DP HL and SL Chocies?

[WizardDemigod]

Hello all,

I am currently in MYP 4. I have also been thinking about what subjects I want to eventually HL and SL in. At the moment, I am thinking:

HL English (required by my school)

HL Spanish

SL History

SL Biology

HL Math (I've heard this is meant for people who definitely want to go into the STEM field. I'm not sure if that's me yet, but I enjoy math and I was recommended to take HL Pre-Calculus next year, as opposed to SL Pre-Calculus. Neither of these prepares for an IB exam, but instead are in preparation for HL Math or SL Math, respectively).

I haven't decided whether I want to HL or SL in music yet, but I will be doing music for my sixth subject.

Could anyone please provide me with feedback on the difficulty and workload of these courses? I would also appreciate it if anyone could explain what is done in SL Music and what is done in HL, so that I have a better understanding of which one I'd rather take. I realize I still have plenty of time to decide, but planning relaxes me haha.

As an indecisive person, I'm not yet sure of what I want to do as a career. I'm not even quite sure of whether I'm more of a STEM person or humanities, so I've sort of been trying to excel in everything (although that hasn't been going spectacularly lol).

Additionally, for those of you in the states -- are you taking/did you take the AP exams for your IB classes as well (i.e. AP English Language and IB English, or only IB English)? Do SL classes also prepare for the AP exam? Did you take multiple AP exams for your HL subjects (i.e. AP Spanish Language and AP Spanish Literature along with HL Spanish, AP BC Calculus and AP Statistics along with HL Math, etc.)?

Thank you!!

[guswlans]

Hi,

I am currently in IB 1 and I'm taking (out of the ones you are planning to take):

HL English

HL History

SL Music

I can't say anything for sure as I am in a different school with different teachers, but it is pretty difficult to get a 7 in English HL. Even the students who used to do so well in MYP struggle to achieve 7s (in fact no one has achieved a 7 yet). The workload is okay and it doesn't stress you out that much. It might be due to my teacher, but we won't have 2 assignments at the same time or consecutively in a short time period.

As for history, I was in SL and then moved to HL. There's LOTS of reading to do, so it will be a good choice if you enjoy reading. It really helps you with your writing skills and analytical skills, but it is quite demanding in terms of workload and difficulty. (I finally got a 7 for my essay after two terms of practicing). However if you enjoy history and find it interesting, it will be a fun course and the workload won't bother you so much.

I actually dropped down from HL Music to SL for one reason. HL are required to submit a solo performance AND composition. (For solo performance you must submit 15 minutes of any solo pieces on any instrument without limits to number of pieces). This was quite demanding for me because composition was not something I was confident about, and practicing for solo piece took lots of my time. My classmate who is taking HL Music is struggling to keep up with these two things, but if you are very passionate about creating and performing music, I think it will be a good choice. Other assignments/papers consist of the Musical Link Investigation and Listening Paper which is required for both SL and HL. 

Just to add one more thing, IF you are planning to pursue your career in the STEM field, I would recommend taking chemistry or other sciences as your option instead of music. 

Hope this helped

[amelia22974]

As regards IB Music (I am a Year 2 IB Music HL student)

At SL:

Exam including Commentary on Western Art Music and Music Cultures + response to questions on 1 set work

Musical Links Investigation (Music IA, which focuses on the cross-cultural transcendence of music)

Either/or: (not both)

1. Composition (someone correct me on this if I'm wrong, but 2 (?) compositions)

2. 15 mins of solo performance (a compilation of recordings sent to the IB)

3. 20 - 30 mins of group performances

I highly recommend doing either options 1 or 2, not 3. 

 

At HL:

Exam including all SL features + an extra set work (3hrs total)

Musical Links Investigation (as in SL)

Both:

1. Composition (3 compositions between 3 - 6 mins in length each)

2. Solo performance compilation of between 18 - 22 mins

 

Hope this helps, pls ask me any further questions if interested!

 

[WizardDemigod]

Thanks guys! Currently, I'm thinking I'll probably take SL Music and HL Biology.

That being said, is it possible for me to take both SL Music and SL Chemistry for my sixth subject? As in, I'd have HL Biology for my Group 4, but two Group 6 subjects. I doubt I'd be able to take the exam for both, but could I take both classes?

I've also realized that I spelled "choices" wrong in the title haha.

[Nomenclature]

Also, regarding AP Exams, most kids take them because it's a nice insurance policy. I'm not necessarily doing every subject though, because I'm not doing AP Lit and Comp because it would be the same day as my HL Lit Paper 1 and I don't want to put myself through that or feel exhausted before I start my HL exam.

I took AP Spanish Lang. last year and am going to take Ap Comp. Sci. A and Calc BC this year because I'm in Comp. Sci. SL and Math HL (calculus). Almost everybody Math HL in the U.S. takes the Calc BC exam because the Math HL is a notoriously difficult, and doing the calculus option will leave you well-prepared for the AP (AP Calc is also a much easier exam to score well on. It varies subject to subject though; for instance, I think the Spanish lang. exam is more difficult than Spanish B. Also, the other thing to consider is that IB factors in internals whereas AP is just one test.).

Some IB classes are very aligned with AP counterparts whereas some are not. For example, AP Psych and IB are very different, but Spanish is very much similar. If you're a good IB Spanish student, you're a good AP Spanish student. You're teachers can probably advise you on particular subjects and how the courses differ.

[Nomenclature]

On February 26, 2017 at 6:07 PM, WizardDemigod said:

Thanks guys! Currently, I'm thinking I'll probably take SL Music and HL Biology.

That being said, is it possible for me to take both SL Music and SL Chemistry for my sixth subject? As in, I'd have HL Biology for my Group 4, but two Group 6 subjects. I doubt I'd be able to take the exam for both, but could I take both classes?

I've also realized that I spelled "choices" wrong in the title haha.

You need to take at least one subject from each of the five groups. Group six is the only group from which it is not required that you take a course. 

So, doing English A HL, Spanish B HL, Bio HL, Math SL, and History SL leaves you with only one spot left for an extra SL. You'd have to choose between testing in chemistry or music. There's nothing stopping you from taking both classes if you do have room in your schedule, but you'll have to decide later which one you want to test in.

[WizardDemigod]

Thank you! I have another question regarding IB Music: is it necessary to take private lessons to take IB Music? I do currently, but I don't want to keep taking them.