We are often asked by parents on whether they should opt for a school that offers IB curriculum for their wards or stick to conventional Indian boards. We aim to clarify some of those doubts

India Schools offer both Indian and International Syllabi namely:

• CBSE: Central Board of Secondary Education
• CISCE: Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE)
• IB: International Baccalaureate
• IGCSE: International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) Cambridge University
• State Board: State Government Recognized Board

In Indian Schools that offer the IB Diploma, the curriculum is implemented post the Year 10 Indian board. It is HIGHLY ADVISABLE in order to get the best benefit of IB education, students be enrolled since kindergarten. Changing boards in 11^th and 12^th is not a viable option as it poses additional stress on the students.

It is a perception that IB has a lot of advantages over Indian boards. However, that is not entirely true. There will only be a few Universities and few courses around the world which may not accept the ISC or the CBSE, like many colleges for medicine in the UK don’t accept CBSE. Also, SAT results are often a more important aspect of admission process in the United States than the board results. Commonwealth nations accept ISC results.

However, IB school goers face difficulties in Indian universities due to complex admission process and confusion regarding IB equivalent of ISC/CBSE results. IB results are also declared later than most schools which render it impossible to apply at many places. ISC or CBSE are therefore far preferable to an IB for an Indian student. All options in India are open to such a student while almost all options open internationally to IB students are also available to them. For admission to better US Universities, students from ISC or CBSE must take the SAT and so do IB students. So no differences there.