Advice on how to do well in the IB, tips, anything will do!

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I'm sure there'll be specimen papers that you can get/buy off the IB website if you wanted to. Your teachers should have access to them as well for free, so they may give you copies.

Reply 21

marcelbandur

lustina

1) do your homework
2) work on time management
3) use weekends to go over notes
4) use the syllabus to study. make sure ur familiar with it
5) for french, practise writing essays. do 1 a week
6) For english, read ur textbook. do you have English for the IB Diploma? Also the OSC revision guide is very useful. learn ur literary terms!!
7)practise a maths question everyday

8) await a mental breakdown

Reply 22

Crystal Watson

What so there is no way of getting an idea of the questions! I mean will they be that different?

Reply 23

Crystal Watson

Rennie

Although, of course, the syllabus has changed a bit in bio and chem so there won't be past papers that have everything you need.

EVERYONE always stresses that BIO HL is impossibly hard and to get a 7 you would need to be so devoted that u won't do well on other subjects. Many ppl also tell me that if I aim at getting a 7, I will get several nervous breakdowns in the process of trying! :eek:

What do you think?

I am very scared so any advice would be deeply appreciated!

Reply 24

Rennie

Crystal Watson

What do you think?

I am very scared so any advice would be deeply appreciated!

Um, well, I know a few people who have gotten one. Just revise everything again when you get home and just work hard. As long as you don't leave all your revision until the last minute you should be okay.

I think if you balance your subjects well it shouldn't be a problem. I find that I won't need to revise Psychology, English and Maths as much as I will Spanish, Chemistry and Biology... so I have allotted them times accordingly.

Reply 25

Crystal Watson

OK, so sorry for the loaded questions but I was wondering if you could tell me from experience how applying for medicine is like to the UK!

I am british but have moved to a developing country for my 2 year IB course as my parents are both doctors and are doing 2 years elective to assist developing countries!

I have been told its much harder applying international and the competition is intense! How is it going for u, what do u have to do to be accepted, grades experience etc!

Does it help if u are british but applying from abroad!

Also, I am planning to take the SAT as I didn't get to complete my second yr of GCSE, will that help or shall I not?

Reply 26

eastisred

Crystal Watson

What do you think?

I am very scared so any advice would be deeply appreciated!

Honestly, I don't think its impossible to get a 7 in Bio HL although I am not a 7 student myself. If you do want to get a 7 then you really have to make sure that you get a decent overall mark for IAs.

The best way I find revising major processes in biology is just to repeatedly write the summarized points over and over again. Just remember the key points like in Mitosis.

1. Prophase - chromsome supercoil .. short and concise

Reply 27

Say cheese!

Crystal Watson

What do you think?

I am very scared so any advice would be deeply appreciated!

Dont worry, I know exactly where you are coming from! I got told that doing a science at HL was ridiculous and I ended up doing both Biology and Chemisty at HL and survived (I got 7s in both) =).

So it definitely isn't impossible and I suffered no mental breakdowns along the way either! Biology HL just requires constant reviewing of what you have learnt and stick to the syllabus as tightly as possible cause the majority of the questions they ask are actually just the syllabus guidelines re-phrased slightly. There is however a lot of content to cover and I would be lying if I said that it didnt stress me out a bit leading up to the exams but then a little stress is a good thing but it is definitely possible. It just needs constant revising basically.

Hope this helps a little to ease your mind!

Reply 28

Crystal Watson

OMG you saved me from constant worry and anxiety!
Now I feel so much more confident, thank you so much!
I am chem Hl too, and I think you are amazing, I mean you managed to get a 7 in both!
WOW! I really admire you! You must be so so so proud of your self!
I was wondering if there was a way I could contact you in the future (by email or through this site or something) coz I think I am going to be going through the nervous breakdown bit, and if u don't mind, I could really use your advice!

Thank you so so much! ;-)
Crys

Reply 29

schnargle

Crystal Watson

I am taking:

Biology HL
Chemistry HL
English A1 HL
Math SL (Methods)
French Abintio
Business and management SL

Hey, I'm doing the same subjects as you! Except for French B SL instead of French Ab. I'm also applying for Medicine :biggrin:

Your first year is actually incredibly important - I slacked off and had to work like hell to get decent results for May mocks. So um, don't do that :p:

but subject-wise, how much time you spend on each one really depends on how easy they are for you. In my case, English and French were easiest for me, so I concentrated more on Bio and Chem, but I know some people who are naturally very good at science, but have to work much more on English. Everything depends, really.

Also get very well-acquainted with the syllabus, especially for Bio and Chem, so you know exactly what they want. Every night at home (or at weekends depending on how much time you have), spend some time going over what you've learned that day and make sure you understand - if not, you can ask your teacher the next lesson. It makes everything much easier, and you'll be better prepared for class tests.

Finally, do your EE early! It doesn't necessarily have to be on science, choose something you like and you don't mind writing 4000 words on - I did mine in English. Write it during the summer break before Year 13, as there's barely any time in Year 13, and you'll have ages to go over it with your supervisor.

Good luck :smile:

Reply 30

sak-y

Oh yeah, avoid a science EE - people rarely do well in them, and there's no point taking a risk as the bonus points are vital.

If you can, stick to a History or English EE as they are the ones with the most As!

