Subject Selections.. Review?

[Ultra13th]

Hey there, I'm a student in Australia currently in the 10th grade and making subject selections for IB next year.

Before I begin I'm very sorry if this was posted in the wrong section!

Okay, I'll keep it short and sweet, will my selections be too difficult or will I be okay?

Subjects:

SL - English

SL - Maths

SL - Spanish AB Initio

HL - History

HL - Biology

HL - Chemistry

I am mainly worried about HL Chemistry + HL Biology, but am already taking 1 year advanced Biology.

However, I have never done Chemistry. Ever.

I was also told that History is a lot of analytical essay after essay? Or am I wrong.

Thanks in advance to any replies!

PS: If you had experience in Business and Management/Economics and did History which would you recommend?

PPS: Oh my god I started this thread at the exact hour mark. Yay , sorry back on topic please

Edited March 17, 2014 by Ultra13th

[twilight]

If you have never done chemistry, why do you suddenly want to do it? At HL nonetheless? I'm just curious.

For me, chemistry isn't too hard, so my opinion may be unreliable. You can try to review some grade 9 and 10 chemistry during your breaks through like Khan academy and maybe some textbooks that you can get your hands on. If you don't get some background knowledge yourself, I think it might be difficult at first to catch up in IB because the teacher would assume everyone has a sound knowledge of chemistry already and just plunge into whatever.

[Captain Jeeves]

I personally am terrible at chemistry, so I'm afraid I can't really help you on that matter haha - just that in my experience it was a lot more mathsy than I expected. However, I do take history HL at the moment. It really is essay after essay after essay, at least the way my teacher teaches it. If your writing isn't in tip-top shape, it certainly will be after you finish that course! However, if you're not so keen on writing writing writing all the time, you may be better off going with a different social studies option. It's also heavy on memorizing things, but if you're doing fine in bio you already have an idea of what that's like.

[khimberleigh]

Have you considered doing English at HL instead of two sciences? I too am from Australia and my school made it compulsory for us to take English as one of our HLs, unless we were fluent in a second language, because it wasn't that difficult to score reasonably well in without a lot of work.

Do you know what you want to study at University? and where? Most (possibly all) Australian unis don't require HL chemistry as a pre-requisite for anything. So if you're unsure about it maybe consider doing SL.

History is very analytical but if the topics interest you then it can actually be quite enjoyable. Also, the standard of writing required by IB gives you a massive advantage when you get to university (particularly in Australia).

[dooooooops]

In my opinion, I'd recommend you change Chemistry HL to SL and instead put English as one of your three HL Subjects. I'm currently in my last year of high school and when it comes to Chemistry HL, everyone seems to struggle. Other than that, Maths SL is fine as long as you study. I'm not sure about Biology HL, but it seems to be hard as well.

[Maple]

I think your class selections seem fine. Biology should be no problem for you. As for Chemistry HL, you can start from scratch and still do well in your exams in 2 years (though you do need to put in more effort than your other classes). History is definitely more difficult than business and management, but it really depends on your interests. Of course doing the IB is more difficult than your local curriculum, but your classes are relatively fine for IBDP

[Sandwich]

I was also terrible at Chemistry and I'd studied it for at least three years before IB As said before, it depends on how mathematical you are. If you're quite maths-y, then Chemistry won't be so bad for you and vice versa. You probably *can* catch up if you really want to do HL Chemistry and are enthusiastic about it, but I would suggest you have a good reason for taking Chemistry. Either that you love it and just want to study it because of that, or you need it for University. If neither of those things apply, then maybe think about switching your subjects around. Your choice, of course Bear in mind that I was awful at HL Chemistry, I only took it to get into Uni, so I have a slanted perspective.

[pieispi]

None of my teachers ever recommend two sciences 'cause it will really be lab after lab and it might become really stressful if you don't really have a background for chemistry (bio is just a lot of memorisation).

I'm not doing the diploma right now but I always hear that it is really just better to do what will interest you and motivate you to study and do work.

[Ultra13th]

Oh my god, thanks for all the replies!

I am sorry but I forgot to mention that for the 6th group of IB our school has restricted us to the following options:

- Visual Arts

- Theater

- Music

- Business/Economics (Group 3)

- Chemistry (Group 4)

So right now my options are a little bit limited (Edit: I will be checking this with my school IB Coordinator)

I chose English and Maths as SL, as I am unsure of being able to do either as HL.

