Tips for DP 1

[IzzyIB]

hello everyone , 

I am going to start DP 1 next academic year. I was wondering if any of you have any tips or advice? 

I am going to be taking Chemistry and Biology HL and I heard it is really challenging.  I want to study medicine could you recommend what my course of action should be? 

Thanks !

[mac117]

Hi there fellow future medic!

As someone who is about to finish IB 1 and has both chemistry and biology at HL,I feel like I can give some tips!

Biology:

Now, I like this class less than I do chemistry. It is a LOT of memorisation, but it is not as tedious as it seems once you start to link different units/concepts together. I highly recommend the Oxford textbook and Revision Guide - they're marvellous and great for revision!

Most importantly, however, you should make flashcards of each unit as you go along. Don't leave it all till final exams, as that will NOT work and only make the entire thing seem "pointless". Condense the information as much as you can. For this there are two options - light flashcards with key concepts where you fill the rest of the info with the book, or (my favourite) you combine all the books, handouts, powerpoint, etc. into the flashcards, making them more lengthy but at the same time the only resource you'll need during revision sessions. Since I commute a lot, this has been a life saver!

Chemistry:

Oh boy, did I hear a lot of negative things about this class! "You need to be a genius to get a 5." "There's no way you'll pass the unit test with moles - it's a killer." "Taking it together with bio just shows you're suicidal." IT'S ALL RUBBISH.

Chemistry, in my opinion, is the most interesting class IB offers. It's not that in-depth, but the broad range of topics you cover (together with the history of certain concepts) is really, really interesting. In chemistry you won't have to memorise as much - certain structures, angles, reactions... but the rest is application of concepts and calculations (a bit like maths or physics). What's beautiful is that once you grasp the concept you will do well in the class. 

For this class I do a few unit tests I can find online (which you can do with a quick Google search to be fair) and then flashcards, just like for bio. But the key is the understanding  of the concepts. Unlike bio, you can't just memorise them and hope for the best, because it involves a lot more logical thinking. Well, I guess you could memorise it without understanding it, but then you wouldn't be pushing towards the 6/7 boundary. 

 

I am far from a genius, yet with hard work and the methods I mentioned above I managed to get good grades in both classes. Persistence is very important, remember that! All in all, both classes are rather interesting, and whilst they will prove to be a challenge at times, you will definitely enjoy them. With any further questions, feel free to PM me!