Please note. Some of these information are outdated, now that there are new developments regarding the schedules for this year. For example, the part regarding the elective courses is heavily outdated. Please refer to official information when available. The core parts of “misconceptions” and “caveats” still remain, however.

This takes around 22 minutes to read in full. Feel free to skip sections that you already know.

I’ll have to admit, I was pretty confused during almost my whole first semester during my freshman year, and I would have certainly benefited from having some questions answered beforehand.

Some Misconceptions

1. It’s definitely not easy.
   When I was coming to BAID, I thought life was going to be easy at an international school. That’s definitely not the case. In fact, life is considerably harder and more laborious at an international school, especially if you are aiming high for college admissions. You have to balance academics and reach very high levels for extracurricular impacts. So maybe you should lower your expectations!
   
2. Grades aren’t that important. The key is balance.
   If you are coming from a typical public education background, in your first semester or so, it’s easy to lean towards the old Chinese education mindset: the higher the grades, the better. Sometimes, there’s a definitely incorrect tendency for students to “grind” their grades as high as possible. That’s not correct. You need to balance your academic work and your extracurriculars, and only focusing on academics is not the right way to go. Specifically, you probably shouldn’t purchase exercise books that are geared towards the gaokao.
   
   I’m not trying to say that grades aren’t important, however. Just don’t put that much emphasis on them. Most schools practice holistic admissions nowadays, so your grades are only a small part of your overall application. For more information, see the later parts of this article.
   
3. TOEFL and SAT are important, but probably aren’t as important as you think.
   I’ve seen many new students sign up for TOEFL and SAT prep classes before school starts. It’s easy to fixate on TOEFL and SAT prep because that’s a quantitative metric that gives you “instant gratification” when you improve.
   
   If you aren’t as high on the TOEFL ladder (by that, I mean if you are below 100), you can sign up for TOEFL prep classes however you want. Beyond that, however, you probably shouldn’t sign up for TOEFL prep classes. This is because TOEFL is a “cutting point” thing. Once you are beyond a “cutting point,” you don’t need to grind that further. It’s a giant waste of time to grind your TOEFL from 115 to 120 just because you want to “flex” your scores. Don’t do it just for “flexing” or because everyone else does it. Consider your own circumstances.

What should I do before school starts?

1. If your English skills aren’t enough yet, grind them first.
   By “enough”, if you are fluently reading this article, you are mostly good already. And by “grinding” English skills, I don’t mean grinding TOEFL skills, but rather improving your core English abilities. Sometimes, students lean towards learning “test tricks” for TOEFL instead of improving their English. From my perspective, you don’t need any testing tricks. If your core English abilities are good enough, you don’t need to worry.
   
   I cannot overstate the importance of English at an international school, because, for god’s sake, you are at an international school! You will be severely limited if you are lacking in English.
   
   How do you do this? Drown yourself in English. Stop using Chinese search engines; use Google (or DuckDuckGo, if you prefer). Stop watching Chinese videos, go watch things on YouTube. Switch your phone’s language to English. Sign up for classes with native speakers to improve your oral skills. You will improve very rapidly.
   
2. Explore your interests.
   If you are coming from Zhongkao, you only have 2 years to prepare for college admissions. That’s not enough time for most people. Therefore, you need to start early on deciding a target major.
   
   Although most schools would state that “students don’t apply to a major; rather, they apply to the whole school itself,” it’s still best to show the admissions officer that you have a persistent interest in a particular subject. Deciding on a target major is the best way to do that. It allows you to have more concentrated and coherent extracurriculars.
   
   How do you do this? I’m sure that all of us have hobbies or interests from our childhood. Start with that first. For me, personally, I have been interested in computers since I was 6 years old. Therefore, computer science seemed like a natural choice. Think of something you are passionate about, not just for good job opportunities. This is an amazing chance for you to pursue exactly what you want to do in the future.
   
3. Really, relax.
   You don’t need to grind yourself to death before school even starts. Many of you have already been exhausted from preparation for the Zhongkao. Although I wasn’t preparing for the Zhongkao (being a 1+3 program student), I could see the effort people put into it (my middle school, which also happens to be Beijing Academy, had people do 7 to 9 days). Realizing that you will probably be more exhausted after high school starts, take the time to take a break.
   
