Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate (IB)

What is Advanced Placement (AP)?

AP is a program run by the College Board, a non-profit organization that works to increase access to higher education. You can take AP classes in high school to earn post-secondary credit or qualify for more advanced college or university classes.

What are AP courses?

AP courses give you the experience of an introductory level college or university class while you’re in high school. You might also get post-secondary credit for the class if you pass the AP exam and if it meets your post-secondary institution’s admission requirements.

How to Sign Up for AP Courses

You can sign up for AP courses through your normal high school registration process. You may need to take prerequisite courses first, making it important to talk to your high school guidance counselor if you have questions. You can also research participating Alberta schools.

Receiving AP Credit

To receive post-secondary credit for AP courses, you must:

• Write the final AP exam by signing up for the test through your school’s designated AP coordinator (often a guidance counselor)  
• Receive a specific score on your exam (usually a 4 or a 5)
• Send your official AP transcripts directly to your post-secondary institution
• See which post-secondary institutions offer credit or advanced placement for qualifying exam scores

What is the International Baccalaureate (IB) program?

Founded more than 40 years ago by the International School of Geneva in Switzerland, the IB diploma programs operates in more than 3,800 schools in 146 countries.

Taking IB Courses

Use the IBO search tool to find a school in your area. Schools admit students to the program in different ways. Some schools conduct a series of personal interviews and require entrance essays (completed at home or under supervision). Talk to your junior high school guidance counsellor for more information. 

You might also get post-secondary credit for the class if you pass the IB exam and if it meets your post-secondary institution’s admission requirements.

Receiving Post-Secondary Credit for IB Courses

To receive post-secondary credit for IB courses, you need to:

• Write the final IB exam 
• Receive a specific grade on your exam (usually a 6 or a 7)
• Send your official IB transcripts directly to your post-secondary institution

Participating Post-Secondary Institutions 

The IB program is recognized for credit or advanced placement by several Alberta post-secondary institutions.

• Recognition of IB programmes

Talk to Your Post-Secondary Institution

Before you apply for post-secondary study, ask admissions staff at the post-secondary institution you want to attend about how they recognize AP or IB credit.  Your program or institution may offer some flexibility in how you use your AP or IB credits. For example, if you earned first-year AP or IB credits for certain subjects (like biology), some post-secondary institutions give you two options:

• Use your credits to take the second-year level course
• Waive your AP or IB credit and enroll in the first-year level course

If you accept the credit, you could graduate sooner, saving time and money, so why would you want to waive your credit? You might want to continue to build your skills in that course before moving up to the next level. This way, you can design the learning path that makes the most sense for you.

You can also use our search tool to see which Alberta post-secondary institutions accept AP and IB courses for transfer credit. If your institution of choice does not appear in your search results, contact them for more information.