Yes it will, as more than half of those tier 1 schools offer IB, so having IB experience will increase your odds.
Sure, there are tier 1 IS that do not offer IB, but a lot (I'd say definitely more than half) do offer IB, so of course those schools will prefer someone with IB experience if you will be teaching at a grade level that has the IB program.
There are some teachers that may only look at American schools, but that would be overlooking some of the best schools around, and even quite a few top schools that have 'American' in their names offer IBDP nowadays, sometimes alongside AP. Plus, IB is being introduced in more and more schools, also established ones, so the cohort of schools that offer at least one of the IB programs is expanding.
How important is it to break into an IB school?
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Heliotrope
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Discussion
No, less than half of them offer IB and of the ones that do its typically DIP, which does nothing for ITs at primary or lower secondary. Having IB experience is no better than any other experience. No not a lot of them have IB, and not more than half. If they are only looking at Ass than they are missing a lot of other NC Iss sich as BSs, EUSs and FSs.
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Heliotrope
- Posts: 1169
- Joined: Sun May 13, 2018 1:48 am
Re: How important is it to break into an IB school?
I would refer you to the list I posted on page 1 of this topic, but I've actually expanded the list to include all countries, to avoid it being biased (and to overlook Brazil, Poland, Indonesia and some other great countries with some great schools is inexcusable).
All schools on the list have been mentioned on the paid ISR forum and other IT-forums multiple times when people ask about tier 1 international schools (although I could argue against some of them, but that would be merely my opinion).
Of course you can (and PsyGuy probably will) question the validity of the list, and sure, some schools can be added or removed (I personally think Vietnam only has 1 school that I would consider tier 1), but the overall conclusion is firm.
The list below has 66 schools in total
61 schools offer 1 or more IB programs (IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP).
28 schools offer all three IB-programs (IB-PYP, IB-MYP & IB-DP).
6 schools offer 2 out of 3 IB-programs (IB-DP and either IB-MYP or IB-PYP).
27 schools offers 1 IB-program (IB-DP, sometimes AP is also offered).
5 schools offer no IB programs at all.
I'm basing this on what they mention on their 2018 Search Associates profile.
The OP states they have AP experience, so they're likely going to be teaching high school diploma students.
Of the 66 top schools, 61 of them have an IB program.
Sure, not all kids will take the IB courses, but more than a few of them will (at the schools I've worked at, more than 80% will attempt to get a IB diploma, at my current school even more).
Schools that offer IB at the grades the candidate will be teaching will always prefer IB experience, all other things being equal.
This doesn't mean that without IB experience you will have no chance of getting into these schools (I'm very happy that more than a few schools will pay for your training), but they will rather pocket that money and hire someone that has already taught IB. And these are schools that get loads of applications, so they can afford to be picky.
I myself did what the OP is asking about: got IB experience at a tier 2 school, and with that experience I was hired at a tier 1 school 2 years later.
Here's the list (school names censored for obvious reasons):
Angola, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Argentina, XXXXX: IB-DP
Austria, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Bangladesh, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-DP
Belgium, XXXXX: IB-DP & AP
Brazil, XXXXX: IB-DP
Bulgaria, XXXXX: IB-DP
Cambodia: XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Chile, XXXXX: IB-DP
China, XXXXX: AP
China, XXXXX: IB-DP & AP
China, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Czechia, XXXXX: IB-DP
Ecuador, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-DP
Ethiopia, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-DP
France, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Germany, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-DP
Germany, XXXXX: IB-MYP, IB-DP
Germany, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Ghana, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Hong Kong, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Hong Kong, XXXXX: AP
Hong Kong, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Hungary, XXXXX: IB-DP
Indonesia: XXXXX: IB-DP & AP
Israel: XXXXX: AP
Japan, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Japan: XXXXX: AP
Luxembourg, XXXXX: IB-DP
Malaysia, XXXXX: IB-DP & AP
Malaysia: XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Myanmar: XXXXX: IB-DP
Oman, XXXXX: IB-DP & AP
Pakistan, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-DP
Pakistan, XXXXX: AP
Peru, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Philippines, XXXXX: IB-DP
Philippines, XXXXX: IB-DP & AP
Poland, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Romania, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Senegal, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-DP
Singapore, XXXXX: AP
Singapore, XXXXX: A Levels & IB-DP
Singapore, XXXXX: IB-DP
South Korea, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Switzerland, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-IBDP
Switzerland, XXXXX: PYP, MYP, IBDP
Switzerland, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Switzerland, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP) & AP
Switzerland, XXXXX: IB-DP & AP
Taiwan, XXXXX: IB-DP & AP
Taiwan, XXXXX: IB-DP
Thailand, XXXXX: IB-DP & AP
Thailand, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Thailand: XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
The Netherlands, XXXXX, IB-DP & AP
The Netherlands, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
The Netherlands, XXXXX: ID-DP
Turkey, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
UK, XXXXX: IB-DP & AP
Venezuela, XXXXX: IB-DP
Venezuela, XXXXX: IB-DP
Vietnam, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Vietnam, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Vietnam, XXXXX: IB-DP & AP
Vietnam, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Ok, PsyGuy, let's continue the dance... Or we can just agree that getting IB experience won't hurt the OP, but will rather help him get into a top school (although yes, you can get there without IB experience as well).
