International baccalaureate

[Buttercup82]

DDs school only offers the international baccalaureate. Not sure if I'm being old school but I think good old Alevels will be better. Shes not bothered about changing to another 6th form. Shes looking at 7s and 8s for her results and wants to go to university. Is the IB as widely accepted as Alevels? Thanks

Totally accepted
All uni courses list their typical entry requirements on their websites and include IB details. It might be as just a total score or also have minimum scores for Higher subjects. They also might stipulate whether they accept Maths Studies.

The IB Diploma is an amazing course for anyone wanting / needing to keep a broad range of subjects. My DC1 originally wanted to do chemistry, history & English at A level but the local massive 6th form made it very clear that they discouraged chemistry without maths, but would not allow that combination of 4.

It's not for the fainthearted though. It is hard work and utterly relentless. Coursework is intense, plus there's the CAS to do alongside it.

I wouldn't recommend IB for anyone with a strong subject focus, eg all sciences or all humanities.

IB absolutely no problem when it comes to university application.

However, your DD will need to be prepared for the workload: 3 higher level subjects, 3 standard level subjects, an extended essay, Theory of Knowledge, plus her Creativity, Action and Service hours - she should expect to have no free time during the week, and holidays will be pretty full on in terms of coursework and revision too.

If she's a good all-rounder and able to work hard and organise herself efficiently, she'll be fine.

Just a couple of examples to show how unis stipulate IB requirements for their courses... chemistry at Birmingham and English at UCL.

Hi OP you might find this recent thread of interest: www.mumsnet.com/Talk/education/3631768-a-levels-v-ib

Quite a lively discussion on there!