Parallel to MIT International School’s (MITIS) clear objective of providing quality education, the school ensures that its students make their way to success by getting into the best colleges and universities worldwide. Its American based K-12 curriculum gives the students the competence to advance to local universities at Grade 10 and an option to graduate at Grade 12 should they plan to take up their college degree abroad.
The school initiates various programs that raises its academic standards among other international schools in the country and has proven exemplary approaches to mentoring by producing excellent students who have passed the admissions criteria of premiere universities such as University of California, University of Toronto, University of British Columbia, Nagoya University (Japan), The Pennsylvania State University , The Michigan State University, Doshisha University (Japan), Raffles Design University (Singapore), and the De La Salle University-Manila and University of Sto. Tomas in the Philippines to name a few.
One of the flagship academic efforts of MITIS is its Advanced Placement (AP) curriculum which is approved and sponsored by the College Board. College Board is a membership association based in the United States that ensures efficiency and excellence among its more than 5,900 member schools in various countries. It leads extensive programs that increase achievement among students and elevate the global standards of education. MITIS has been a member of College Board since 2009, with registration no. 705308.
The Advanced Placement Program
The Advanced Placement (AP) Program is a cooperative undertaking between secondary schools, colleges and universities. It provides eager high school students with the opportunity to take subjects equivalent to a first year college course in their high school setting. Students who enroll in the program not only acquire college-level knowledge, skills, and study habits, but in most cases earn college credits while they are still in high school. AP courses are taught by trained and exceptional high school teachers who make use of course guidelines developed and published by the College Board. Through its carefully designed syllabi, it helps the students advance their writing skills, hone their problem solving abilities, develop their time management skills and discipline, and becomes the foundation of their college major or future career.
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| MITIS AP class having an intense group discussion |
The MITIS AP Program Advantage
Only a select number of schools in the Philippines offer the AP Program and MITIS’ American K-12 curriculum adds to the school’s advantage. As AP courses are offered in grades 11 to 12, MITIS students obtain the essential training and preparation beginning their first grade up to their tenth grade through the American based syllabi and sets of books that the school uses. Students of other schools on the contrary find it hard to adjust to the AP system during their 11th and 12th grade due to the local-based curriculum that their schools offer.
Students at MITIS have ten (10) AP courses to choose from, specifically (1) Language and Composition, (2) Literature and Composition, (3) Comparative Government and Politics, (4) European History, (5) Psychology, (6) Calculus AB, (7) Calculus BC, (8) Biology, (9) Chemistry, and (10) Physics B. MITIS students can be allowed to take up to four AP subjects in the same school year as evaluated and approved by the school’s AP Coordinators.
The AP exams are conducted in May every year and unlike other international schools, MITIS students can take the AP exam in their 11th and/or 12th grade doubling their chances of getting higher exam results.
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| MITIS AP class in a collaborative problem solving activity |
The AP Program Advantage in General
Generally, the AP Program proves beneficial to the students as it gives them bigger chances of getting admitted in the top universities here and abroad. Apart from an apparent increase of one point in a student’s Grade Point Average (GPA) given its 1 to 5 test scale, AP is mostly anticipated, even sometimes required, by most universities in Asia and in the United States.
Most colleges in the US and in more than 60 other countries give students credit, advanced placement or both, based on the AP Exam scores. With AP credits, students will have time to progress into upper level courses, pursue a double-major, study abroad, or finish their studies earlier and save up to $19,000 worth of a college school year expenses. Also, AP helps students qualify for scholarships. Based on the unpublished institutional research of Crux Research, Inc. in March 2007, 31 percent of colleges and universities consider AP experience in determining their scholarship grants.
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| MIT AP students having their persuasive writing exercises |
The AP and the IB Program
Most international schools in the Philippines offer the International Baccalaureate® (IB) Program as part of their curriculum. The IB Program is sponsored by the International Baccalaureate®, a non-profit educational foundation based in Geneva, Switzerland.
Though students who enroll in the program also earn college credits and get advanced education and training in preparation for admission to the best universities, the IB system differs from AP in considerable ways such as the courses options, class and exam procedures, and most importantly, the participating universities and colleges where the students wish to go to.
MITIS takes pride in its AP Program as it supports the school’s total package of highly competitive curriculum and American-based academic standards.
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• For queries on MITIS AP Program, you may coordinate with the MITIS AP Coordinator at 632.807.0720 or email us at info@mitis.edu.ph.
Reference/Source:
Collegeboard.org Website
