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<p>I don’t see how you can make that statement based solely on the information provided. Clearly, Math HL is better than Math SL in the admissions process, but you could also say that Further Math is better than Math HL. I don’t get where you draw the conclusion that one leads to a “massive” difference or disqualifies one from admission.</p>
<p>It’s also likely dependent on the school. If you had Math HL as an option and took Math SL, that’s one thing, but many schools (particularly smaller schools) only offer Math SL. Our local IB school only offers 3 HL classes and every single student is required to take the same HL exams. The only difference is the SL second language you can take.</p>