AP vs IB?

[timtamboy63]

This may not be the best thing to post in an IB forum, but here goes.

I was thinking of switching to AP, for a variety of reasons. I've heard the courses are a little harder, although that may just be my school, because other people on here say otherwise. Also, it is supposed to be better recognized in the US, whereas IB is better recognized in the UK.

What do you guys think? What would you say is better, AP, or IB, and why?

Edited May 16, 2011 by timtamboy63

[Sandwich]

I've always been told that AP is a little bit easier than the IB. Perhaps slightly harder than most SL subjects, but easier than most HL subjects. I think also, though, (as with A Levels) you can attempt to increase the difficulty of AP via trying to undertake as many subjects as possible so whilst the course itself is still harder for the IB, you can have more content via this method and so even it out.

To be honest, it doesn't matter about how easy or hard it is, you should try and take the course which will get you to where you want to go. If it means doing AP exams for the US, do those, if it means doing A Levels for the UK (A Levels would be the better option there - to my knowledge IB is recognised to the same extent in both the US and UK), do it. At the end of the day, we complete our secondary education in order to get into University, so University should be your no. 1 priority.

If you really can't decide, I believe that between many subjects you'll find a massive overlap in terms of what you need to know, so actually you could do the IB and then mug up for the niggly changes between AP/A Level and take those exams as well.

[citizenoftheuniverse]

Though I don´t have experiance with AP, from what I have read on the internet it IS more recognised in the US than IB, so if that is where you want to apply in the future, go for it.

In my opinion, both are probably good programmes, but they do vary, and if one is better than the other at your school go for the

better one. Also, people are different, for some people IB is a better fit and for others AP. If you take AP, you can be rid of CAS, tok and the EE if you want, so that is a plus (probably...). Also, with the AP you can concentrate on what you are good at, you don´t have to be as well rounded as in the IB. So it is a question of whether you appreciate well-roundedness or high proficiency in select subjects. Though probably the biggest factor is how the AP and IB are run at your school, does one programme have better teachers, better subject choices etc.

If recognition is important to you, probably everywhere else people are more familiar with IB except the US, though IB isn´t too well known in certain countries.

In the end though, I don´t think it matters much which one you choose, just pick the one that suites you better and you will be fine

[timtamboy63]

Yeah, I think the AP in my school definitely has better teachers, though I kinda liked doing my EE

I dunno, if I can switch to AP I will, only I'm at the school im at on an IB Scholarship, so I'll need to convince the principal

[Marina]

I don't know how well it's recognized in the US, but I can tell you that both AP and IB are recognized in Canada. From what I've seen, you can get university credits for both AP and IB courses, so I guess it just depends on what fits you and your life.

Just as an extra thought: I was talking to a girl in AP, and she was planning on coming to my school to take the grade 12 IB English course because her guidance counselor told her it would be easier. When I asked her if she was ready for her course, having never taken an IB course before, she gave me this blank stare as if to say "you're kidding, right?". I proceeded to explain about IOPs and the IOC, the world lit papers she would have to do, and about the rest of the material we'd worked on in grade 11 IB English. By then end she looked slightly scared. I talked to her a few weeks later and she'd talked to her guidance councilor and dropped the course.

I don't know how the AP curriculum compares with the IB curriculum, this is just my own experience. If you think AP is right for you, then you should go for it!

[pieee]

AP, in my opinion, is easier. It just might be because I'm not taking AP, but my friends who are taking AP agree that for the most part it is simpler.

For one thing, there are no requirements as to how many or which subjects you should take - which is the same as IB Certificate... So if you don't feel confident with calculus, you could choose not to do AP Calc and AP Stats instead (or neither, for that matter!), whereas you're definitely going to run into calculus in IB Math.

Also, exam-wise, since AP subjects are more particular and there's a different grading system, it is actually quite easy to do well. Most of my friends in IB take AP tests (for credit in US universities in case they don't accept IB scores) and with a little review before the test, they basically all get 4 or 5 out of 5.

I'm not too sure about the curriculum itself... but I hear some of the course loads aren't that intense - not as bad as some of our IAs at least.

If you really want to challenge yourself and be more well-rounded, I think IB is definitely the way to go.

But if you're more concerned about GPA/average grades (depending on what system you use) or if you're really good at something and not so great at another, then maybe AP is better at showcasing your strengths.

