Lynxarin Posted May 27, 2015 Report Share Posted May 27, 2015 Hi, I want to study law in the US, which is post-grad, and then I decided to go for a bachelors in economics before that, for example in England. The problem arose some days ago when life was fine and the sun was shining. All Economics or management faculties I have looked at require a 7 in Maths HL (LSE, Oxford, Cambridge, Warwick). I have done pretty okay in Maths SL this year, think I will get a 7 in the calculus test we had some days ago. Until christmas, maths HL & SL had the same teacher, at the same time, in the same room, studying the same things. What I have missed, is basically just one module of Statistics. Is it worth to stress over the summer and join the HL group in autumn. My summer holiday starts on friday, so there is not much time left to possibly discuss with the IB-coordinator, which is also the maths HL teacher. Is Maths HL actually as hard as everyone claims it is, and is it worth the extra work. How about colleges in the US, do they also require Maths HL. And since it's only a bachelors, I could study for example politics, management, international relationships instead of Economics, but preferrably not. What should I do?? Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Djsporting Posted May 27, 2015 Report Share Posted May 27, 2015 (edited) Math HL is extremely tough. I could sugar coat you and tell you with effort and dedication you'd get a 7, but you probably won't. Hard-work and dedication will get you a 5, but then you have have to really have an immense knowledge of Mathematics to get a 7. It is extremely time consuming, and I believe for the U.S Math HL will only give you university credits (Do not take my word for it though). However, I don't know you, nor do I know your mathematical abilities, therefore i'd suggest you discuss it with your co-ordinator and give it a shot. Best of luck. Edited May 27, 2015 by Djsporting Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
maroctam Posted May 27, 2015 Report Share Posted May 27, 2015 Honestly, if you have your heart set on economics, then switch. Talk to your coordinator first of course and see if you'll have the option of switching back if it really doesn't go well, but since you only missed statistics, you should be able to catch that up quite easily (the stats we learned at HL was honestly quite easy and was mostly calculator related). However, you mentioned a calculus test? have the HLs covered calculus too? because the level of calculus taught at HL differs significantly from that taught at SL (even if most of the knowledge per se is the same (iirc the only extra thing is integration by parts??) the types of questions asked at HL are way harder from what is demanded of you at SL: SL only scratches the surface of calculus while HL is much more involved). That said, math HL is not THAT hard. You just need to enjoy math and be good at it to pass decently, as well as be ready to spend A LOT of time outside of class doing exercises. Like, you will need to do a dozen of math problems every day on each topic you study. (okay, maybe i'm exaggerating, but not that much). Because with enough practice, even answering many of the math HL questions essentially becomes algorithmic. (of course there will always be one or 2 new questions that will require thought regardless of how much practice you've had.) 2 Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickyJo Posted May 27, 2015 Report Share Posted May 27, 2015 I have a friend who switched from SL to HL after the 1st semester. If you think you can do you should try. Maybe review topics that you missed during this year over the summer to see if you can handle it? Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex Jordan Posted May 27, 2015 Report Share Posted May 27, 2015 It honestly depends on your skills in Maths, and if you have the drive to do it. Maths HL goes deeper into different topics than SL does, such as getting into complex numbers and stuffs. So, if you are willing to take on all that extra work, then go for it. Before you do, however, you should obtain a Maths HL textbook and be able to access IB released items for HL Maths (shouldn't be too hard, no?). These will be your friends when self-studying. I'd try to email your coordinator and get permission first - even if you don't get Maths HL credits, you'll blaze through the Maths courses at your college of choice. Not every college in the US requires Maths HL - but it will earn you some credits, which means less money to pay for college (yeah, American eduction system is ****ed up).So, I'd say go for it if you can handle it and obtain permission. Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.