International Baccalaureate (IB) in the UK

[hobie1]

Hello,
Can anyone share their recent experiences of kids studying IB in the UK?
Our year 10 child is determined to pursue IB. They are bright and are predicted 7-9s across the board for GCSE. They are organised and tenacious, but absolutely not a ‘star’ academically. They identify as non-binary, are confident around adults but not terribly gregarious amongst their peers. They have a very mature outlook and are engaged politically, quite a serious young person.

The excellent local state 6th form offers A-levels and I’m confident it would provide an excellent education. But I can see that the IB offers advantages for anyone who is more of a generalist, and I think the course-work versus exam balance will suit our child well. We are looking at boarding options and the UWC network are top of the list at present. However, we need to look at other options as we may not get a UWC place.

Please can people share their good, bad or ugly experiences of IB schools in the UK? We’d be looking for a boarding option, or possibly a London day school as we have options for lodging with family. We can cover fees, but if state/subsidised options exist that would be great. Instinctively the more ‘exclusive’ independent options don’t feel like they’d be a great fit. We’re a bit lefty, very rural, not at all streetwise – I fear that some of the most elite schools would not be the right choice. But I’d love to be swayed by others’ experiences. I have spoken to one girls’ independent school and they are unphased by the non-binary ‘thing’, having had kids transition during 6th form. I guess that’s not universally the case….
Thanks all
H

One of mine undertook the IB. It's excellent if the student is a good all rounder, organised and hard working. It is quite full on. They don't necessarily have to be brilliant to do well, just motivated and consistent. It gives the student an opportunity to study more subjects and prepares them well for university. No problems with university entrance.

However if the student is like one of my other children where they work in spurts or leave things until the last minute then it's not for them.

I hope this helps.

Look at Sevenoaks School. IB only - very passionate about it, so really in the DNA of the school. Co-ed, modern, unstuffy, non-traditional. Lefty/non-binary/rural absolutely wouldn't be an issue. Day and boarding options. Massive sixth form intake. Pretty academic and competitive to get in though.

Check out Hockerill Anglo European College. State boarding school (40% ish boarding so decent sized community ) so reduced fees. Inclusive and international outlook with strong results. There are also some 6th form admission videos from lockdown on website which talk in detail about about curriculum.

This is a map based search engine produced by the IBO. You search by country, thenPYP/MYP/Diploma and then zoom in. I have selected for all schools offering IB diploma. I can't remember how to make a hyperlink, so you will have to copy and paste into your browser.

www.ibo.org/programmes/find-an-ib-school/?SearchFields.Country=GB&SearchFields.ProgrammeDP=true

Where do you live? Quite a lot of the grammar schools near us do IB very successfully, Dartford Grammar, Tonbridge Grammar and Bexley does it too. Former tend to be mixed in the Sixth Form.

Bromsgrove offer both IB and A levels. So if you DC decides they don’t like it after a few weeks, there is the option to swap.

Thanks for this tip - looks really interesting.

I didn't study my IB in the UK, but I'm an IB graduate and aspire for my DD to do the same. Great curriculum and didn't find it challenging at all (that was 20 years ago!)

ACS Cobham and Egham do the IB and get good results. Cobham does boarding, Egham doesn’t. Fees are astronomical. Marymount also does the IB and gets good results. Your child will need to be very organised, and there is also not much free time. It’s very full on.

2 state schools in/around Cambridge offer IB - both have relatively small cohorts and quite a number of students from other European countries, so have homestay programmes set up for non-local students. Your DC sounds like they would very much fit into the Cambridge profile.
My DS started IB but (he's lazy) found it too much work. Your DC should definitely think carefully about their higher level subjects. It is more work than standard 3 A levels.

Rugby School does the IB and it's quite popular. I don't know of any state schools doing it yet, but there must be some

Another vote for Hockerill Anglo-European College mentioned above. It's a very good state school and is not over subscribed at sixth form (although it's hard to get a place in year 7) because many children are put off by doing IB rather than A Levels.

Look at Impington International College just outside Cambridge. They have international students who live in homestay arrangements, and it's the 'best' state IB provider in the country.

Oh and also Impington was just featured in the Guardian for its LGBT+ positivity.

The results are insane this year, stellar, so many with full marks compared even to last year.