4. Get a computer and a headset if you don’t have one. You will need it. A tablet (such as an iPad) is likely not enough. But also, try not to drown yourself in consumerism. Do you really need that fancy computer?
   
5. Get a “ladder.” This is something that I can’t discuss in detail, but in short, it’s something about the Chinese internet situation.
   
6. Sign up for important accounts.
   You must have an email. Don’t use Chinese email providers like 163 and 126, they are not reliable. Instead, you should probably use Gmail or Outlook Mail.
   
   If you don’t have it yet, sign up for a Google account. You will need it.
   
   You can also sign up for a College Board account, but don’t fill in any information yet. You will need it to sign up for the SAT and AP exams. In September, a school teacher will help you in filling out the details.
   
   Specifically, when asked to enter your name, don’t fill in your “English name.” Use your LEGAL NAME. The English name that you are used to VERY LIKELY IS NOT YOUR LEGAL NAME, AND YOU WILL GET INTO TROUBLE IF YOU USE YOUR “ENGLISH NAME”.
   
   As a rule of thumb, if you are a Chinese citizen, and you only have mainland China permanent residence status (that means the most of you), use your Pinyin (Latin) name (people with the family name of 吕 should use Lyu, not Lv or Lu). If you have permanent residence status in Hong Kong, Macao, or Taiwan, or if you have non-Chinese citizenship, use the English (Latin) name on your passport or government-issued identification document.
   
   It is important to determine which citizenship you want to use for college admissions. If applicable, talk to your parents. If you have US citizenship or permanent residence status, you probably want to use your US status. This gives you better chances in admissions as a “domestic” applicant. It also grants you more access to summer programs and opportunities.
   
   Our school’s CEEB code is 694057. You might need this.

What are some caveats that I need to know?

1. The choice of SAT and ACT: think about that carefully.
   Around August last year, the school held a parent-student-school conference in which we were asked to choose our standardized exam of choice: SAT or ACT. This choice was forced upon us in advance because Chinese students can’t take the ACT directly. Instead, they must go through a one year program known as the GAC to take the ACT. Therefore, the school must ask people to choose in advance before starting their year.
   
   Know what you are going into before making the choice. Think about whether you are certain to choose SAT, or if you want to preserve the choice between SAT and ACT beforehand. Here are some non-exhaustive information for your reference:
   • You can always take the SAT, but you can’t take the ACT if you don’t sign up for GAC.
   • You can’t take the SAT in mainland China. You can take the ACT at school.
   • The GAC costs a hefty sum (a lot). There are no dedicated periods for GAC. However, in the second semester of school, you will need to complete certain tasks to pass the GAC. These include English exams, math exams, a presentation that you have to record, and writing an academic paper. These tasks are arduous.
   • Around half of the people gave up on GAC after they signed up, wasting their money. For more information, ask the students who have already experienced this.
   • Some key differences between the SAT and ACT:
     • The SAT offers longer time, but harder questions.
     • The ACT offers shorter time (extremely limited), but way easier questions.
     • The ACT will be reformed soon. With the reform, the time will be extended. It is uncertain as to how the difficulties might be adjusted, however.
     • The SAT contains two parts: Reading & Writing, and Math.
     • The ACT contains four parts: English (grammar), Reading, Science, and Math.
       • Science is not the “science” tests that you are used to. Rather, it’s reading several scientific articles and doing analysis on them. It is another form of reading, and it does not require science knowledge.
     • Math is universally easy on the SAT and the ACT.
   • The general consensus is that it’s harder to get an acceptable score on the ACT compared to the SAT. This may or may not apply to your case. Please consider, especially, that the ACT is going to be reformed when you are going to take standardized tests.
     
2. It’s easy to fall into cash-grab trash “competitions.” Don’t do that.
   Novice students may be enticed by advertisements, school promotions, or student invitations asking them to participate in various competitions. These competitions include B-something-C, N-something-C, I-something, and more. This happens, especially when students are not sure of their college application plans yet.
   
   Think carefully about these competitions. Most of them DO NOT help with college applications AT ALL, and is a GIANT WASTE of money. If you don’t want to fall into a cash grab, do not participate in any competitions that:
   • Isn’t something that you personally discussed one-on-one with your college consultant.
   • Isn’t directly related to your major.
   • Is something that you aren’t interested in.
   • Is something that you attend because of “social pressure”. Seriously, people accept others’ invitations to competitions just out of fear of missing out. Don’t do that.
     
