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Ex- IB Student (If you ever need help, just ask)

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Hi, congratulations on your IB results, I just wanted to know how you got a 7 in Maths HL, I've just finished my first year of the IB and Maths HL is definitely my most difficult subject. How did you revise? What revision or study guides did you use? Also what techniques did you use for French?

Thanks
Reply 41
Original post by abigail706
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Original post by Christine.Aborah
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I would say practice a LOT of past papers and make sure you understand the concepts (especially complex numbers and 3D planes). It might be useful to look through the syllabus as well so you know exactly what you need to know! I didn't really use many websites and just used the textbook my school recommended (Mathematics Higher Level for the IB Diploma - Oxford)

For French, I set my Facebook to French and tried to read some articles everyday. I also made sure I knew all of the tenses and idioms. Also use past papers and practice speaking with your classmates or someone who is fluent in French. I sometimes used www.languagesonline.org.uk to remember the tenses.
Reply 42
Original post by bbbecca1
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A couple of people in my class took HL Economics without taking it for GCSE and they seemed to have enjoyed it. My teacher said he would recommend HL Economics since it allows you to understand concepts better since SL leaves a few knowledge gaps... I found the course pretty interesting and not too challenging compared to HL Chem and HL Maths, although I neglected Economics a bit during my revision...
I'm ex-IB and fairly recently on this forum but keen to help in any way (when I'm not submerged with uni papers :smile:

There some great sites for getting help. These are some of the best I've encountered:

-For general help. ideas or (even more importantly, when you need it) reassurance try ibsurvival. You'll get general advice or pointers whenever you need them. Great when you're confused about some aspect of IB or the criteria etc

-For hands-down the best personal guidance and advice (and best results!) on any English assignments for IB/AP, go to ibcando.com. They also have stacks of previous exams they give out if you register, a fabulous news section and ... best of all, will make sure you get good grades on all assignments.

-For learning French or languages in general (Language B) this site is just great French about.com. Tons of fun games and activities and exercises. You get the works: audio, visual, written, etc It is a cornucopia. And having fun is what makes for great learning, after all.

-For Math, depending on the tutor (there are some *really* good ones, some are so-so) I found this site really helped.

I never had any need for help in Sciences, so do not of sites. I expect someone has already mentioned these in the thread somewhere.

I can help mainly in French and Humanities subjects as these are my main subjects at uni. Fire away :smile:
(edited 9 years ago)
Hi, I've just finished GCSE's and have to make the decision between IB and A level. As I don't know what I want to study at uni I chose IB but many people do say that it is much harder to get into uni with IB, to what extent is this true? I was also worried about the work quantity. I am perfectly happy to work hard but many people say that you have very very little spare time and "sleepless nights" on the IB course. I just wanted to know if it's really that bad?
Reply 45
Hi, I need help trying to decide between French SL and Spanish Ab initio. I have done my IGCSE French and managed to get an A, but am worried that I won't be able to do it in IB as I don't enjoy it that much. Spanish Ab initio seems like a good option, but I am wondering whether my experience in French will confuse me. Thanks in advance!
Reply 46
Original post by ABarnes
Hi, I need help trying to decide between French SL and Spanish Ab initio. I have done my IGCSE French and managed to get an A, but am worried that I won't be able to do it in IB as I don't enjoy it that much. Spanish Ab initio seems like a good option, but I am wondering whether my experience in French will confuse me. Thanks in advance!


I had to make the exact same decision too, hopefully I can help you out. My school's IB coordinator right off the bat warned me not to take french b if I'm not interested despite the fact that I was predicted an A*in IGCSE -CIE French (and received it) as it's a challenging course and requires commitment/interest to get through. Judging from your post you're like me and aren't all that interested in continuing on with french to IB so I recommend you take Spanish ab initio. Having said that, don't assume spanish ab intio will be a walk in the park. It'll also be challenging as the course is very fast paced but you'll probably do better in it since you're more interested in Spanish .Your previous experience in french will actually aid you in learning spanish as they're quite similar languages (not to the same extent as spanish/italian, though).

