The "Which IB subjects should I choose" Thread

Thanks for the advice! The thing is though I'm not sure if I will be able to keep up with HL maths because I'm currently averaging a B for add maths(but A star for normal maths). I think I'll try to do bio then. I would have loved history, but my college doesn't offer it.


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Hi, I've just started the IB and I want to do philosophy or theology at uni - most of my subjects are fine but History HL is horrible for me right now... I got an A* at GCSE but now it's nothing like I imagined it to be, and I don't think I'll get the grade I hoped for at the ened. I want to change subjects but my only other option would be to do Visual Arts (school doesn't offer very many subjects), but it's kind of regarded as a soft subject, so will it hinder my chances at going to a top uni? I'm thinking either Durham, St Andrews and maybe Oxford, although most likely the first two.

Subject combinations I'm doing now:
History HL
English lit HL
Philosophy HL
German B SL
Mathematics SL
Physics SL

Although if I would drop history, my subjects would be this:
English lit HL
Philosophy HL
German/Physics HL
Mathematics SL
Visual Arts SL
German/Physics SL
^ I think due to timetabling issues I'll have to do Physics HL, I've heard it's hard but I think if I put the work in I'll be capable, and I'm pretty good at German but I don't know if they'll be able to schedule me in.

So basically, will doing VA instead of History hinder my chances at a top uni?

This is kind of a "which IB subjects should I do" thing. Ok, I plan to study Chemistry at Oxbridge atm, Idk if this will change.

I plan to do:
HL Chemistry
HL Maths
HL Geography/Latin/Economics
SL English
SL Mandarin ab initio (I can speak fluent Mandarin already, easy 7)
SL Geography/Latin/Economics

Now a sixth former just came into my room (I'm at boarding school, IB next year) and he told me that HL Maths is really really really hard. Like, you need to be a genius or something. He told me not to do Latin but Economics (I chose Latin because I heard it looks good on UCAS, CV, etc.) and that Economics was relatively easy for him despite him not having prior knowledge of it before IB. So what I'm after is - your opinion on these subjects, whether you struggle or not, or some general advice that would make me change my choices. Bearing in mind currently the only career and future I want is in Chemistry, though this might change; so I want the best choices to make my life studying IB easier and my Oxbridge app/IB diploma the best possible. What do you guys suggest? I'm aiming for all A*s I/GCSEs, with my weakest subject as English. I also plan to do some early preparation, such as looking into some SL Chemistry now etc.

Well I took an ab initio subject when I did the IB and even though I was actually a novice (French), I still managed a 7. Also, Economics HL is pretty simplistic. The entire first section of the Economics textbook is called "Introduction to Economics," the course is designed for people with absolutely no background in the subject. I had done the course with no prior experience and I got a 7. So take it without a doubt in mind.

Yes, Maths HL is hard. One of my boarding school friends currently studying Mathematical Theory at Princeton, who absolutely adores and lives for Maths, got a 6 in Maths HL. Then again, another friend who loathes Maths but simply has a skill for it and knows how to practice exam technique like no other got a 7 in Maths HL. It all comes down to how interested you are and how well you master exam technique. And that advice applies to all the IB subjects you take.

If you have any further Qs about the IB, feel free to ask.

Best, Arrowhead.

Thanks for the reply Arrowhead. So now I'm thinking HL Chemistry, Maths and Economics. Will choosing Economics affect my UCAS negatively if I want to study Chemistry in uni? I'm worried they might think "why didn't he choose Biology?" (I have no intention of studying medicine). I think the choices I make will give me maximum points without affecting my UCAS too much.

Hi,
So I just started IB and I am currently taking 4 HLs: bio, chem, geo and English lit. I have lots of work so I've decided to drop English because i know i want to study science in university.
However I dont know if i should drop from HL literature to SL literature, or from HL literature to HL language and literature. I know lang and lit has a reputation of being easier but i wanted to know if that was really true, and if it was going to change the way universities see my application?

Plus if i do change to HL lang and lit and I still having trouble with the workload, then my only option would be SL lang and lit. would that also change the way universities regard my application?

Thank youu

Hi,
So I just started IB and I am currently taking 4 HLs: bio, chem, geo and English lit. I have lots of work so I've decided to drop English because i know i want to study science in university.
However I dont know if i should drop from HL literature to SL literature, or from HL literature to HL language and literature. I know lang and lit has a reputation of being easier but i wanted to know if that was really true, and if it was going to change the way universities see my application?

Plus if i do change to HL lang and lit and I still having trouble with the workload, then my only option would be SL lang and lit. would that also change the way universities regard my application?

Thank youu

Hey, at the moment i'm doing the following subjects

HL English
HL Economics
Hl French

SL Psychology
SL Biology
SL Maths

Im thinking of changing from psychology to geography, as it will be much easier. However, i'm not sure if i should change as i do like psychology more, its just a lot more work. Im also a bit unsure about maths, and whether to drop down to studies or not. The course that i'll do in uni won't probably be maths related though.

Hi,
So I just started IB and I am currently taking 4 HLs: bio, chem, geo and English lit. I have lots of work so I've decided to drop English because i know i want to study science in university.
However I dont know if i should drop from HL literature to SL literature, or from HL literature to HL language and literature. I know lang and lit has a reputation of being easier but i wanted to know if that was really true, and if it was going to change the way universities see my application?

Plus if i do change to HL lang and lit and I still having trouble with the workload, then my only option would be SL lang and lit. would that also change the way universities regard my application?

Thank youu

Furthermore, there is much more official work in Lang and Lit. In Literature, all you have to do is one 1500 word essay (+300 word reflective statement), an oral commentary of about 20 minutes and a presentation (may I add a very easy presentation where everyone gets 6s and 7s) of 10-15 minutes.
In Language and Literature, you are required to write at least 4 written tasks, 1000words +300 word rationale each. One of them (at least) has to a traditional essay, whereas the others are " creative writing" which in my opinion is harder to get a good grade and you don't have the plethora of sources online (sparknotes, cliffnotes, etc.) to do your analysis. Additionally to this, you are required to do at least 2 further oral activities (up to 1 hour long!) which are interactive with the class and count for 15% of your grade, an IOC (internal oral commentary) which is exactly the same as in literature.

Paper 1 for Lang lit is also a comparative analysis. Although the texts CAN be simple (even a comic) do not be fooled by this, as the level of analysis required is the same as in literature! And even if the texts can be simple, on my mocks I got considerably more complicated texts for my Lang and Lit than my Italian Lit (Italian lit was some bs poem about trees).

Many people seem to think that Lang and Lit is just A2 English changed a little, but this is quite wrong. What they did is took the basic ideas of A2 (such as focus on language) and changed it to become much more challenging and at the same level as literature. The one which is harder depends on you: no doubt in L&L you have a larger workload, and are assessed over a much broader range of things. That being said, I find the course much more enjoyable than straight Literature, because you get some of the Literature while also looking at other stuff.