3. Think independently. Take all teachers’ words with a grain of salt.
   The Chinese education system promotes conformity and blind obedience of teachers’ words. That is not correct.
   
   Some teachers may offer you personal advice on college applications, or recommend you to participate in some activities or competitions. Some teachers may provide generic advice in front of a crowd. Take their word with a huge grain of salt, especially if they are not your college consultant.
   
   This is because:
   • That teacher is not necessarily knowledgeable about your own situations and your college plans, because it’s impossible for teachers to know everything.
   • That teacher is not necessarily knowledgeable about college admissions as a whole. Teachers are humans, too! They don’t have the energy to focus on everything at once. It’s hard enough to teach their subjects already. Why would they know how college admissions work?
   • That teacher is not necessarily providing personalized advice. Advice that may apply to most people (such as improving your GPA) may not apply to you (you are already straight A).
     
4. Some team projects are important. Choose good teammates. The person with whom you are most familiar is not necessarily a good teammate.
   This goes without saying, but it’s something that I kind of neglected at first. In some classes (like Glocal), you will be choosing teammates that you will be spending time with for almost a whole year. You must choose good teammates. Pick the people with good leadership, good team-working skills, and good work ethics. Your friend is not necessarily a good teammate.

There’s that test coming up. What’s that for? Is it difficult?

This part is outdated.

It’s for:

• Separating you into different levels for English. See the following section (What will I be learning?) for more details.
• Seeing if you can join AP Physics 1. See the following section (What will I be learning?) for more details.
• It might be part of the determining factor in which class you are allocated to. I am not sure about this.

Is it difficult? It depends. But there are some objective measures that you can lean on:

• The English part is a lot more difficult than what you learn in middle school (assuming a public education background). It’s a bit less difficult than the real TOEFL test.
  
  New Information: This year, the LanguageCert assessment for English was used.
• The math part is basically at the middle school level. Some high school content is added, though.
  
  Last year, surprisingly enough, the math part quizzed us on Chapter I of the Chinese compulsory math textbook, even if we used AP Precalculus to replace the math textbook. This means what we learned in advance was basically useless.
  
  New Information: This year, the Chinese compulsory math textbook was not quizzed. Only middle school contents were quizzed.

What will I be learning?

You will be learning the following in your first year:

