Is Biology Necessary?

[TDgen47@IB]

Hi,

 

I want to pursue either engineering or medicine (or Bsc) after IB. As such I want to have chosen the right subjects that will keep all 3 of my options open. I am not interested in applying for an irregular diploma. I am looking to pursue the aforementioned courses in renowned universities of USA, Australia, Canada and Europe (specifically Denmark). If there is one thing in my life I'm sure about, its that I DON'T want to pursue a course in England. 

 

This is my current subject combo:

1) English lit lang HL

2) Danish B SL (probably changing to self taught)

3) Economics SL

4) Physics HL

5) Chemistry HL

6) Math HL

 

At the moment I have taken Biology SL as well just to be on the safe side (not sure how this combo is safe for my mental health though). I really want to remove Biology because of the overwhelming workload and because engineering requires Phy, Chem, Math. I have studied Biology in 9th and 10th grade. Have I made the right choice regarding subjects? Is it alright if I remove Biology? I want your opinions/suggestions/more information/experiences/additional university requirements on this subject. 

 

Please help and any help is appreciated.

Edited August 20, 2015 by TDgen47@IB

[Fiona]

Hi!

 

I do not know a lot about the universities in USA, Australia, Canada or Denmark but, generally speaking:

 

1) If you go for medicine, then it is more likely that universities will require Biology. You will also need Chemistry HL and Maths HL and maybe Physics. (which you are already taking and it's good)

 

2) If you study Bsc, universities usually require two sciences for that. You will need Maths as well. Not sure which level but Maths HL is better since you wanted to do engineering as well.

 

3) As for engineering, you have an ideal set of subjects. Studying Chemistry HL, Physics HL and Maths HL, plus Economics SL, is only at your advantage. With this you can study almost any type of engineering. 

 

However, the best thing to do is to pick the universities you want to get in and then look at their entry requirements. In each, there will be some variations for each degree.

 

Hope this helps!

[kevG]

Firstly, I think you should narrow down where you want to study mainly because applying to all those different countries will sure put a lot of pressure on you. Also you can't apply to Australia at the same time you apply to US/Canada/Denmark cause Australia's semester starts in February, while the semester for the other mentioned countries'  start during September, so you'll have a 6-month wait before you actually go to a University in Australia seeing that you have your exams in May, but then again you apply with your actual results after you finish your exams so that's something good.

 

I really can't say much about your subject choice; you did choose the subjects considered to be the 'hardest' as your HLs, However, I've seen few people handle it nicely. Not all, but a few. About Biology SL, you should be able to do it seeing that it doesn't affect your diploma even if you fail it (Since you're doing certificate). 

 

If you're from a non-English speaking country, you will need to take the TOEFL/IELTS to prove English proficiency (This changes from university-to-university; some are okay with IB English A)

Take SAT's for USA...

An advice from me to you would to start researching about university requirements, so you know exactly what you want to do/where you want to go.

 

that's 'bout it

Edited August 16, 2015 by gusmanK

[TDgen47@IB]

I will definitely be taking the SAT. Is there a test I will have to take for pursuing medicine in the aforementioned countries? I really like the fact that Biology would not make an impact on my diploma so I can get away with a 4 or can I? 

 

I have the following universities in mind at the moment:

 

USA 

 

Engineering/Bsc - Georgia Tech, Caltech, Princeton, MIT (long shot), others as well but I can't remember all of them

Medicine/Bsc - Princeton, Harvard (really long shot).

 

Cananda - Don't know much but I'm looking at Mcgill.

 

Australia 

 

Engineering/Medicine/Bsc - University of Melbourne, University of Sydney.

 

I personally think, its a bit too early to be emailing universities regarding the requirements. I just want to have a basic idea as to whether these subjects will keep all my options open in generally most universities of a particular country from the list of the aforementioned countries.

[Emmi]

This post only concerns US schools.

Keep in mind in the US medicine is a graduate course, not an undergraduate course. You have to study something else first for a few years before being allowed to apply to medical schools. There are a very few number of programs that admit students to medical school straight out of high school, but these are ultra competitive and I don't believe international students are considered for them.

Because of medicine being a graduate degree there's really no required set of courses, since you have to repeat anything you've done anyways. However, your subjects are fine for being admitted to a science related field. The thing is, for pre medicine you can study anything you want as long as you fulfill the requirements set by the medical schools. You can do this with a chemistry major, an engineering major, or even a literature major.

If you choose to study engineering, your subjects are also fine.

Edited August 17, 2015 by Emmi