I am from an international school in Hong Kong (with American citizenship), just started grade 11 and I am frustrated with which math course I should pick. My guidance counselor tells me to not take Math standard and take Math studies since I am applying for art majors in the USA, mostly preferably California. However, from what I heard, UC universities prefer IB Math Standard level over IB Math Studies? I really want to get into the UCLA Design Media Arts major or Animation major, and some art schools like Parsons or Cal Arts.
Also, I am not really good at math, so here’s an overview of my math grades:
Grade 10: 5/7
Grade 9: 4/7
Grade 8: 3/7
Thanks! 
From the syllabi, IB math SL is like a typical precalculus course with a brief introduction to calculus at the end, and is for students who will take more advanced math in college, while IB math studies SL is a brief overview of a large number of math topics and is not meant to prepare students for more advanced math courses in college.
So, what are you implying is that as an art student I should not take IB Math SL and just stick with Math Studies SL? If i were to send my college application to a UC with Math Studies SL as my math course will the UC take notice of my math course when they look at my art portfolio?
Also, will a school like UC Berkeley consider me if I took an online course on IB Math SL on a certified learning platform? Will they count it like a normal subject?