Lastly, I don't know about UK, but US universities definitely give credit for AP scores. The top-notch US universities, e.g. Ivy League, definitely recognize IB as well, and dare I say, even like IB better, but AP is definitely the more widely used one.

But really, it all comes down to what you think fits you better. Good luck in deciding!

[timtamboy63]

Hm, interesting. To be honest, I first thought I wanted to do it because of AP Calc. It just offers more stuff than Maths HL does (and Further Maths isn't offered at my school).

I mean, Maths is by far my favorite subject, and I want to do as much as possible. However, at the same time, I do want to do challenging courses. However, to be honest, IB isn't really challenging me at the moment, except for maybe IB Physics (which I would keep doing anyway).

So confusing

Cheers for the info though

[Sandwich]

Why don't you just do AP Calculus then? Or you've always got the option of self-studying Further Maths as an extra subject. If you're a mathematical genius, you may as well - I know somebody who did it and they managed to get a 7 with self-study. God knows how, it seems insanely difficult to me! Ask your Maths teacher if they'd be happy to teach you extra outside of school (if you paid them, possibly) or just answer questions if you got stuck.

Anyway, if you did it as an extra subject and /were/ finding it hard, for whatever reason, because it's extra and self-study you could always just not sit the exam in it. Or sit the exam but not have it affect your diploma.

[Guest Red XII]

This may not be the best thing to post in an IB forum, but here goes.

I was thinking of switching to AP, for a variety of reasons. I've heard the courses are a little harder, although that may just be my school, because other people on here say otherwise. Also, it is supposed to be better recognized in the US, whereas IB is better recognized in the UK.

What do you guys think? What would you say is better, AP, or IB, and why?

The AP is generally easier than IB, but the difficulty of the course really depends on the teacher. Some are far easier, but some can be a bit harder. As for the exams, IB HL exams are usually considerably harder than AP exams. SL exams are either slightly easier or of comparable difficulty.

The biggest difference in the courses is that AP courses cover a broad range of topics with little depth, whereas the IB covers a narrower range of topics but in much greater depth.

As far as the assessments, AP courses just have the exam, which isn't even mandatory at most schools. The IB has a greater variety of assessments, so you have to do IB work during the course that counts as part of your overall grade. This contributes to the intensity and difficulty of the IB courses. Further, the AP exams are mostly multiple choice.

Where the difference in difficulty really comes in is when you compare the IB Diploma to taking a lot of APs. Even if you take 6 APs, it's not nearly as difficult as the Diploma, because the Diploma has (arguably) harder classes already, then adds the requirements of the Diploma (TOK, CAS, EE) on top of the 6 subjects. Further, most AP students don't take 6 APs at the same time, so AP ends up being a lot less rigorous.

As for the content of the program, I personally feel that the IB program is more worthwhile and teaches more useful critical thinking skills. I believe it provides a better overall education.

In the US, the AP and IB are both recognized for their difficulty when it comes to college admissions. Most admissions offices consider the IB to be the most rigorous program possible, either more rigorous than or as rigorous as a full load of APs.

The disadvantage of IB as compared to AP comes when you're trying to get credits for your IB exams, because most schools don't give as much credit for IB as they do for AP, or require much higher scores. This is only a problem if you really need the credit, though, because this does not affect admissions.

Edited May 17, 2011 by Red XII

[Proletariat]

Everyone at my school insists that AP is more difficult than IB. We offer both, although our IB program is three times smaller than our AP one, I feel it's just the populism of AP kids trying to spread their propaganda around It also doesn't help that IB at my school is really, really slack.

Most Canadian Unis actually recognize IB more than they recognize AP, I find. AP is only useful in the States.

Don't forget the different curriculum content and teaching styles of the two classes. IB is much more focused on analysis and depth, skills that are traditionally in the liberal arts field like critical thinking, etc. AP is just about memorizing and getting through as much content as possible. AP English in particular sounds like the antithesis of what an English class should be.

If you're not worried about completing a Diploma, then do your Math and Sciences courses in AP, and the rest in IB.

[timtamboy63]

Thanks for the info Red, a lot I didn't know there.

And pro, if AP is actually about memorising, then I'm steering clear. I HATE memorization. Also, my school doesn't offer AP Physics, so either way it'd be at least 4 APs + 1 IB subject. Might be worth just sticking to IB.

[citizenoftheuniverse]

Just a note... Obviously all the people here are gonna be biased for IB since they are taking it, so maybe you should ask AP people as well.

[timtamboy63]

Yeah, thats what I thought, but I don't know any forums specifically for AP?

