch of Biology. US Universities may not care if you've ever done their subject before, but in the UK generally Biology is required to study Biology! Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
AdrianP Posted June 2, 2016 Report Share Posted June 2, 2016 For very competitive Ivy Leagues you may want to switch Business and Management for something else. It is considered a soft subject. Also, why do you consider doing a Master of Business Administration? It seems strange considering you want to do a bachelor in Neurobiology. Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest TheMagical7 Posted August 17, 2016 Report Share Posted August 17, 2016 (edited) Are the History and Business subjects compulsory for entry into those universities? History may interest you but it has little to do with those jobs, and the Business subject like OP states sounds like something soft, which I believe you could do as an external course after High school. Economics seems a more sensible choice whilst discarding the other two, it will keep your options open for an MBA; Economics has value. Lol. Now about English and Spanish. You want to keep your options open for an MBA but if you just wanted Neurobiology, I'd have advised you to take Spanish A. Yet, we have to keep in mind the university requirements so English A should be desirable. Perhaps downgrade Spanish A to Spanish B, you can do this subject with just some effort depending on your fluency and that way your workload will be improved for taking the harder subjects. Take Biology and Chemistry HL. These two will both be a pain in the neck but if you believe you want to pursue the medical sciences, it's the way to go. So that's 3 HLs and 3 SLs. You don't want to take 5 HLs if you believe you'll have too much time in Year 11 and 12 because that would be a flawed thought. Biology HL. Chemistry HL. English A. (I would choose SL.) Spanish B. (I would choose HL.) Economics SL. Maths SL. It's a fairly average diploma but it is optimal for getting over that 40 hurdle. Don't make it harder than you need, the magic 7 is a very important thing. [Just check for yourself that these subjects are acceptable for your courses at those Universities.] Also think about kw0573 HL economics suggestion, 'cos I personally wouldn't mind doing both languages at SL Hope I've helped and good luck! Edited August 17, 2016 by TheMagical7 Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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