Alex’s Story

Subject(s) studied: IB Diploma- Higher Level English, Maths Analysis and Approaches and History, Standard Level Biology, French and Visual Arts

Previous School: St Ives School

What’s next: Studying History at university

After attending a small secondary school, Alex felt she was ready for something bigger: “I chose Truro College because I wanted to be somewhere big, after being at such a small secondary – it was also the only place I could study the IB. The IB is mainly different from being in school because of the teaching style; it makes a difference being in smaller classes and having a less formal setting.”

The International Baccalaureate Diploma (IB) is a widely recognised and respected qualification which allows students to study a wide range of subjects under one qualification. Students choose 3 Higher Level Subjects and 3 Standard Level subjects from a wide range including English and Languages, Humanities, the Arts, Sciences, Maths and many more.

Alex feels that the IB has introduced her to many things which she may not have known about if she didn’t choose the diploma:  “The thing I enjoy the most about college and the IB is being able to study a range of subjects;  particularly carrying on with art and French, which I wouldn’t have been able to do with A Levels but am really glad I could! Also, I love that it has an international focus – like in English, we do translated books as well as just English ones, so I’ve ended up reading books that I had never heard of but are amazing. I’m also only doing subjects that I’ve chosen to do.”

Alex also took advantage of the Enrichment opportunities available at college: “I attended Academics Academy in my first year, which was really helpful in exploring a range of different fields and particularly in showing the different career options that can lead from doing a degree or PHD. It also gave me the chance to hear about things completely unrelated to what I’m studying.

“I also did the Oxbridge academy events with Angie and Euan which were amazing. We got to do a trip to Cambridge last summer.”

Alex has been applying for highly competitive places at university, including at the University of Oxford where she has just received an offer. She explained how the IB helped her prepare for this: “The IB has helped me to prepare for the future because of the coursework in each subject, which helped with my essay skills, but mostly because of the Extended Essay; I got to choose a topic of history that I’m really interested in and choose exactly what I wanted to investigate and write about in it. It was also great as it was like a chance to make sure that history was what I actually wanted to study. Also, by doing French, I’ve improved my skills enough that I will be able to travel in France and other French-speaking countries in the future – which I would love to do!”