All schools on the list have been mentioned on the paid ISR forum and other IT-forums multiple times when people ask about tier 1 international schools (although I could argue against some of them, but that would be merely my opinion).
Of course you can (and PsyGuy probably will) question the validity of the list, and sure, some schools can be added or removed (I personally think Vietnam only has 1 school that I would consider tier 1), but the overall conclusion is firm.
The list below has 66 schools in total
61 schools offer 1 or more IB programs (IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP).
28 schools offer all three IB-programs (IB-PYP, IB-MYP & IB-DP).
6 schools offer 2 out of 3 IB-programs (IB-DP and either IB-MYP or IB-PYP).
27 schools offers 1 IB-program (IB-DP, sometimes AP is also offered).
5 schools offer no IB programs at all.
I'm basing this on what they mention on their 2018 Search Associates profile.
The OP states they have AP experience, so they're likely going to be teaching high school diploma students.
Of the 66 top schools, 61 of them have an IB program.
Sure, not all kids will take the IB courses, but more than a few of them will (at the schools I've worked at, more than 80% will attempt to get a IB diploma, at my current school even more).
Schools that offer IB at the grades the candidate will be teaching will always prefer IB experience, all other things being equal.
This doesn't mean that without IB experience you will have no chance of getting into these schools (I'm very happy that more than a few schools will pay for your training), but they will rather pocket that money and hire someone that has already taught IB. And these are schools that get loads of applications, so they can afford to be picky.
I myself did what the OP is asking about: got IB experience at a tier 2 school, and with that experience I was hired at a tier 1 school 2 years later.
Here's the list (school names censored for obvious reasons):
Angola, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Argentina, XXXXX: IB-DP
Austria, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Bangladesh, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-DP
Belgium, XXXXX: IB-DP & AP
Brazil, XXXXX: IB-DP
Bulgaria, XXXXX: IB-DP
Cambodia: XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Chile, XXXXX: IB-DP
China, XXXXX: AP
China, XXXXX: IB-DP & AP
China, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Czechia, XXXXX: IB-DP
Ecuador, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-DP
Ethiopia, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-DP
France, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Germany, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-DP
Germany, XXXXX: IB-MYP, IB-DP
Germany, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Ghana, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Hong Kong, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Hong Kong, XXXXX: AP
Hong Kong, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Hungary, XXXXX: IB-DP
Indonesia: XXXXX: IB-DP & AP
Israel: XXXXX: AP
Japan, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Japan: XXXXX: AP
Luxembourg, XXXXX: IB-DP
Malaysia, XXXXX: IB-DP & AP
Malaysia: XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Myanmar: XXXXX: IB-DP
Oman, XXXXX: IB-DP & AP
Pakistan, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-DP
Pakistan, XXXXX: AP
Peru, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Philippines, XXXXX: IB-DP
Philippines, XXXXX: IB-DP & AP
Poland, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Romania, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Senegal, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-DP
Singapore, XXXXX: AP
Singapore, XXXXX: A Levels & IB-DP
Singapore, XXXXX: IB-DP
South Korea, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Switzerland, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-IBDP
Switzerland, XXXXX: PYP, MYP, IBDP
Switzerland, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Switzerland, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP) & AP
Switzerland, XXXXX: IB-DP & AP
Taiwan, XXXXX: IB-DP & AP
Taiwan, XXXXX: IB-DP
Thailand, XXXXX: IB-DP & AP
Thailand, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Thailand: XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
The Netherlands, XXXXX, IB-DP & AP
The Netherlands, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
The Netherlands, XXXXX: ID-DP
Turkey, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
UK, XXXXX: IB-DP & AP
Venezuela, XXXXX: IB-DP
Venezuela, XXXXX: IB-DP
Vietnam, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Vietnam, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Vietnam, XXXXX: IB-DP & AP
Vietnam, XXXXX: IB-PYP, IB-MYP, IB-DP
Ok, PsyGuy, let's continue the dance... Or we can just agree that getting IB experience won't hurt the OP, but will rather help him get into a top school (although yes, you can get there without IB experience as well).
