Subject Choice Advice & Preparation

[Vida42]

I, too, have been having trouble deciding what subjects to take. I'm in 10th grade Pre-IB in Sweden, but I'm a native English speaker. I'm hoping to study animal sciences, zoology, veterinary medicine, or something similar after graduating - but I often change my mind about these kinds of things so I'm trying to decide the perfect combination that will leave be prepared for a science-based degree but flexible enough to be useful if I change my mind. I'm not sure where I'll be going to university, but probably the United States or Great Britian. So, anyways, here are my ideas, bold lettering meaning my largest source of hesitation: 

 

 

English A HL

Swedish B SL

Psychology HL or SL  

Biology HL

Chemistry HL or SL

Mathematics SL

 

 

 

I've been reading entry requirements for some of the universities I'm looking at and most of them recommend HL in 2-3 subjects & the rest SL for Mathematics, Chemistry, Biology, and Physics. I do enjoy science classes and do fairly well in them, but I have very little prior knowledge. I've gotten all A's during pre but its been pretty basic so far. My school doesn't offer Mathematics HL, otherwise I would've done that.  So, my main question is, should I go for both science subjects HL or is Psychology HL  (or History, for that matter) HL a better idea? Do I really need Chemistry HL or is SL enough?

 

And lastly, can anyone recommend specific areas to study to prep myself for the HL courses? I don't feel like my Pre year is doing a great job preparing me and I would feel much better if I could study some course material or something. Maybe something that is sheer memorization that I could learn already this year, to allow me to focus a bit more on other things next year?

 

Thanks for any help you can provide! I'm very excited but extremely nervous to start IB!

 

[Emmi]

For sciences, especially vet medicine, you will definitely want HL chemistry. I think it's a requirement at a lot of places in the UK to have HL chemistry. If you're planning to go to the US, it's not as big of a deal what your subjects are, but HL chemistry will be good preparation for all the science classes you'll be taking.

 

You don't need to prepare for anything, really. You've got two years to learn all of this material. That's a ton of time. You'll be fine, just focus on doing well in the classes you take now and relax as much as you can. If you're really itching to do something, you can look at some of the intro chapters for your courses but please don't feel like you have to learn half of the syllabus going in. 

[Zane Price]

You can never go wrong with chemistry. It seems like all of the sciences require a little bit of knowledge in chemistry. As far as the psychology, I don't know what to tell you. I am taking SL psychology this year and will be taking the test this spring. The course is pretty interesting but a lot of it is just memorizing studies that pertain to different mental processes. I think it is all up to you. You ultimately are the one who will be taking the courses and having to do well in them. I think that any courses you take in high school will help you succeed in college. Especially since we are taking IB. I do not think you could take a course that would not help you. Just enjoy yourself and the rest will work out by itself.

 

Good luck!!

Edited December 19, 2014 by Zane Price

[Vida42]

Thanks for the advice! I definitely think I'm going to go ahead with HL Chemistry. I've noticed most UK / Swedish universities require or recommend Physics as well, but I can't take all three sciences on the program so hopefully the two will be good enough. I was thinking about taking a fourth HL subject just to increase the credit I can receive in college & to perhaps boost my chances, but with both science subjects HL maybe it'll be a bit too much. 

[Pink97]

Thanks for the advice! I definitely think I'm going to go ahead with HL Chemistry. I've noticed most UK / Swedish universities require or recommend Physics as well, but I can't take all three sciences on the program so hopefully the two will be good enough. I was thinking about taking a fourth HL subject just to increase the credit I can receive in college & to perhaps boost my chances, but with both science subjects HL maybe it'll be a bit too much. 

 

Actually UK universities don't require physics for what you're interested in studying (just higher level biology and chemistry), however, if  Swedish universities do (don't know their entry requirements) require all three sciences then you're school can get permission for you from the IBO - this is commonly allowed for students that require the three sciences, you'll be exempted from doing a group 3 subject. So, if you're interested, inform your school's IB coordinator and he/she should be able to get you permission. Or if you can, take physics as a regular class (non IB) if you're school also offers non-IB classes that are based on the local curriculum. 

 

And yes, don't do four higher levels, it's a waste of energy as universities don't give you any credit for doing an extra higher level course. Especially in your case as you're doing two higher level sciences, that is challenging as is, no need to add another higher level to the mix. Take three higher levels and maximise your overall score - that will increase your chances of getting university rather than 4 higher levels with a lower overall score. 

Edited December 20, 2014 by Pink97

[Sandwich]

HL Biology/Chemistry are essential as said above.

 

The other thing I would say is that you should make your third HL 'easy'. Psychology is quite a lot of memorising - you don't want to be doing three memorisation heavy subjects around finals time. Easier to do maybe Swedish B at HL. You're better off making one of them an easy 7.

[Vida42]

HL Biology/Chemistry are essential as said above.

 

The other thing I would say is that you should make your third HL 'easy'. Psychology is quite a lot of memorising - you don't want to be doing three memorisation heavy subjects around finals time. Easier to do maybe Swedish B at HL. You're better off making one of them an easy 7.

 

Swedish is definitely my weakest subject considering I've lived in the country for less than a year .. what about English Language & Literature? Would you consider that a good "easier"  subject? My reading/writing/analyzing skills are, I would say, pretty good and I enjoy reading very much. 

 

And concerning physics, I've thought about taking it outside of the program but if I take regular classes they're in Swedish and like previously mentioned, I'm not 100% comfortable with the language yet. If its not required in England (or US) I'll probably stick with just Biology/Chemistry (: 

[Sandwich]

Swedish is definitely my weakest subject considering I've lived in the country for less than a year .. what about English Language & Literature? Would you consider that a good "easier"  subject? My reading/writing/analyzing skills are, I would say, pretty good and I enjoy reading very much. 

 

And concerning physics, I've thought about taking it outside of the program but if I take regular classes they're in Swedish and like previously mentioned, I'm not 100% comfortable with the language yet. If its not required in England (or US) I'll probably stick with just Biology/Chemistry (: 

 

 

English would also be good. The main thing with languages is that there's not much revision to do at the end - which is veryyyy useful if you need to spend a lot of time cramming Biology & Chemistry! Trying to know everything about 6 subjects simultaneously in roughly 10 days is hard work for the poor old brain, so strategically it makes sense to try and have a subject combination that's going to give you some subjects with less last minute cramming needed. In that sense, you're better off doing something like English. Especially if you're good at it, then it may be an easy 7 for you.