1. Compulsory High School Courses. These are the government-mandated Chinese courses you must take.
   • For typical students: Chinese, Biology, Physics, Chemistry, History, Geography, and Politics.
     • In your first semester, Chinese, Biology, Physics, and Chemistry will probably have three periods per week. History, Geography, and Politics will probably have one period per week.
     • In your second semester, you will probably be given the choice of Basic or Honors Biology, Basic or Honors Physics, and Basic or Honors Chemistry. People choosing the “Basic” classes will only get two periods per week, and their GPAs will be on a 4.0 scale weighted. They will only learn the Chinese compulsory parts of the lesson. People choosing the “Honors” classes will get three periods per week, and their GPAs will be on a 4.3 scale weighted. They will additionally learn some English content, supposedly to prepare them for AP classes.
   • For 1+3 program students: Chinese, Biology, Physics, Chemistry.
     • Same as above, except no History, Geography, and Politics. You will take these three in your second year.
2. English Courses.
   • There are two English courses: Integrated English and EFL.
   • The English courses are separated into different “levels,” or “classes.” People on the same level study together. Level 1 is the highest level.
   • Students on Level 1 don’t have EFL. Instead, they only have Integrated English.
   • There are 5 to 7 periods for both Integrated English and EFL each week.
   • Integrated English is the standardized test preparation course. It prepares you for the TOEFL and SAT/ACT. The teachers are very professional, and the courses do help a lot. I managed to improve my TOEFL from 111 to 116, likely accounting to the teachers.
     • If you are on Level 1, you will start “TOEFL practice” for your first semester and start “ACT grammar” for your second semester. Note that you will be taking “ACT grammar” no matter your choice of SAT or ACT. This is because the grammar content on the SAT and ACT are virtually equivalent.
     • If you are on the other lower levels, you will start “TOEFL skills” for your first semester, where you learn about the basics of TOEFL. In your second semester, you will gradually transition to “TOEFL practice”.
   • EFL, or English Foreign Language, is a core English skills course. You will be learning the typical English abilities in daily use.
   • Your level is determined by the before-school exam. You have the chance to adjust your level. Contact your teacher for more information.
3. AP Courses.
   • There are four, and only four, AP courses offered for first year students. You cannot take other AP courses at school. You may, however, sign up for other AP exams on your own. However, you won’t be able to take these exams in mainland China, because mainland China exam centers don’t accept individual registration.
   • AP Precalculus. This is the course that everyone must take. It was used to replace the Chinese math course.
     • It’s pretty easy! Just some basic expansion on middle school math. It includes content on polynomial, rational, exponential, logarithmic, and trigonometric functions.
     • A key difference is that you no longer need those weird “testing tricks” that are commonplace in Chinese education (like those ridiculously hard 2D geometry questions). You only need to know your knowledge well, and you will ace the exams.
   • AP Microeconomics. This is the course that most people take.
     • You will get the chance to “try” this course for around 2 weeks at the beginning of school. Afterwards, a quiz will determine if you are eligible for this course. The quiz is very lenient, and most people will continue to take this course.
     • The general consensus is that this course is pretty easy.
   • AP Seminar. This is the course that only people at English Level 1 take.
     • This course is very hard. Last year, I got a 5 (flex), with most people getting 4s, and some people getting 3s.
     • See AP Seminar is Finally Over for more details of my experience.
   • AP Physics 1. This is the course that only people who pass an arbitrary cutoff in the before-school math exam take.
     • You can drop this course even if you passed the cutoff for the math exam.
     • Although I didn’t take it, I heard that it was easy/medium difficulty. Your mileage may vary.
     • This course had the worst 5-rate of all AP courses in 2024 globally, but the 5-rate at our school is pretty good.
   • These AP courses have 4 to 5 periods every week.
   • In the months leading up to the AP exam, the school will introduce mock tests for all students. Some mock tests last until the night.
4. This part is outdated, but still available for your reference. This year, specialty elective courses are available to all students, and are separated from the typical electives. Ask your teacher if you missed the meeting with details.
   Specialty Courses. These are only available for students in the “Yingcai” classes.
   • Virtually, there is no difference between the “Yingcai” classes and other classes except for eligibility for participation in these courses.
   • Glocal. This is a course where you do projects like an entrepreneur. Over the two semesters, you will be doing two projects. The GPA is pretty lenient on this one. There are no exams, only an evaluation of your project.
   • Drama. This is a course where, well, you perform drama. The GPA is a little bit harsher.
   • Arts. This is a course where, well, you appreciate art, and create your own art projects. The GPA is pretty lenient.
   • All of them have 2 to 3 periods per week.
5. This part is outdated, but still available for your reference. This year, specialty elective courses are available to all students, and are separated from the typical electives. Ask your teacher if you missed the meeting with details.
   Specialty English Courses. These are the courses that happen in the final two periods on Friday.
   • World History. This is a course in which you learn about world history. The exams are extremely lenient.
   • Presentation. This is a course where you present. It was taught by the drama teacher last year. The exams are a presentation and are a little bit harsh.
   • Literature. Last year, this was taught by a foreign teacher (maybe Australian?) over the internet. The consensus is that the exams are hard and the GPA is harsh.
   • Integrated English. This is basically two additional periods of Integrated English.
   • EFL. This is basically two additional periods of EFL.
6. Others. These are courses that only have pass/fail GPAs.
   • Elective Courses. These happen on the last two periods of Monday and Thursday.
   • Student Groups. These happen on the last two periods of Wednesday. You can start your own student group! Make sure to apply before school starts.
   • Phys Ed. There’s one period for Phys Ed every day that lasts for an hour.
   • Homeroom. There’s one period each week to discuss class affairs.
   • Extracurriculars Guide. There’s one period each week. A college counselor will introduce you to the basics of college applications and extracurriculars.

How are grades calculated?

Your grades are calculated using what is known as a Grade Point Average (GPA). Your GPA will be reported to the universities that you apply to, so it’s crucial to maintain a high GPA throughout high school.

Under normal conditions, your GPA is recorded as the following:

• 20% midterms scores.
• 30% finals scores.
• 50% daily performance.

However, under certain special circumstances, your GPA may be recorded as the following:

• 50% midterms scores.
• 50% daily performance.

This happens for all AP courses in the second semester. This is because there are no final exams for AP courses in the second semester (the final exam happens after the AP exams end, so there’s no point).