That leaves me with 3 HL subjects, one definitely Biology, and the other two from Group 6 and Group 3.

We do have parent-teacher interviews coming up and I'll find out if any teachers recommend HL Maths or HL English.

I have not decided what I will study at University as I do not yet know what profession I'd like to aim for

However I think it'll be something in the scientific/medical field.

That's why I decided to go along with Chemistry, unless Business is more needed for these fields?

If I wanted I could swap Chemistry with Business, and History with Psychology. Any thoughts?

Edited March 18, 2014 by Ultra13th

[twilight]

Huh that's really strange that your school has restrictions. My guess is that it's probably some time tabling issue.

Without considering your intended career, and solely based on scoring potential, I think it's a good idea to swap chemistry with business. B&M in my school is considered a subject that is very easy to get 7. Well actually many people in my school get 7 for chemistry as well, but people usually talk about how B&M is quite an easy group 3 subject.

However, considering that you want to do something science related, swapping chemistry for B&M is a really bad idea. A lot of things in biology require some chemistry knowledge, like when you need to make buffer solutions (this is the only one I can remember) and I imagine the crossover will increase in university level. So I suppose you can start self learning some chemistry concept, it'll be good if you can brush up to grade 10 chemistry level, and then you won't have a problem with IB chemistry.

[Ultra13th]

Would a single semester of 10th Grade chemistry be enough? (I am currently in the first semester, so would have to choose it for my second.)

(Edit: I checked with the IB Coordinator and yes the choices for 6th group above are correct.)

Edited March 18, 2014 by Ultra13th

[khimberleigh]

Yeah 10th grade chemistry should be enough. I did a unit of chemistry in years 8, 9 and 10 but honestly a lot of it was repeated material. If you want to do medicine HL chemistry will certainly help but check with any universities you're considering whether you need it for a pre-req. Also only do HL chemistry if you are a maths/science person. The difference between HL and SL chemistry is far greater than the difference in HL and SL English or history, but if you enjoy science/maths it won't seem too bad.

[Ultra13th]

Okay, well the interviews are soon so I'll get the results, until then I'll leave this as solved. Is it possible to *unsolve* a thread?

Edited March 18, 2014 by Ultra13th

[Maple]

Just for you to keep in mind, English HL and English SL have little difference in difficulty

[Ultra13th]

Could you expand on that a little bit please?

Whats different?

[flinquinnster]

In terms of whether history is hard work, I personally found History SL to be a lot of reading and essay writing. HL has the additional 3 option topics (in our school, 2 years of class versus 1) so it is a lot more work. And I found the subjectivity of essay-writing ultimately demoralising in terms of studying towards improving my marks. However, many people manage and indeed like doing History HL - it can definitely be a rewarding subject with so much (so so much) interesting stuff to learn.

I can't speak for Chemistry + Biology HL, but if you've done year 10 science in Australia - not sure which state - you should be adequately prepared to go through an IB science HL, though perhaps some extra reading might be useful. Chemistry HL may be hard, but it is by no means impossible and difficult to do well in - it really depends if you enjoy and are good at science (which is hard to tell, often). Whilst B&M or Economics HL may seem easier, it's not necessarily the case.

Just for you to keep in mind, English HL and English SL have little difference in difficulty

In terms of the difference between English HL and English SL (assuming that you are referring to English A Literature), I would agree that there is little difference in difficulty.

The biggest difference is in the number of texts which are studied - reading through the syllabus will provide much more detail than I can, but for instance in Part 1 (Works in Translation) - and I think Part 4 (Options) - in HL you study 3 texts whereas in SL you study 2. You also do a shorter IOC (Part 2) in SL (10-minute speech on a text, rather than 10-minute speech on a text + 10 minutes discussion on another text) - and I think you also do fewer texts in Part 3 for Paper 2.

Timing is different for exams - 1.5 hours for each of Paper 1 and 2, instead of 2 hours for each paper in HL. Also, Paper 1 extracts are shorter in SL - because of the shorter time. There are also 'guiding questions' for Paper 1 SL, though you can choose to ignore them.