Reply
@Heliotrope
Ive already demonstrated the invalidity of your conclusions and your list, youve simply, gone to the IB website and picked what you think is a tier 1 IS and claimed its an IB IS because it touches the IB by having one IB program. All youve done in your ana1ytic is identify an IB option in the particular region, there are thousands of IB ISs, this is already known, and youve picked 66 of them spread out though various regions. Looking at the easy math, your list has 66 ISs, 28 of them are IBWs even assuming ALL of them are 1st tier ISs (and we set aside the issue of elite tier IS or not) 28 isnt even half of 66, the majority as stated earlier are NC ISs. Again, just looking at Japan (Tokyo), 3 first tier ISs, one of them an IBWS the other 2 dont touch or have anything to do with IB, and of those three its rarely, rarely, if ever that someone concludes the IBWS is the Elite tier IS among the three. Your data is range restricted, its are there IB programs in the 1st tier, its that the NC programs and IS are far more prevalent among them. Even by your own bias example IB ISs are the minority.
No they wont ALWAYS prefer IB, not by a long shot, many students would prefer A* to an IB DIP.
No, Those ISs wont pocket the coin, theyre first tier ISs, if their ITs arent doing IB workshop training for their PD, their doing something else for their PD, thats still going to cost coin.
Why you would use the SA profile over the IBEN, since nothing about your list accomplishes anything more than Identify that a particular region has some type of IB program in it.
No, less than half of them offer IB and of the ones that do its typically DIP, which does nothing for ITs at primary or lower secondary. Having IB experience is no better than any other experience. No not a lot of them have IB, and not more than half.
Ive already demonstrated the invalidity of your conclusions and your list, youve simply, gone to the IB website and picked what you think is a tier 1 IS and claimed its an IB IS because it touches the IB by having one IB program. All youve done in your ana1ytic is identify an IB option in the particular region, there are thousands of IB ISs, this is already known, and youve picked 66 of them spread out though various regions. Looking at the easy math, your list has 66 ISs, 28 of them are IBWs even assuming ALL of them are 1st tier ISs (and we set aside the issue of elite tier IS or not) 28 isnt even half of 66, the majority as stated earlier are NC ISs. Again, just looking at Japan (Tokyo), 3 first tier ISs, one of them an IBWS the other 2 dont touch or have anything to do with IB, and of those three its rarely, rarely, if ever that someone concludes the IBWS is the Elite tier IS among the three. Your data is range restricted, its are there IB programs in the 1st tier, its that the NC programs and IS are far more prevalent among them. Even by your own bias example IB ISs are the minority.
No they wont ALWAYS prefer IB, not by a long shot, many students would prefer A* to an IB DIP.
No, Those ISs wont pocket the coin, theyre first tier ISs, if their ITs arent doing IB workshop training for their PD, their doing something else for their PD, thats still going to cost coin.
Why you would use the SA profile over the IBEN, since nothing about your list accomplishes anything more than Identify that a particular region has some type of IB program in it.
No, less than half of them offer IB and of the ones that do its typically DIP, which does nothing for ITs at primary or lower secondary. Having IB experience is no better than any other experience. No not a lot of them have IB, and not more than half.
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Heliotrope
- Posts: 1169
- Joined: Sun May 13, 2018 1:48 am
Re: How important is it to break into an IB school?
You're incorrect about the way I went about it:
first I identified the top schools (I include elite tier into tier 1), not based on my own preferences (I've you've read it, I disagree with some) but rather on what others identified as top tier schools (those that are mentioned often) that they want to work at. The list is pretty solid, although a small minority is up for dispute in my opinion.
