Studying 6 subjects at HL?

[beth-]

Hi, I'm Beth and I'm new to this website, so I'm not really sure whether this thread is placed in the correct topic, but anyway, I'm currently in Pre-IB, and I'm obviously thinking about subjects a lot and which ones I'm going to study. I know that you're supposed to study 3 subjects at SL and 3 subjects at HL, but I'm debating whether to choose these subjects;

English A HL

Spanish B HL (my step father is from Mexico and will help me with this, besides I'm fluent in Spanish so that won't be a problem)

History HL (my mum is a history teacher and I got an A in 9th grade and I really love history so this won't be a problem either)

Economics HL

Biology HL

Maths HL

I know this is a challenge, despite the help that my parents can give me, but I really want to study this; it'll look great on my resume, and I'm definitely up for the challenge, I was actually bored in middle school because I thought the subjects were way too easy so my mum would give me advanced high school books in history, civics, religion, Swedish, and chem.

I don't know if this is too much, though, do you think I'd be able to handle it?

[Emmi]

This is too much, and universities won't care if you did six HLs for two reasons. One, this doesn't constitute a diploma, so you'd be applying with certificates, which are pretty much worthless on their own in most countries. Two, universities simply don't care.

I know you're really excited about school and want to challenge yourself, and that's great. But I don't think you understand the difference between normal high school courses and an IB level course. Getting an A in 9th grade history is good, but the standards are much lower in 9th grade than in HL history, and sometimes going from a basic level to a more advanced one shocks people and they end up doing poorly because they're not used to how to perform at the required level.

It's also worth it to consider what you want to study in university. Some courses require specific IB classes (medicine is HL chem and usually one other HL science, engineering is HL math and physics) while others don't (law doesn't have specific requirements other than do really well in your HLs). Consider what you want to do later on, and if it doesn't require those subjects, put them as SLs. HL biology isn't hard, but it has a massive amount of content. HL history isn't all too difficult either, but it's going to be a TON of reading and essays. And HL math is a very time-consuming difficult course, and if it's not needed for future studies and you're not consistently making top grades in your math class and you don't like math, I never advise someone to take it.

For resumes at least, grades are important, but they're not everything. You need extracurricular activities, projects, and volunteer work to put on it too, and if you're too busy studying and never have time to do these things, then what good is having 6 HL subjects? On my resume at least, I put my grades at the top but it's only a few lines. The rest of my resume consists of relevant classes I've taken, projects I've done, past work experience, and any skills I have. That's what a resume is, not "I took six HL subjects."

[elaifyanre]

I don't want to repeat what everyone has said.

http://www.ibsurvival.com/topic/29609-taking-6-hls-1-sl/

I wouldn't say it's impossible/will ruin your life/etc as I myself know several people doing 6 HLs but

1. if you're only doing 6 HLs (instead of 6HL+2SL) you won't get a diploma.

2. it is a challenge, but if you're confident then do it, because if we convinced you to not do it you'd blame us later.

EDIT: and no, an A in grade 9 doesn't guarantee a high mark in IB. I'd assume most people taking IB excel their "normal" classes.

Edited May 30, 2014 by ssy

[lizzo426]

Four HLs is plenty. If you want your diploma, choose your best four subjects as HLs and take the others SL. Even though the content isn't necessarily difficult (depending on who you are), the workload for an HL class is a weighty commitment. If getting accepted to a top-notch university is your goal, you want to balance your academics with other enriching activities that make you a well-rounded student.

[John Hoose]

Good luck if you do choose this, but this is probably too much.

Math HL on its own is incredibly challenging - I don't know anyone who has that high and also 3 other highs. 

 

If you are fluent in Spanish then Spanish B HL shouldn't be difficult at all. But History HL is a lot of work, and even if you have scored well in History in lower grades, History HL is incredibly time consuming. 

 

Bio HL is a (relatively) easy high level, but is also incredibly time consuming. And it is really difficult to score highly in any language A HL, so you might be better off dropping at least 2 of your subjects to SL depending on what you want to study after school. 

[rhapsodysiscaa]

I don't think you can survive with 6 HL. How will you graduate IB in 2 years with 6 HLs?

HL = more hours, more work. There will be ToK, EE and also CAS.

 

IB is not everything in this world. I suggest you to take atleast 4 HL. and, in resume... You don't really need good marks, you just need a lot of experiences,

 

Good luck!

Edited July 4, 2014 by rhapsodysiscaa

[ultimateone]

I'd rather you get a 40+ in the normal 3 HLs and 3 SLs than a 30 in 6 HLs, if you know what I mean. In the end, it's your grades and scores that matter, doing more HLs won't get you any more credit, it'll still be the same IB Diploma awarded to you. So why volunteer yourself for extra torture? The normal subject layout is already hell.

[Guest Daminark]

It isn't possible to do 6 as far as I know. My IB coordinator said that she could write a recommendation to IB and allow you to take 5, but 6 could be pushing it. Get a feel for the classes as they are, and see. If you truly feel the load is manageable, and if you get the right permissions, move Spanish to SL Literature (self study if your school doesn't offer it) and keep the rest. That, however, is seriously pushing it, both in terms of the workload, since having extracurriculars is more important than 5 HLs, and your school is seriously unlikely to let you have that schedule (my ib coordinator said she felt that no one in our grade could handle 5 HLs and she wouldn't write any for us). If you can't, drop the classes you feel you'll struggle in to SL (leave Spanish since it's easy, and leave English since it helps to have it HL, and it's not hard, only a lot of work).