IB SubjectsAnswered
Hi, I am a current sophomore and international student. I am starting the IB next year, so I have already submitted the subjects that I would be doing.
I plan to do:
Biology HL
Chemistry HL
Psychology HL
English A Language and Literature SL
Chinese B SL
Maths AA SL
I made these options taking into account the fact that one of my career interests was the life sciences - including psychology, health and medicine.
However, one of my other main interests was astrobiology (as I think it is a good option to combine my interests in physics, astronomy and biology together), and how we can explore that through astronautical engineering.
Therefore, I think my subjects may have not completely fit in with my interests as I did not really take that into account. The second round of subject selection is in February, so I hopefully still have time to change my subjects. What should I change my subjects to if I really want to go into those fields, while still maintaining my other interests?
Additionally, I have not really thought about what I would have to do to enter a career in astronomy. I had a few questions:
- If I were to do a degree in psychology or biology at a college of arts and sciences at a certain university, would I have to do dual-enrollment at the engineering school of the same university? Is that an option?
- What extracurricular activities should I do to explore and develop my interests in the field of maths and physics, including aerospace engineering?
- What do highly competitive STEM institutions that specialise in those areas tend to look for in applicants and how I can increase my chances of getting in? Or would that not be the best option considering my interests in the less traditional sciences, such as psychology and health?
Thank you very much in advance!
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1 answer
Hi there @ec7474,
I have answered your questions below in order:
The way your degree can be pursued will depend on the university you choose to attend. Some universities only have one undergraduate college and therefore you would have two majors within that college. Other schools will have these majors indifferent colleges within the university, and it might be very easy to double major, or there might be restrictions on double majoring or minoring across departments. For many schools, you will only be able to apply to one of the majors and then add on the other major later, or express your interest for both majors throughout your application – though I don't necessarily recommend this as this can get super difficult to write about in your essays and can kind of throw off the overall cohesiveness of your application.
I have linked some blog articles below. We'll help you find extracurricular activities or inspiration for them, at the least, in these particular subjects.
https://blog.collegevine.com/extracurriculars-for-high-schoolers-interested-in-studying-math/
As for catering your application in order to fit this major, I recommend that most of your courses and your extracurriculars set around a specific spike, so that you are demonstrating a specialized profile to admissions officers and they can better understand your application based on their current evaluation process. However, you should follow your interests and take courses that you will do well in, keeping in mind that not all of your courses need to directly relate to this major. I've also linked an article below that seems to fit your situation and can help you get a better idea of what exactly a specialized application looks like.
Hope this helps!
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Sorry for the late reply, but thank you very much for this! It was very helpful.