Abhishek Balaji Posted March 4, 2011 Report Share Posted March 4, 2011 Hi ibsurvival,I am starting Grade 11 and entering the IB by July/August 2010... So we were asked to choose our subjects (as you already know, 3SL and 3HL) and I am not planning to take 4HL subjects or anything complicated as such - so the normal IB candidate stuff...Basically I am interested in Science and Technology (of course Maths as well). I want to do some engineering course in Uni (which I am not too sure about at presen). I am very much into Physics and Chem but Bio is not my area of preference (although I still am good at it). In terms of computer, I tend not not prefer the programming side of things but I enjoy the business sides of computer, social/ eco/ environment/ ethics of computer etc. stuff. I also have a good share of interest in the business and management side of things but I am not intending to do that for Uni (maybe later in my career I may do like MBA or such.)Just to tell you a bit about myself, in the school that I am in we do MYP (a pre-IB syllabus) and IGCSE (of course this is the more common Grade 10 examination)- ooh btw I write my IGCSE this May/June - and I am doing very well in terms of Academics for both these things. On the 1-7 scale I am doing very well (sometimes 6 but usually 7) for maths, science, business studies and computer studies (in fact I am enrolled in the accelerated level, which is the highest level of academics, for maths and science and we do more than the IGCSE requirement to make justice to our course name! But there is no accelerated course for business and computer!) I am also reasonably good at my second language, which is French, and I easily get 6/7 but rarely 7/7 (I have been studying this since Grade 1) and to sum it up my English is also at a strong 6 (sometime a high 5). Now with all that said, my aim in University is to take up a course that is in the branch of either the Science field or the Technological field (again as I said b4, I am still a bit undecided about this). But just for an idea,I would like to know generally what subject combinations should I be looking at to get into a good university in the US for engineering? I have given out my view below but please do guide me on this - since you guys are all probably experts at this already!1. HL Physics2. HL Chemistry 3. HL Maths4. SL English [Note: I do not intend to do HL English]5. SL French [Note: I do not intend to do HL French]6. SL ITGS (Information Technology in a Global Society)Now I do have some other confusions in terms of these combinations:A. What about the possibility of taking Computer Science and dropping one of the Sciences? Does that benefit for engineering (I know it does for "Computer Engineering" - which I heard is intense on programming, so I may not opt for it, but what about things like "Chemical Engineering" or even "Mechanical Engineering"?) and how easy is Computer Science in HL? B. For those who know about ITGS, how well is it recognized in the US Universities - since it is a relatively new course I am a bit reluctant in taking it? I have been told that it leads to MIS in graduate courses but does it help engineering for UnderGrad?C. Is it easy to manage 2 science in HL (considering maths as the third HL)? I am told that Physics-Chem-Math combo opens you up to all branches of engineering - is that true?D. And finally, is it better to take Maths SL and score a 7/7 or take Maths HL and score a 5/7 for example? Which one is better for engineering? Which one is better recognized in top Uni's? The only thing that urged me to think about HL Math is my interest in math and my academic success in IGCSE and MYP mathematics (note: MYP maths is a lot harder than IGCSE - like we learn logs, some advanced trigo&algebra, factorials, lead to combinations+permutations etc.) Advanced thanks to all of those who have spent their time to answer me and help me make the right choices! Regards,Abhishek Balaji Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dessskris Posted March 4, 2011 Report Share Posted March 4, 2011 Yeah I would recommend:English A SLFrench B SLITGS HLPhysics HLMathematics HLChemistry HLSo I roughly agreed with your choices firstly, Math HL & Physics HL are compulsory for an Engineering course. Chemistry is sometimes recommended but not always required.A. Umm I do not recommend taking Comp Sci instead of Chem, but you might consider taking a 7th subject. I honestly think some universities prefer Chemistry to Comp Sci. Well, some unis do require basics in that sort of computer stuffs (e.g. programming) but not all universities do. Instead I suggest learning it outside school to get CAS hours :nod:B. I would say ITGS might be helpful but I am not so sure C. Relatively YES and YES. The Phy-Chem-Math HL combo is always described as a killing combo. However some people still do survive and score well with those 3 subjects. You seem to be one of those type so it wouldn't be much of a problem. And yes with that combo you can study any branch of Engineering D. For an Engineering course? Take Math HL and get a 5. I don't think any university will accept Math SL students for Engineering. No worries, you seem to be a good candidate you'll survive IB!Note:You may consider taking 4 HL first and then if you feel like ITGS is not worth studying for an Engineering course just switch to SL that's what I did to my Chemistry and I want to study Engineering too Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Abhishek Balaji Posted March 5, 2011 Author Report Share Posted March 5, 2011 Thank you so much Desy! That really helped:) So how do these CAS things work? How can I say gain CAS credits out of school - is it like work experience or something different to that? Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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