Reply 31

schnargle

That was partly why I chose to do my EE in English, actually. A girl two years before did her EE in Chemistry and was predicted an A, but ended up with a D. She lost two bonus points, which didn't matter in the end to her uni but could be the difference between meeting and missing your uni offers, especially if you lose points in other subjects because an exam goes badly or coursework's moderated down.

I second doing an English/History EE. Loads of people do them because they translate well into essays, and when you're writing something as long as an EE that's really important. You're doing English HL - if you really enjoy it, perhaps an English EE?

Reply 32

Crystal Watson

Um, well I am starting to struggle in English I dunno, I haven't taken history, can I still do it! I was gonna do human rights coz I love that but....well what do you think?

BTW, I try to study 3 hrs a day and we have regular tests so I have to, I hate chemistry, any advice! and did I mention that even though I adore bio I am terrified of it!

God I am so so scared!

Reply 33

Rainfaery

You can do an EE in a subject that you're not taking, but often your school will place restrictions on that.

Also: Don't procrastinate. That will be the kiss of death in the IB.

Reply 34

schnargle

Crystal Watson

For EE, it's usually best to stick to a subject that you're already doing, though ask your school if a Human Rights EE is possible - keep in mind that you'll need a supervisor with knowledge of the subject, so if there's no one who can do that then they'll probably say no. Two of my friends asked to do Peace and Conflict Studies and our IBC said no, but a girl the year before did Philosophy even though our school doesn't offer it (my French teacher supervised her because apparently you do tons of philosophy in the French Baccalaureate).

Even if they say no, getting a decent supervisor who knows about EE's and a good title is half the battle. It took ages for me to agree on a suitable title with my supervisor, but once that was sorted out then it was just a matter of getting suitable research and writing the essay.

Also: get hold of the EE mark scheme. Learn it. Keep it by your side. Cuddle it lovingly and call it George. :biggrin:

It's so handy to have the reminder of exactly what they want with something so long, where it's easy to get sidetracked. And keep an eye on the word count, as you'll lose marks if it runs over the limit.

Chemistry isn't exactly one of my favourite subjects either, but here again, syllabus = crucial. I find it handy for both Chem and Bio to use little cue cards to summarize key points and formulae, and get a load of scrap paper to doodle endless diagrams on until I don't have to think about them any more (though you may want to put these somewhere safe, as I think piles of doodles of the male and female reproductive systems might raise a few eyebrows). Then when I'm done, I get someone to test me - a friend taking the subject is best, but little siblings are also quite handy.

Finally, don't worry too much! IB can be awful sometimes, but getting those 35+ scores is definitely not impossible :smile:

Reply 35

Crystal Watson

Ur so funny, OMG u make the IB sound like a laugh! Thank you so much! OK, so syllabus, keep in mind! and the fact that HL subjects are impossibly hard and I don't know how to do well in English A1 HL!

OK so no procrastinating, I will try not to particularly with labs and ee!

Any advice for medicine in UK? Grades, experience etc

Reply 36

GAguy

For chemistry practicals:
FROM THE BEGINNING ON use your IB study guide (that thin book) to write up the practicals. Cuz at the end of the book is the criteria of the practicals and some hints on how to write it. I used the book from the beginning on and after a few practicals it just became routine to get full marks in the write ups. And this way you also save time. Because you just get used to writing up your practicals. Remember there are many many many practicals in Chemistry alone.

For any internal assessment just one advice:

READ THE CRITERIA!

Reply 37

schnargle

Haha well you do need to have a sense of humour when doing IB, otherwise you'll go mad. This is where your IB friends come in: because they're in the same situation, they understand where you're coming from, and can be an absolute lifesaver when you're just sick of everything and need to blow off steam.

English HL can be quite tough, especially in the exam when they can ask you the most bizarre questions, and you have to wade through them to find one that you can use for the books you're studying. It gets easier with practice though, and for both that and WL you could make a list of the things you need to include in the essay (author's aims, social/historical context, language, motifs/symbols etc.) Learn the list - it shouldn't be more than about 12 points - and then in the exam, read the questions and see which one will be easiest for you to answer well BASED ON THE BOOKS. A brilliant philosophical essay about the arts where you don't mention anything about writer's technique won't get you good marks.

I can't really help you with medicine apps as I haven't actually applied yet - I'm taking a gap year and will apply this October for 2010 entry. The TSR Medicine forum is very helpful though: http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/forumdisplay.php?f=195. All I can say is that your grades are super important! Some med schools will take you with 32-34 points, but really if you're considering medicine that should be at least 36-38. So don't shove things like lab reports aside because they're "less important", every point counts.

Work experience seems to be pretty much a requirement nowadays (at least that's what the unis I've talked to have told me). This doesn't have to be in a hospital - working with children with special needs, or helping out at a senior citizens' home also shows that you want to help people.

And keep on top of your work - but if you slip up once or twice, don't beat yourself up about it because we've all been there :p:

just don't make a habit of it.

GAguy

There's an IB study guide for Chem?! Where can I get hold of one?

Reply 38

jcb309

There's an IB study guide for Chem?! Where can I get hold of one??

Amazon.com :smile:

I have the one for biology, a bit late, 2 months to go, but hey, I felt that the 4 biology books our school has given us were not enough!
The bio one is called IB Study Guides ISBN 9780199151431 by Andrew Allcott... the one for chemistry is almost exactly the same, not sure about the author though!

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Everyone I know who did an English HL EE got an A/B.
Do poetry, its a piece of cake :smile:

Reply 39

Crystal Watson

English A1 HL, ITS KILLING ME!