The IB program is a challenging two-year school course that can help prepare you for college, but is the IB program really for you? In this article, we’ll discuss the pros and cons of the IB course and determine whether it’s worth all the time and effort.

First of all, what is IB? IB is an acronym for International Baccalaureate, and it’s an educational program that allows students to take college-level courses in high school to prepare them for university courses by building fundamental skills needed in order to succeed in college,  as well as in general life, such as improved time management and the ability to think critically in certain situations to understand them better. Although IB does teach you these skills, there are a  few negatives with the IB program that may or may not outweigh the positives for certain people, and these negatives are not often explained or clearly seen until they are developed when you are already in the program.

– The Negative Of The IB Program

The problems created by the IB Program aren’t noticeable most of the time, but after a  while, you’ll slowly begin to notice changes to your life that weren’t there before.

For example, IB is a very vigorous program that will require you to do a lot of studying, so much in fact that you’ll begin to realize studying will eventually conflict with your social life at school because you often have to decide whether you want to study for the challenging tests that come with IB, or go out to spend time with friends. This can be a recipe for disaster because you’ll have to make important sacrifices. 

Another example is that you can actually begin to suffer from your own success. When completing the IB Program, many doors open for your life, and sometimes, the amount of choices can overwhelm you, especially if you don’t know what to do for your future. Some people have completed the IB Program, but after they were out of school, they just simply didn’t know what to do. It is good to plan ahead your future in life, and sometimes just riding the wave of life and seeing how these unfold can work too, but always make sure you set a goal for yourself after school so that you are at least working on something instead of procrastinating.  Remember, if you want to get out as many uses as you can from completing the program,  you’ll want to use it to enlist into a college or university and anticipate whatever is ahead in your life.

Lastly, there is the general pressure of being in IB. You’ll frequently feel stressed from certain assignments and studying over and over about them, and eventually, you’ll begin pulling all-nighters as you cripple under the pressure. Make sure you are able to maintain a healthy schedule. Often, IB students tend to be competitive and will do anything just to get that extra point. This will lead to them developing very high expectations of themselves, and getting results that aren’t up to their standard will discourage them greatly. But don’t worry! IB isn’t looking for people to score perfectly, they are only wishing to see if you scored half the points because half is passing! Those are truly IB’s standards. 

– The Positive Of The IB Program

As hard as IB might seem, most struggles can be avoided. In fact, some may say that the positives outweigh the negatives. Examples of the pros can be:

Attention from colleges and universities – Completing the IB Program gives you a bigger chance at entering the schools of your choosing because they realize that IB diploma students are some of the highest performers in their studies. IB sends out transcripts to around 5000  universities in 100 different countries, which gives you a wide range of options when choosing which university you want to get into, so you won’t need to worry about which ones to choose, as most colleges will instantly aim for IB diploma students. 

College is a grand challenge and is barely anything like high school. Often, when you first go into college, you’re taken aback by such sudden changes in the environment. But the thing is, the IB Program automatically shapes you to be better prepared for college. The things you learn in IB courses are nearly college-level, so when you actually go to college, you’re already on the same learning level, which is really helpful considering the workload you’re given during your college years. With the critical thinking skills of an IB student, you’ll be able to push through college.

Personal development is something where, as a person, you grow throughout the entire IB program. You learn well-rounded skills, you broaden your horizons, and you learn all of it through the subject variation within the IB program as it covers a large number of topics. 

Accessibility in the IB program is quite nice as well. Anyone can apply for the IB program, and even better, to pass the IB program you don’t even need to score a 100%! What IB wants from you is to cover a wide array of topics and try to remember most of it. Most of IB only needs you to score 50% to pass! If you get 50% on any IB quiz, you pass! 50% in IB is equivalent to an A- in school. 

So, in the end, do the negatives outweigh the positives found within the IB program? Well, that’s up for you to decide! If you’re able to take the IB program, it gives you many benefits in things beyond just universities and college. So overall, it is ultimately up to you to decide if the IB program is or isn’t for you.

Sources:

1- https://nailib.com/blog/is-the-ib-program-worth-it 

2- https://www.braingainmag.com/should-you-be-an-ib-student-here-are-the-pros-and-cons-to help-you-figure-it-out.html

3- https://www.studential.com/further-education/international-baccalaureate/pros-and-cons

4- https://www.ibo.org/university-admission/discover-why-ib-students 

succeed/#:~:text=Strengths%20of%20an%20IB%20education&text=Some%20of%20the%20mo st%20selective,in%20their%20areas%20of%20study.

5- https://www.collegeraptor.com/getting-in/articles/questions-answers/should-i-take-ib-classes in-high-school-how-to-determine-if-international-baccalaureate-courses-are-right-for you/#:~:text=Whether%20the%20college%20you%20ultimately,IB%20courses%20as%20colleg e%2Dlevel.

6- https://www.pps.net/Page/6701