And no, 61 out of 66 schools offer IB at some stage, and 28 offer all three. Some offer two.
The OP taught AP, so I'm assuming they will be teaching the diploma years at their future schools, so they will have an edge at those 61 (out of 66) tier 1 schools if they have IB experience (as some schools already mention in their ads, although it stands to reason that they would if the school offers it).
I've taught at 4 schools so far.
The better a school gets, the higher the percentage of students that chooses IB (or AP) for their diploma years instead of NC. At my first (tier 2) school, 47% choose AP (no IB was offered), at my second (tier 2) school
70% choose to do pursue an IB diploma, at my third it was 80%, at my current (tier 1) school over 90% takes IB-DP. All teachers in the high school section had IB experience before being hired, and all teach IB-DP.
So no, if you teach at the diploma level as the OP and his wife do, an overwhelming majority of the students at the overwhelming majority of the top schools will take IB-DP, and the schools will logically prefer teachers that have IB experience.
I'll let the OP and the other members decide for themselves what sounds more plausible. Maybe some can chime in, instead of you and I repeating ourselves?
first I identified the top schools (I include elite tier into tier 1), not based on my own preferences (I've you've read it, I disagree with some) but rather on what others identified as top tier schools (those that are mentioned often) that they want to work at. The list is pretty solid, although a small minority is up for dispute in my opinion.
And no, 61 out of 66 schools offer IB at some stage, and 28 offer all three. Some offer two.
The OP taught AP, so I'm assuming they will be teaching the diploma years at their future schools, so they will have an edge at those 61 (out of 66) tier 1 schools if they have IB experience (as some schools already mention in their ads, although it stands to reason that they would if the school offers it).
I've taught at 4 schools so far.
The better a school gets, the higher the percentage of students that chooses IB (or AP) for their diploma years instead of NC. At my first (tier 2) school, 47% choose AP (no IB was offered), at my second (tier 2) school
70% choose to do pursue an IB diploma, at my third it was 80%, at my current (tier 1) school over 90% takes IB-DP. All teachers in the high school section had IB experience before being hired, and all teach IB-DP.
So no, if you teach at the diploma level as the OP and his wife do, an overwhelming majority of the students at the overwhelming majority of the top schools will take IB-DP, and the schools will logically prefer teachers that have IB experience.
I'll let the OP and the other members decide for themselves what sounds more plausible. Maybe some can chime in, instead of you and I repeating ourselves?
Reply
@Heliotrope
Ive already demonstrated the invalidity of your conclusions and your list, youve simply, what you think is a tier 1 IS and claimed its an IB IS because it touches the IB by having one IB program. All youve done in your ana1ytic is identify an IB option in the particular region, there are thousands of IB ISs, this is already known, and youve picked 66 of them spread out though various regions. Looking at the easy math, your list has 66 ISs, 28 of them are IBWs even assuming ALL of them are 1st tier ISs (and we set aside the issue of elite tier IS or not) 28 isnt even half of 66, the majority as stated earlier are NC ISs. Again, just looking at Japan (Tokyo), 3 first tier ISs, one of them an IBWS the other 2 dont touch or have anything to do with IB, and of those three its rarely, rarely, if ever that someone concludes the IBWS is the Elite tier IS among the three. Your data is range restricted, its are there IB programs in the 1st tier, its that the NC programs and IS are far more prevalent among them. Even by your own bias example IB ISs are the minority.
No they wont ALWAYS prefer IB, not by a long shot, many students would prefer A* to an IB DIP.
No, Those ISs wont pocket the coin, theyre first tier ISs, if their ITs arent doing IB workshop training for their PD, their doing something else for their PD, thats still going to cost coin.
Why you would use the SA profile over the IBEN, since nothing about your list accomplishes anything more than Identify that a particular region has some type of IB program in it.
No, less than half of them offer IB and of the ones that do its typically DIP, which does nothing for ITs at primary or lower secondary. Having IB experience is no better than any other experience. No not a lot of them have IB, and not more than half.