[citizenoftheuniverse]

There is an american students website called college confidential and they have some IB vs. AP discussions..

Here are some:

http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/princeton-university/168664-ap-vs-ib.html

http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/harvard-university/869083-i-need-help-deciding-between-ib-vs-ap.html

http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/harvard-university/242813-ib-vs-ap.html

Some students there are in AP and some in IB so that could help...

[Summer Glau]

There's an AP school that is closer to my house than my IB school. The courses offered there are not that useful though AP isn't unheard of in Canada. It's just not very popular here (at least where I live), it's considered to be more of an American thing.

AP is recognized in Canada by universities (and you can get 1st year credit just like with IB HL subjects) but they seem to favour IB students more. I can't really say much about the difficulty since I haven't taken both.

[CocoPop]

The American guy at my college did 18 APs and got 5s in all of them. He even did some of them in year 10. Whilst I'm sure he's a very smart guy, I doubt one would be capable of taking the equivalent number of IB subjects, even over a four year span. By contrast, it's not unheard of to hear of people taking ~10-15 APs.

EDIT: Also, putting an AP vs IB poll on an IB forum will probably get a fairly biased response!

Edited May 18, 2011 by CocoPop

[JustAnotherAsian]

Well the good thing about AP is that the tests actually test what you have learned. They are predictable... If you study well you can get 5.. Having taken both AP and IB, I can tell you that AP is much less ambiguous in what they expect from you.

And a plus about AP, not internal assessments.

[daxx]

From my experience (I've taken three AP exams), the IB courses are more difficult. Still, some of the AP exams are more difficult.

The foreign language exams are MUCH more difficult than the IB Language B exams (even HL). The reading passages are much more difficult, grammar is explicitly tested, and there are speaking and listening sections as part of the test. While the IB French exam uses mostly advertisements and news articles for the reading section, the AP exam is almost entirely literature with one of the selections being pre-17th century. The grammar section is also extremely difficult. There are paragraphs which require you to fill in the appropriate word. Many of these are prepositions which correspond with idiomatic expressions. You also need to be able to choose the correct tense or mood for a verb given a sentence with a blank. As the AP exam explicitly tests grammar ALL French grammar needs to be known while on the IB exam you can sometimes work your way around knowing grammatical concepts.

The AP Calc AB exam I found to be on par with Math SL. The Calculus on the AP exam is slightly more difficult than the Calculus tested on SL, but as SL tests many more concepts they seem to be around the same level.

The AP English Language & Composition exam seems much easier than the IB English exams. The standards for writing in the AP program are much lower.

Although I haven't taken an AP history exam, the IB exams seem much more difficult. The AP exams are for the most part multiple choice which require little analysis. The 'essay' additionally seems to require little analytical skills, but rather a summary of a specific topic.

AP Chem is probably more difficult than IB Chem SL but it is not as challenging as HL. Although the AP exam tests more topics, it does not test Organic Chem which is arguably the most difficult topic for IB.

I am still only IB1, so I am judging this based on the practice exams we've done in class.

[jtnt]

Hello my fellow beautiful IBers~

I live in the US and my school is an all-around school

It offers the IB program as well as normal high school Advanced Placement (AP) classes.

For those who don't know, AP classes are very similar to IB classes; They're both college/university level, and they both exempt from the corresponding class if the student passes the exam.

Most of my IB classes are also called "AP classes" meaning my teachers also teach material that shows up in the AP exam. Being in the IB program, of course my priority is my IB education. Still, they are also AP classes.

Apart from maths SL (calc 1) and fine arts HL, every IB class I take is also an AP class. It is required to take the AP exam at the end of the school year, but skipping the test doesn't hurt.

Since I don't really need to take the AP counterpart of the IB test, should I waste my time studying and taking the test for it?

The cons of taking the AP test is that I could still get the college credit if I fail the IB test and pass the AP.

On the other hand, an AP test is one more test I have to stress over.. I think IB tests are enough to worry about lol

[timtamboy63]

I've gotten a lot of conflicting reports on this, but here's what I've been able to gather. The content in AP classes are basically the same as IB classes. However IB classes are done over two years whereas AP classes are done over one. As a result, you get a lot more homework in AP classes. However, in terms of rigor, the IB is said to be harder, because of all the extra struff that we have to do.

Also, it's worth mentioning that it is generally much easier to get college credit for AP classes in the US than IB classes.

Edited June 1, 2011 by timtamboy63