Yuya Naka

SL: Math, Global Politics, English A HL: Chemistry, Biology, Japanese A Literature

Why did you decide to pursue an IB diploma?

The Diploma is accepted by many US, UK, EU and Japanese universities. It allows for a much wider choice when choosing universities internationally.

As an IB student, how did you shape your Diploma Programme studies to your interests?

I knew that I wanted to persue Medicine, so I chose Bio and Chem as HL. Math HL is a very difficult program. Unless you are gifted in mathematical abilities, you will need to make sacrifices in order to recieve a 6 or higher in Math HL. Although many medical universities prefer Math HL over math SL, they will usually value a higher overall IB score more than whether you took HL or SL, (Unless it’s an requirement). Thus, I chose to do Math SL, in which I had confidence to get a 7 and increase my overall IB score. 

What advice do you have for current IB students?

Past papers for the win. Easy predicted 45. Start thinking about IAs early. Do preliminary experiements to see if your hypothesis will actually work. You may need to change you topic multiple times.