Otherwise, the marking criteria are pretty much the same - whilst subjectively it may be true that a marker may give the same essay a higher mark in SL than HL because it looks more impressive compared to the average, the wording is pretty much identical. So, the quality you are aiming for is similar.

Finally, in terms of the grade boundaries for a 7, I think that they tend to be quite similar for SL and HL. I'm not sure about the proportion of people who get a 7 in SL versus HL. However, I would advise that you be hesitant in simply using statistics to determine whether you should do a subject - ultimately, your abilities usually don't just conform exactly to the statistically average individual.

[Ultra13th]

Okay, Parent - Teacher Interviews are over and I talked to my IB counselor, here are the results for now:

For next semester (Still 10th Grade) I will be taking (this was advised by the teachers):

- Advanced English/Lit (Will struggle a little at first but get through)

- Advanced Math (Already have experience)

- History

- Advanced Chemistry (Will probably struggle a bit as well, but I have to start somewhere)

- Advanced Biology (Already have experience)

- French (My French teacher believes I should continue in French instead of changing to Spanish)

- Biology

This will lead to my possible future IB selections:

- English (Choice of either HL and SL)

- French (Choice of either HL and SL)

- History (HL)

- Biology (HL)

- Math (SL)

- (Depending on if I take English and French HL or SL) Chemistry HL or SL OR Business HL (IB Coordinator stated that no prerequisites were required for B/M)

Any final thoughts on the decision?

[JuliaCivetta]

Think again about History HL and Biology HL. I tried that at first and I immidiately dropped biology because I noticed that it just doesn't make sense. It is really better to focus on either on humanities or sciences because:
a) it is easier to write personal statement (at least in my opinion)
b) it broadens your horizons as the subjects start making sense. There is no more "history". History connects with literature and a language and it all gets easier
c) IB is hard anyway. Having Biology and History would be a suicide for me. I cannot imagine writing so many essays and doing those labs at the same time...

Both biology and history require you to study a lot if you want to have a good grade. In both you have to understand and remember a lot of things. It is not like a language which is much more intuitive. Yo

I would recommend you to check the syllabus and university requirements and decide for History HL or Biology SL.

When it comes to Business vs. History. I would advise you History. Universities, such as Oxbridge, often have history in their "useful" subjects and recommend taking traditional HLs (History, Mathematics, Biology, Chemistry...) History opens a lot of doors such as History, Politics, Law, History of Art, Anthropology, International Relations... Most of the humanities. You can go to business school with history but it's harder to go to any other course than business/international relations/economics with business.

But it all depends on what you want to study

[Ultra13th]

Think again about History HL and Biology HL. I tried that at first and I immidiately dropped biology because I noticed that it just doesn't make sense. It is really better to focus on either on humanities or sciences because:

a) it is easier to write personal statement (at least in my opinion)

b) it broadens your horizons as the subjects start making sense. There is no more "history". History connects with literature and a language and it all gets easier

c) IB is hard anyway. Having Biology and History would be a suicide for me. I cannot imagine writing so many essays and doing those labs at the same time...

Both biology and history require you to study a lot if you want to have a good grade. In both you have to understand and remember a lot of things. It is not like a language which is much more intuitive. Yo

I would recommend you to check the syllabus and university requirements and decide for History HL or Biology SL.

When it comes to Business vs. History. I would advise you History. Universities, such as Oxbridge, often have history in their "useful" subjects and recommend taking traditional HLs (History, Mathematics, Biology, Chemistry...) History opens a lot of doors such as History, Politics, Law, History of Art, Anthropology, International Relations... Most of the humanities. You can go to business school with history but it's harder to go to any other course than business/international relations/economics with business.

But it all depends on what you want to study

Unfortunately, History and Biology are the ones that I believe I would do the best in, and as I have to take 3 High Level classes, the others I see myself struggling in.

Also - my highschool does not have many classes to take, for example I've been taking Environmental Science for 3 years but it is in fact not a class given by the school. In all we usually have 50 students all together who take the IB course.

Edited May 8, 2014 by Ultra13th

[Clockwork]

A combination of HL Biology and History requires tons of memorizing. My DP coordinator recommended my entire year and myself not to take Bio and History at HL as it requires lots of memorization, if you want to study these two subjects, he advises to do either one of them at HL and the other SL.