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J onathan Eason, 16, left his local secondary school after GCSEs and now travels 20 miles to Impington Village College, a state school near Cambridge, to study for the International Baccalaureate, rather than A- levels.

"I thought it would give me something more to offer when it comes to applying to universities," he says. "A-levels have been getting such a bad press, with people saying standards are falling, and I didn't want to end up with a qualification that nobody valued."

The International Baccalaureate, which has its headquarters in Geneva, was pioneered in the Sixties by Alec Peterson, Professor of Education at Oxford, with the main aim of catering for the children of roving diplomats. Now on offer in 33 schools in this country, including seven state schools, the IB was introduced at Impington eight years ago. After a modest start with 11 students, the course is now taken by 70 out of a sixth form of about 200, including a good proportion of international students (who board with local families).

"Young people today will move into a world very different from ours in terms of employment, where they will have to be more flexible, and not rely on one career for the whole of their working lives," says Sandra Morton, the course co-ordinator. "We believe the International Baccalaureate is a very good way of helping to prepare them."

All IB students must take subjects from six "domains of study": their native language, which includes their own and "world" literature (Impington studies Russian literature); maths; a science (chemistry, physics, biology or "environmental systems"); a humanities subject (history, geography, social anthropology, psychology, economics or business studies); a foreign language (French, German or ab initio Russian); and, for the sixth domain, a second science, a second language, or, as Impington encourages, art, music or theatre arts. Students choose three of these at higher level (easily comparable, staff say, with A-levels), and three at subsidiary level.

In addition, they all take a "theory of knowledge" course (looking at ethics, aesthetics and logic); they write, with help from a personal tutor, a 4,500-word essay, on one of the subject areas; and they must complete 150 hours in the "CAS" programme of creativity (art, music, dance, etc), action (sports) and service (working with the elderly, in charity shops, in local primary schools and nurseries, etc). Students earn points for each course component and, at the end of two years, receive the IB diploma if they have scored more than 24 out of 45. The international average score is 29 points, and Impington's average is significantly higher.

"It's a very attractive course for students who are good all-rounders, who genuinely enjoy learning, and who don't want to give subjects up," says Sandra Morton. "Because in this country the IB is relatively new and different, it tends to be seen as quite prestigious, and appeals to able students - but that is not to say that it caters only for the more able."

Among universities, she says, the qualification is generally highly regarded; and it gives students the option of taking a degree abroad. Impington IB students have gone on to study at universities including Oxford, Cambridge, Bologna, Leicester, Sussex and Harvard.

"I chose the IB because there wasn't enough choice with A-level," says Claire Winpenny, 16, who is completing her first year. "I wanted to do English and history, but I also wanted to keep up some science, and a language. The course is a lot of work, but I think it's worth it. Doing world literature and the theory of knowledge has really broadened our horizons."

The IB students reckon they are having to work harder than their A-level counterparts, with more to cover, fewer free periods and more exams to revise for. For the staff, too, the IB means more work, in addition to teaching A-levels, but there is a high level of commitment and enthusiasmn