The teachers are generally lenient with your daily performance scores (except for Integrated English, which follows a rather strict procedure for daily performance), so don’t worry too much about that. It’s still important to maintain good relationships with your teachers, however.

Your GPA is recorded on a 100-point scale. 93 and above is considered an A. 96 and above is considered an A+.

Typically, colleges look for GPAs on a 4.0 scale (the maximum number of points is 4.0). In that case, your GPA will be converted to a 4.0 scale. Both A and A+ are 4.0, so there’s basically no difference between the two. It probably isn’t worth grinding an A+.

There is also what is known as unweighted GPA and weighted GPA. For some harder courses, like AP courses and Honors courses, the school gives you a “boost,” or weight, to your GPA. This makes your GPA weighted. On AP courses, the GPA weights to 4.5. On Honors courses, the GPA weights to 4.3. For example, if I receive an A in AP Seminar, I get 4.5 for weighted GPA and 4.0 for unweighted GPA.

Most courses have GPAs associated with them. This includes all Chinese compulsory courses, they do have number GPAs associated with them. Some courses, however, only have a pass/fail GPA, and everyone passes. These include:

• Music
• Art
• IT
• General Technologies
• Phys Ed
• Student Groups
• Elective Courses
• Extracurriculars Guide
• Homeroom
• Activities (like the different travel activities)
• … and everything that isn’t “relevant.”

When applying to college, most of them recalculate your GPA based on their own standards to maintain fairness. Your weighted GPA is used to rank you within your high school. Your unweighted GPA is compared everywhere else. Therefore, your weighted GPA is important, but your unweighted GPA is more important.

What is “college application”?

Universities in the United States and the United Kingdom don’t rely on a single score to admit you. Instead, they ask you to send in an “application” to apply to college.

In the United States, most schools use the same platform for applications: the Common Application (Common App). A notable exception are UC schools, which use their own application platform.

In the United Kingdom, most schools have their own application systems. A notable exception is the Russell schools (including Cambridge and Oxford), which have a shared application system.

Your application likely includes the following:

• Your name, your citizenship, your permanent residence status, and your date of birth. Basic information.
  • For most US schools, students with United States citizenship or permanent residence status are considered “domestic” applicants. Domestic applicants hold more weight in admissions.
• Information about your parents (their jobs, their universities).
  • If your parent is an alumni of the school you are applying to, you have a higher chance of getting in. This is known as “legacy applicants.”
• Information about your high school. This includes the universities that your high school alumni entered, the average GPA of your high school, and your class rank. This is filled in by your college counselor.
• Your transcript (GPA and courses taken).
  • Colleges evaluate the rigor (difficulty) of your courses and the grades that you have achieved within your context.
• Your standardized test scores. This includes SAT or ACT, along with TOEFL or other language scores if needed.
  • Some schools have gone “test optional” during COVID-19, which means that submitting SAT or ACT scores is optional. However, since the end of COVID-19, many schools have removed this option, and now require SAT or ACT scores again.
• If you have done any coursework at a college. This includes summer courses and college-credited research programs (like Pioneer Academics).
• Your awards.
  • In the Common Application, you can fill in five awards.
• Your extracurricular activities.
  • In the Common Application, you can fill in ten extracurriculars. Information includes the extracurricular’s name and type, what your role is, a brief description, and the hours you spent on it per week and the weeks you spent on it per year.
• Letters of recommendation.
  • Typically, this is sent in by your high school teachers, who provide some generic insight into you as a person.
• Essays.
  • These are writing prompts that you have to respond to for universities to get to know you better as a person.
  • The Common Application includes a shared essay for all Common App schools, in which you choose one of many topics to write about.
  • Many schools also have their own essay prompts that you must write.
• …

For more information, talk to your college counselor.

What’s after my first year?

It varies. But there’s one thing in common: you will have a partially free choice of AP courses.

AP courses are placed into four different “groups.” You can only choose one per group. This is what I mean by “partially free choice.” You can choose a maximum of four courses at school, though if you are academically exceptional, exceptions can be made. You can also sign up for other exams on your own, but make sure you can handle the workload.

Summary

That was basically all that you needed to know! Remember that your mileage may vary, for all of these are pieces of information that I have picked up over my last year in school, and there may be unforeseen changes. You can always PM or email me with any questions!

(Aug 10, 2024)