Also, think about which part of the world you're interested in studying in/living and the use of each language. Since I plan on going to uni and living in the US, it was a no brainer for me to pick Spanish over French. However, if you intend on studying in a francophone country (France, Canada, Several Caribbean/African countries) you're better off sticking with French.

Hope I helped!
Hey guys, i"m starting IB in a few days. One of my higher's is Eng literature (1st language). Any advice from those that did it and got good marks? Any extra curricular stuff i can do to give myself a boost in the subject? Also are there any books that i really need to read in my spare time?
Original post by justified_chaos
Hey guys, i"m starting IB in a few days. One of my higher's is Eng literature (1st language). Any advice from those that did it and got good marks? Any extra curricular stuff i can do to give myself a boost in the subject? Also are there any books that i really need to read in my spare time?


There is lots of advice that one could give, but first off make sure that you know and understand the criteria for each assignment--too many who have done well in GCSE or lower grades expect to do well in HL Lit at IB and in fact find that just writing well and writing good essays is not enough. Not sure if that is your case, but it happens a lot. My cousin, for instance was strongest in his lower secondary class, but found he needed help with his major assignments, which he got, but he had to work hard to get to where he was before. It was a blow.

Anyway, you can get tons of advice, but maybe none of it really addresses what YOU need -- so it will be very general and perhaps even useless. Come back after you get your first major assignment, and ask a more precise question, then we might be able to help more.

otherwise, my cousin got all his help from here (these are IB examiners, most of them, so they know all the ins and outs). You might find this useful to know. They made sure that he got good marks for each of his assignments and he said he learnt more from them than from his English course. :smile: Hope this helps. V.
Thanks "Shadesofgrey" that's really helpful. I'll see how i do and hopefully will not have too much to address.
Ex-IB student here as well! HLs- Bio, Chem, Econ and SLs- English, Spanish and Math
Happy to help anyone with anything :smile:
Hi iJoyce and many more ex-IB students

please help!!!! i am struggling in my ib subject selection. i have chosen Biology chemistry and geography HL but apparently i dont really like my biology. i want to take music HL instead of Biology as music seems easier and more relaxed. My aim is to get into food science in university. what should i do??? should i drop biology and take music???? help!!!!


much help appreciated
Reply 52
Original post by guestaccount
Hi iJoyce and many more ex-IB students

please help!!!! i am struggling in my ib subject selection. i have chosen Biology chemistry and geography HL but apparently i dont really like my biology. i want to take music HL instead of Biology as music seems easier and more relaxed. My aim is to get into food science in university. what should i do??? should i drop biology and take music???? help!!!!


much help appreciated


You should probably check the entry requirements for the specific Universities you want to apply to for food science. Biology would probably be more helpful towards your application. I took Music SL and I must say that it is not easy or relaxing at all, and HL students found it quite stressful too. If you like composing, then HL Music could be for you.

Probably take a look at the syllabus for both HL Music and HL Biology and see which you prefer.
Reply 53
Original post by I Like Turtles.
Ex-IB student here as well! HLs- Bio, Chem, Econ and SLs- English, Spanish and Math
Happy to help anyone with anything :smile:


Omg. You took the exact same subjects as me, i've finally found someone. I start the IB in 3 days and i'm crazy nervous. Did you find the subject combination manageable? Any tips? Btw I'm trying to decide between Lit and Lang/Lit and I'm really stuck? I've never done literature but I've done IGCSE English Language and got an A. Heard lang/lit is easier, is that true?

Thanks! :smile:
Original post by pbunny
Omg. You took the exact same subjects as me, i've finally found someone. I start the IB in 3 days and i'm crazy nervous. Did you find the subject combination manageable? Any tips? Btw I'm trying to decide between Lit and Lang/Lit and I'm really stuck? I've never done literature but I've done IGCSE English Language and got an A. Heard lang/lit is easier, is that true?