Ive already demonstrated the invalidity of your conclusions and your list, youve simply, what you think is a tier 1 IS and claimed its an IB IS because it touches the IB by having one IB program. All youve done in your ana1ytic is identify an IB option in the particular region, there are thousands of IB ISs, this is already known, and youve picked 66 of them spread out though various regions. Looking at the easy math, your list has 66 ISs, 28 of them are IBWs even assuming ALL of them are 1st tier ISs (and we set aside the issue of elite tier IS or not) 28 isnt even half of 66, the majority as stated earlier are NC ISs. Again, just looking at Japan (Tokyo), 3 first tier ISs, one of them an IBWS the other 2 dont touch or have anything to do with IB, and of those three its rarely, rarely, if ever that someone concludes the IBWS is the Elite tier IS among the three. Your data is range restricted, its are there IB programs in the 1st tier, its that the NC programs and IS are far more prevalent among them. Even by your own bias example IB ISs are the minority.
No they wont ALWAYS prefer IB, not by a long shot, many students would prefer A* to an IB DIP.
No, Those ISs wont pocket the coin, theyre first tier ISs, if their ITs arent doing IB workshop training for their PD, their doing something else for their PD, thats still going to cost coin.
Why you would use the SA profile over the IBEN, since nothing about your list accomplishes anything more than Identify that a particular region has some type of IB program in it.
No, less than half of them offer IB and of the ones that do its typically DIP, which does nothing for ITs at primary or lower secondary. Having IB experience is no better than any other experience. No not a lot of them have IB, and not more than half.
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Heliotrope
- Posts: 1169
- Joined: Sun May 13, 2018 1:48 am
Re: How important is it to break into an IB school?
Simply repeating what you've said before is not a very strong counter.
The bottom line is:
- The OP will teach at the diploma level
- Many of the tier 1 schools offer IB-DP (61 out of 66 in the list)
- The list is based on what people on this forum consider tier 1 schools, not my personal opinion
- Even if you personally chip away at that list or add some, it will still be a large majority that offer IB-DP
- Most students at top schools choose to do IB-DP (very large majorities at the schools I've worked at or have friends working at, percentage always increases as the quality of the school increases, which is the case in tier 1 schools) or AP (offered at 14 of the schools on the list, usually next to IB-DP)
- A school that offers a certain curriculum will of course look kindly on experience with that curriculum in candidates
Therefore, the OP & spouse will benefit from having IB experience if they apply to a top school.
But before you copy-paste your previous post again, shall we wait if others have an opinion about this?
Might be healthy.
Anyone?
The bottom line is:
- The OP will teach at the diploma level
- Many of the tier 1 schools offer IB-DP (61 out of 66 in the list)
- The list is based on what people on this forum consider tier 1 schools, not my personal opinion
- Even if you personally chip away at that list or add some, it will still be a large majority that offer IB-DP
- Most students at top schools choose to do IB-DP (very large majorities at the schools I've worked at or have friends working at, percentage always increases as the quality of the school increases, which is the case in tier 1 schools) or AP (offered at 14 of the schools on the list, usually next to IB-DP)
- A school that offers a certain curriculum will of course look kindly on experience with that curriculum in candidates
Therefore, the OP & spouse will benefit from having IB experience if they apply to a top school.
But before you copy-paste your previous post again, shall we wait if others have an opinion about this?
Might be healthy.
Anyone?
Re: How important is it to break into an IB school?
I've followed your discussion with a lot of interest. I think we're going to try and prioritize getting into an IB school but also keep our options open. If a good non-IB school offers us positions we certainly wouldn't say no. Thanks for all the in-depth information, it's definitely all food for thought.
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Heliotrope
- Posts: 1169
- Joined: Sun May 13, 2018 1:48 am
Re: How important is it to break into an IB school?
Sounds smart.
Good luck with the job hunt!
Good luck with the job hunt!
Re: How important is it to break into an IB school?
Time to check in again as recruitment season looms, and what do I find but the same old baloney from Dave. Next he’ll be spinning his usual nonsense about ISS being the “boutique” recruitment organization for candidates and schools, or claiming that he has a doctorate or worked in DODEA. (Oh no, I’m too late.)
The best international schools in Europe at high school level are either IB Diploma or IB Diploma with a side plate of AP. I can think of only one exception – in London. In the meantime, schools that were AP-only have converted – entirely or in part – to IB Diploma. So here is a more accurate picture (with the term "top" being used to denote the generally agreed best school):
France, one top school. Used to be AP only; now IB/AP.
