Do IB international students need to take TOEFL or IELTS？

[janeqs]

Hi guys!

    I am really confused right now so I need your help!! 

    So, I am an international student studying at a Canadian high school. I have been here for three years or so and I am doing IB Diploma. I heard that if you are doing IB English (and you can get a certain grade), you don't have to take TOEFL or IELTS. Is that true? For me, I am doing IB English A1 HL, do I need to take those language tests?

    Also, I am doing a self-taught language course since I didn't learn other languages (other than English and my native language). My friends are all doing French and Spanish, but I can't. My teacher suggested a two-year option to me last year before I started IB and he said that he would give me a predicted grade for this course after two years even if he doesn't speak my language. I mean, I could have chosen to finish this course in a year so that I could finish it early and get my final grade in July or something. But the student who is doing the same course as me chose the two-year option so I had to follow the same schedule. Nobody in our school speaks Chinese so I don't have a teacher. I only have supervisors which are kind of useless because they don't know the language. The teacher who granted a mark for me is leaving next year so for some reason I cannot have a predicted grade for my Chinese self-taught course anymore. So basically I will have predicted grades for five subjects instead of six by the end of this year when I apply for universities. (I am going to be in Grade 12 in September) I know that predicted grades are really important so I am really worried. What should I do? If I get a "In Progress" for this course, it will be a huge disadvantage for me. I have talked to my principal, and he said that he would still not give me a predicted mark, but instead, he would give me a projected mark if universities ask for it. I also asked if I could find a Chinese teacher so he or she would read my work and predict a mark for me. But my school didn't approve this.  I hope I explained this clearly. I am sorry for the confusion because it is really complicated. 

     Thanks SO much for your patience! I hope that my problems will be solved soon.  

[by.andrew]

If you are applying to Canadian universities, IB English HL warrants a transfer credit in university. Each Canadian university has its own rules regarding TOEFL and other English tests.

For instance, at the U of Toronto, if your first language isn't English and you haven't been in an English speaking school for more than 4 years, you have to take a TOEFL or equivalent.