Thanks! :smile:


Welcome to the IB! At times you might feel like it is impossible to survive, but this page is proof that a lot of us do :P
And I feel your pain, I only know one other person with the same subjects as me. And well they did not offer Lang/Lit at my school, so I don't actually know. I have heard that it is easier but we were lucky enough to have a good teacher so it was not that bad. But it is a lot of work so be prepared!
Now about the subject combination, it's not going to be easy but it is manageable. It will get a bit hectic in the second year towards all the deadlines, but it's like that for all IB students. I would suggest ddoing your assignments as soon as you can. I started working on my EE (in Biology) over the summer and got most of the research done- that really helped me get more time as well. I think something you will learn -hopefully- is time management! Hope that helps, tell me if you need anything else :smile:
Reply 55
Original post by I Like Turtles.
Welcome to the IB! At times you might feel like it is impossible to survive, but this page is proof that a lot of us do :P
And I feel your pain, I only know one other person with the same subjects as me. And well they did not offer Lang/Lit at my school, so I don't actually know. I have heard that it is easier but we were lucky enough to have a good teacher so it was not that bad. But it is a lot of work so be prepared!
Now about the subject combination, it's not going to be easy but it is manageable. It will get a bit hectic in the second year towards all the deadlines, but it's like that for all IB students. I would suggest ddoing your assignments as soon as you can. I started working on my EE (in Biology) over the summer and got most of the research done- that really helped me get more time as well. I think something you will learn -hopefully- is time management! Hope that helps, tell me if you need anything else :smile:


Thanks for the tips, there were great. I'm a perfectionist and an organisation freak so managing my time shouldn't be an issue for me. The main thing i'm worried about is that I don't have good study habits as I tend to only study the night before a unit/end of year exam instead of on a regular basis and since it's necessary to study on a regular basis in IB to do well it'll be a hard habit to break.
Original post by honeybadgerkid
Hi, also an ex-IB student here! :smile:

HLs:

English A: Literature - 6
History - 6
Economics - 7

SLs:

French B - 6
Biology - 6
Math Studies - 7

So if anyone wants to ask anything about any of those subjects then I'd be happy to answer!


Hi! I have just started my IB and my subjects are:

HL: Bio, Chem, Econ
SL: Math, Chinese B, English lit

I was wondering if you have any tips for HL chem and econ? Thanks a lot :smile:
Original post by j132
I'm an ex-IB student too and am happy to help!

HLs:
Maths - 7
Chemistry - 7
Economics - 6

SLs:
Eng Lit - 6
French B - 7
Music - 7




I didn't do psychology but a lot of my friends did and found it quite hard, but was probably because their teacher left halfway through the course...


Hi! I have just started my IB and my subjects are:

HL: Bio, Chem, Econ
SL: Math, Chinese B, English lit

I was wondering if you have any tips for HL chem and econ? Thanks a lot :smile:
[QUOTE="yarashe;48563976"]
Original post by j132
I'm an ex-IB student too and am happy to help!

HLs:
Maths - 7
Chemistry - 7
Economics - 6

SLs:
Eng Lit - 6
French B - 7
Music - 7


hi, im just finished my first year in ib diploma and going into my second. I seriously need help in chemistry HL, I saw what you got for chemistry and my question is, how did you manage to get a 7? is there a particular method you used? i would really like the help because i got a 4 and i really need to get a 6 or else i cant get into medicine :frown:


anyway, thank you and i hope you reply as soon as possible!!!

ps. should i get the Pearson chemistry book or should i just stick with the course companion?


Hi! I have just started my IB and my subjects are:

HL: Bio, Chem, Econ
SL: Math, Chinese B, English lit

I was wondering if you have any tips for HL chem and econ? Thanks a lot :smile:
Original post by I Like Turtles.
Ex-IB student here as well! HLs- Bio, Chem, Econ and SLs- English, Spanish and Math
Happy to help anyone with anything :smile:


Hi! I have just started my IB and my subjects are:

HL: Bio, Chem, Econ
SL: Math, Chinese B, English lit

I was wondering if you have any tips for HL bio, chem and econ? Thanks a lot :smile:

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