Belgium, one top school. IB with a side plate of AP.
Netherlands, two top schools. One IB with a side plate of AP. One IB only.
Germany, one top school. IB with a side plate of AP.
Spain, one top school. Used to be AP only; now IB.
Italy, one top school (not in Rome). Used to be AP only; now IB.
Austria, two top schools. One used to be AP only; now IB; one IB only.
Switzerland, two top schools. One used to be AP only; now IB/AP. One IB only.
Hungary, one top school. Used to be AP only; now IB only.
Czech Republic. One top school. IB only.
Poland, one top school. IB only.
Russia, one top school. IB only.
Bored with Europe? What about Asia?
India, two top schools. One IB with a side plate of AP. One IB only.
Thailand, three top schools. One, IB with a side plate of AP. Two, IB only.
Indonesia, one top school. IB with a side plate of AP.
Malaysia, one top school. IB with a side plate of AP.
China, two top schools. Both, IB with a side plate of AP.
Hong Kong, various contenders for top school, but I’ll quote two. One IB only; one AP only.
Singapore, three top schools. One, IB only; one AP only; one IB/ A levels.
Taiwan, one top school. AP with a side plate of IB.
Vietnam, one top school. IB only.
Philippines, two top schools. One, IB with a side plate of AP. One, IB only.
Japan, one top school. AP only.
Of the best international schools in Asia and Europe, then, I can only think of four that are exclusively AP.
Dave, of course, will say that his list of top schools is not “congruent” with mine. Which is Dave-speak for “I won’t engage, because I know I’m wrong.” So here’s the challenge, Dave. Go on to the paid site, and we can compare and contrast our views of which are the top schools in each country. (Wait a minute. You haven’t paid your annual fee!)
The best international schools in Europe at high school level are either IB Diploma or IB Diploma with a side plate of AP. I can think of only one exception – in London. In the meantime, schools that were AP-only have converted – entirely or in part – to IB Diploma. So here is a more accurate picture (with the term "top" being used to denote the generally agreed best school):
France, one top school. Used to be AP only; now IB/AP.
Belgium, one top school. IB with a side plate of AP.
Netherlands, two top schools. One IB with a side plate of AP. One IB only.
Germany, one top school. IB with a side plate of AP.
Spain, one top school. Used to be AP only; now IB.
Italy, one top school (not in Rome). Used to be AP only; now IB.
Austria, two top schools. One used to be AP only; now IB; one IB only.
Switzerland, two top schools. One used to be AP only; now IB/AP. One IB only.
Hungary, one top school. Used to be AP only; now IB only.
Czech Republic. One top school. IB only.
Poland, one top school. IB only.
Russia, one top school. IB only.
Bored with Europe? What about Asia?
India, two top schools. One IB with a side plate of AP. One IB only.
Thailand, three top schools. One, IB with a side plate of AP. Two, IB only.
Indonesia, one top school. IB with a side plate of AP.
Malaysia, one top school. IB with a side plate of AP.
China, two top schools. Both, IB with a side plate of AP.
Hong Kong, various contenders for top school, but I’ll quote two. One IB only; one AP only.
Singapore, three top schools. One, IB only; one AP only; one IB/ A levels.
Taiwan, one top school. AP with a side plate of IB.
Vietnam, one top school. IB only.
Philippines, two top schools. One, IB with a side plate of AP. One, IB only.
Japan, one top school. AP only.
Of the best international schools in Asia and Europe, then, I can only think of four that are exclusively AP.
Dave, of course, will say that his list of top schools is not “congruent” with mine. Which is Dave-speak for “I won’t engage, because I know I’m wrong.” So here’s the challenge, Dave. Go on to the paid site, and we can compare and contrast our views of which are the top schools in each country. (Wait a minute. You haven’t paid your annual fee!)
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Heliotrope
- Posts: 1169
- Joined: Sun May 13, 2018 1:48 am
Re: How important is it to break into an IB school?
@Walter
I've just posted my list uncensored on the paid forum (I have a different screen name there), and since your list differs a bit, I would appreciate your input there - additions, or disagreements with the schools that are included.
I've just posted my list uncensored on the paid forum (I have a different screen name there), and since your list differs a bit, I would appreciate your input there - additions, or disagreements with the schools that are included.
