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Cambridge and the International Baccalaureate

Reply 20

You betcha. Although, I'm kind of disappointed that they don't use the new IB conversion. A person who scores 36/45 could get into Oxbridge then :p:

Reply 21

Firz

==" They need to revise those. For sure. XD

Reply 22

G Unit

OP

SunderX

For the top-tier universities, tariff scores do not really really convey much to the admissions tutors. You see, tariff scores can be easily boosted by increasing the number of courses you take, but for admissions purposes any number of A levels above 3 A's starts to be increasingly insignificant, as do any external, non-academic qualifications such as music exams and horseback riding awards.

If they based admissions on tariffs scores alone, the number of IB students entering Oxbridge next year would probably triple, considering the new IB-tariff point conversion scale UCAS are implementing this year.

An AP course I would probably weight the same as an A level; it's not like they can ask for anything more if that's all your school has.

Understand what you say - But surely the tariff will allow the admissions tutors to take into account the challenge of the IB compared to most other qualifications?

Reply 23

SunderX

14

G Unit

Understand what you say - But surely the tariff will allow the admissions tutors to take into account the challenge of the IB compared to most other qualifications?

In other universities, perhaps. But UCAS really shot themselves in the foot when they came up with the conversion scales. I mean, if I get a good score (over 40), that counts as 5-6 full A levels! I doubt many of the higher-tier universities will take the IB tariff points seriously at all, due to this, and they will simply stick with the admittance procedures they had before for IB students.

Reply 24

G Unit

OP

SunderX

In other universities, perhaps. But UCAS really shot themselves in the foot when they came up with the conversion scales. I mean, if I get a good score (over 40), that counts as 5-6 full A levels! I doubt many of the higher-tier universities will take the IB tariff points seriously at all, due to this, and they will simply stick with the admittance procedures they had before for IB students.

The statement is that to equal a score of 45 points, an A Level student must gain six or more A's.

Is this not a true statement? The IB Curriculum is much more difficult than A levels, especially remembering that IB students must take 6 subjects, including one compulsory language, complete 150 hours of CAS, a 4000 word extended essay, and Theory Of Knowledge.

Surely you cannot say that 3 A levels equals the standard of an IB Diploma!?

Reply 25

epitome

11

Okay, further to my sweeping generalisations a few posts back ...(!)...

We're probably never going to all agree on what qualification is "best", because all do have their advantages & disadvantages (naturally). But the IB demands a broader education, in equal or more depth to A Levels. If you study 5 A Levels then, yes, you're probably about the same as an IB diploma; but for people such as myself who did the standard 3 A Levels, we really did have a much, much easier time of it (not to mention the module system, which reduces the amount you have to learn in one go significantly).

If you're going for education, from what I've seen and experienced it certainly SEEMS as if the IB is the better deal. Of course it's not infallible, but it's pretty good.

Reply 26

SunderX

14

It is perhaps true, that we do put a similar amount of work into our studies as 5A A level students, and I think we should be rewarded for it. But then again, those kids with 5 A's aren't getting preferential treatment either for admittance; they've just got more A's.

Reply 27

epitome

11

...in which case, anyone who wants to be able to easily meet their Cambridge offer (presupposing for the moment that they actually get one) should just do 3 A Levels. :wink:

NB: Not a failsafe way to get into Cambridge. Sadly. :wink:

Reply 28

--

3

epitome

...in which case, anyone who wants to be able to easily meet their Cambridge offer (presupposing for the moment that they actually get one) should just do 3 A Levels. :wink:

NB: Not a failsafe way to get into Cambridge. Sadly. :wink:

Exactly, the assumption in the thread seems to be that because the IB is seemingly harder that it is harder to get into Cambridge if you take it. But that's not true, its based on the supposition that if you meet the standard offer you get into Cambridge - which we all know is not true. Nearly all students who are given offers are expected to be able to gain a 2ii at Cambridge and therefore should be able to easily attain the offer whether its the IB or A level offer. Grades are only one small part of why someone is given an offer, therefore nearly all offers are attainable by anyone who is deemed good enough to receive one - most students with AAA go on to beat the 80% boundary by sizable margins. So lets not get into an A Level/IB slanging match, the point is, if you're good enough to get an offer you should be able to meet it whether its AAA or an IB offer.

Reply 29

epitome

11

3232 - quite.

Although:

So lets not get into an A Level/IB slanging match

...I thought it was remaining fairly civilised! :p:

Reply 30

--

3

(Wasn't aimed at you :smile:

)

Reply 31

doc_E

question...do u think its ok if i take math studies and want to get in for medicine?? any1 know sum1 that did this??

Reply 32

gurk

Erm...you've got a snowball's chance in hell of getting a place to study Medicine with Maths Studies.

Maths Studies is a course designed for people who don't plan on using maths in any further education/future career. It's definitely not designed for people who plan on taking one of the most competitive Sciences subjects, at one of the most competitive universities in the world!

Reply 33

doc_E

thanks..its just that im desperate...my teacher is just toooo bad....but then i better stick with methods if i wanna have a chance..thx!

Reply 34

arod

5

Firz

Does anyone happen to know the approximate IB score required to enter Cambridge/Oxford? I think 3232 posted 39, is that about right?

I know for biochem at Oxford they want at least 41. Most that were accepted scored 42 points total.

Reply 35

Lambda Delta Pi

I'd think they appreciate the IB diploma as the very strict examination that it is, and they are aware of how much work it entails, but I don't believe they "love it", just acknowledge it rather.

Reply 36

silver-rose

my offer for cambridge is 7,7,6 and 39 points total in the IB diploma. I must say, that offer is much harder than 3As which many of my other friends have to get;

For my friends, 3A's just means scraping Cs and Ds on the rest of the module marks, because they have scored so well on the previous ones.

As for the IB; your previous performance is no compensation for future exams and the final mark. You really have to haul ass to take 16 exams in a week and score 39+

Reply 37

silver-rose

I advise you to choose the system that would best fit YOUR needs.

For example, personally, I would've preferred to take A-levels; because i felt that the extra time I would have would've allowed me to further pursue my interests in the realms of physics (my major)

However, if you do believe a wide ranging curriculum such as that of the IB would help you in the future, then that obviously would be your choice.

You might want to , like i have said, also consider the difficulty of the examinations, but of course, that should not be your primary concern.

Reply 38

josepharthur

Would a score of 775 (maths HL, chemistry HL, physics HL), total of 41 points be worthy of admission for something like architecture?

Reply 39

Graphix

13

Has anyone in the UK who had the option of taking A levels, but instead chose IB, received an offer from Oxford or Cambridge to study Maths, Physics or Engineering?

It is just that my new school has told me that if anyone is interested in these degrees then they should choose A levels. Yet, other people say that IB is perfectly fine even if you want to go for a maths/science based degree...

Thank you.

Cambridge and the International Baccalaureate

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