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snowphantom
- Posts: 19
- Joined: Wed Feb 01, 2017 4:42 am
Re: How important is it to break into an IB school?
@Heliotrope Well, I normally side with anyone who disagrees with Psyguy, I'm not sure how you possibly came up with your list of "tier 1" schools. I would like to see your definition cause all of these below are tier 2 or below and you left many tier 1s on your list.
Non tier 1 schools on your list: Angola, Argentina, Bangladesh, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Chile, Ecuador, Ethiopia, Ghana, Israel, Malaysia (the other one), Myanamar (ha!), Italy, Pakistan (double ha!), Philippines (the other one), Senegal, Switzerland (only 2), Taiwan (other one), Venezuela, Vietnam (only 2).
Non tier 1 schools on your list: Angola, Argentina, Bangladesh, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Chile, Ecuador, Ethiopia, Ghana, Israel, Malaysia (the other one), Myanamar (ha!), Italy, Pakistan (double ha!), Philippines (the other one), Senegal, Switzerland (only 2), Taiwan (other one), Venezuela, Vietnam (only 2).
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Heliotrope
- Posts: 1169
- Joined: Sun May 13, 2018 1:48 am
Re: How important is it to break into an IB school?
I made the list purely based on what I've seen mentioned as top schools.
Personally, I think Vietnam might not have any tier 1 schools anymore, now that the one in the North seems to have a toxic work environment.
And I've made the list rather quickly, so there's bound to be some schools that might not belong, and I may have forgotten a few for sure. The main point was to illustrate that most (61 out of 66 on my list) offer IB-DP, and that conclusion will stand firm even if you take out a few and add a few.
But yes, the list is open for debate, Therefore, I've posted it on the paid forum to improve it, since it would be nice to have a list, even though any list will only be good for a day or so, since schools are changing all the time.
But looking at your comments:
Much depends on if you compare schools on a global level, or if you assign tiers based on regional comparisons. I would favour regional comparisons, since lots of teachers want to 'teach in Latin America', or 'go do Europe'.
For example, with regards to Africa, the schools in Angola, Ghana, Ethiopia & Senegal are often mentioned, although you could add the top schools in Tanzania, Mozambique, and Egypt to those three. Yes, based on the reviews on ISR I would probably strike Ghana, but for example Senegal is rightfully a tier 1 school. Savings will be lower that in Asia, but if you compare globally and focus too much on savings potential, 90% of the list would be Asian schools perhaps, with the rest being Middle-Eastern.
Same goes for the schools in Argentina, Chile, Ecuador, and Venezuela: all the top schools for the region. I would sooner remove Peru than any of these four.
In Taiwan, the other school is apparently -based on a study some PhD student did a while ago- academically better than the top school there, is more international if you look at the student population (although still mostly locals), and second to the top school only in salary. So if you're looking at savings only, yes, the second one shouldn't be on there. But people still save more at this second school than teachers at the best schools in the UK, Germany, France, etc.
Same goes for the other one in Philippines: it might be taken off if you compare it to the top school there, but it's a great school where you can save a lot, and both as a work environment and for savings, it would easily beat many other schools that are considered top schools elsewhere.
For Bangladesh, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Israel, Malaysia, Myanmar, Pakistan, Switzerland (2): I haven't researched those, I've only seen them mentioned multiple times. They might be great places to work at, or great places to save money (Pakistan sure is, and actually the Islamabad school sounds great for what I remember).
I've never mentioned Italy. I wish either Italy or Spain would have top schools, with decent pay...
I've posted the uncensored list on the paid forum. Let's discuss it there. Many sound and helpful comments have already been made there.
This topic is about whether having IB experience will help you get into top schools, and even if the list changes a lot, the main take-away from just about any honest list would be the same.
Personally, I think Vietnam might not have any tier 1 schools anymore, now that the one in the North seems to have a toxic work environment.
And I've made the list rather quickly, so there's bound to be some schools that might not belong, and I may have forgotten a few for sure. The main point was to illustrate that most (61 out of 66 on my list) offer IB-DP, and that conclusion will stand firm even if you take out a few and add a few.
But yes, the list is open for debate, Therefore, I've posted it on the paid forum to improve it, since it would be nice to have a list, even though any list will only be good for a day or so, since schools are changing all the time.
But looking at your comments:
Much depends on if you compare schools on a global level, or if you assign tiers based on regional comparisons. I would favour regional comparisons, since lots of teachers want to 'teach in Latin America', or 'go do Europe'.
For example, with regards to Africa, the schools in Angola, Ghana, Ethiopia & Senegal are often mentioned, although you could add the top schools in Tanzania, Mozambique, and Egypt to those three. Yes, based on the reviews on ISR I would probably strike Ghana, but for example Senegal is rightfully a tier 1 school. Savings will be lower that in Asia, but if you compare globally and focus too much on savings potential, 90% of the list would be Asian schools perhaps, with the rest being Middle-Eastern.
Same goes for the schools in Argentina, Chile, Ecuador, and Venezuela: all the top schools for the region. I would sooner remove Peru than any of these four.
In Taiwan, the other school is apparently -based on a study some PhD student did a while ago- academically better than the top school there, is more international if you look at the student population (although still mostly locals), and second to the top school only in salary. So if you're looking at savings only, yes, the second one shouldn't be on there. But people still save more at this second school than teachers at the best schools in the UK, Germany, France, etc.
Same goes for the other one in Philippines: it might be taken off if you compare it to the top school there, but it's a great school where you can save a lot, and both as a work environment and for savings, it would easily beat many other schools that are considered top schools elsewhere.
For Bangladesh, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Israel, Malaysia, Myanmar, Pakistan, Switzerland (2): I haven't researched those, I've only seen them mentioned multiple times. They might be great places to work at, or great places to save money (Pakistan sure is, and actually the Islamabad school sounds great for what I remember).
I've never mentioned Italy. I wish either Italy or Spain would have top schools, with decent pay...
I've posted the uncensored list on the paid forum. Let's discuss it there. Many sound and helpful comments have already been made there.
This topic is about whether having IB experience will help you get into top schools, and even if the list changes a lot, the main take-away from just about any honest list would be the same.
Re: How important is it to break into an IB school?
snowphantom wrote:
> Non tier 1 schools on your list: Angola, Argentina, Bangladesh, Bulgaria,
> Cambodia, Chile, Ecuador, Ethiopia, Ghana, Israel, Malaysia (the other
> one), Myanamar (ha!), Italy, Pakistan (double ha!), Philippines (the other
> one), Senegal, Switzerland (only 2), Taiwan (other one), Venezuela, Vietnam
> (only 2).
What makes you the purveyor of all knowledge on this subject? You seem to have visited a heck of a lot of schools to check them all out. I'm impressed!
> Non tier 1 schools on your list: Angola, Argentina, Bangladesh, Bulgaria,
> Cambodia, Chile, Ecuador, Ethiopia, Ghana, Israel, Malaysia (the other
> one), Myanamar (ha!), Italy, Pakistan (double ha!), Philippines (the other
> one), Senegal, Switzerland (only 2), Taiwan (other one), Venezuela, Vietnam
> (only 2).
What makes you the purveyor of all knowledge on this subject? You seem to have visited a heck of a lot of schools to check them all out. I'm impressed!
Re: How important is it to break into an IB school?
Heliotrope wrote:
> I made the list purely based on what I've seen mentioned as top schools.
> Personally, I think Vietnam might not have any tier 1 schools anymore, now
> that the one in the North seems to have a toxic work environment.
Toxic work environment = both subjective and utterly irrelevant to a tier 1 status. We're not here to guess at the day to day conditions, are we? I can name a solid Tier 1 school that NOBODY would suggest not being on this list as being a toxic environment. I worked there. It's still like that now. A pain in the ass. It's tier 1 all the way.
I suggest we try and take a longer term, less subjective approach if we want this list to have any meaning.
> I made the list purely based on what I've seen mentioned as top schools.
> Personally, I think Vietnam might not have any tier 1 schools anymore, now
> that the one in the North seems to have a toxic work environment.
Toxic work environment = both subjective and utterly irrelevant to a tier 1 status. We're not here to guess at the day to day conditions, are we? I can name a solid Tier 1 school that NOBODY would suggest not being on this list as being a toxic environment. I worked there. It's still like that now. A pain in the ass. It's tier 1 all the way.
I suggest we try and take a longer term, less subjective approach if we want this list to have any meaning.