My DD was a Cambridge Student: There was good and bad to Cambridge at USNA. DD would tell you that if she had it to do all over again, she would choose a Std HS program and taken AP courses over the Cambridge system.
Harder/Easier depends on the student. I think in the US , schools that do Cambridge "sell their programs as being more challenging". I guess that's broadly true in the US because Students enrolled in Cambridge are seeking more challenge, teachers who work in the program are there because they want to work with those kinds of student, and because Cambridge teaches to objective A and O level testing standards. As opposed to US students whose exposer to more aggressive classes is limited to only those AP courses available to them
You will likely come out of Cambridge with better writing skills and a broader exposer to Geopolitical stuff. What I understood from DD was that the Cambridge and AP level STEM courses were very much on par with each other. The problem was that programs taught to similar levels don't necessarily contain exactly the same elements, vocabulary, or methods.
In 2016 (it may have changed since) DD was not real happy with Cambridge. The USNA is familiar with US AP-level courses. Students got credit for AP course work that DD didn't get. Worse, in Plebe Summer Academic STEM testing for advanced placement, the tests follow US AP programs. DD found that she had been exposed to stuff that US AP Chem students hadn't, but the reverse was true, and the USNA placement tests were built against US AP programs. Different terminology in the tests was also a problem.
DD ended up with placements in standard Chemistry and Math courses. She was pissed at the time, but the good news was that Plebe Year Chem was a fairly Easy A as was Calc, Phys; She ended up spending a lot of time "at the board" showing other students different approaches to problems that Cambridge has taught her. She also found that effectively learning the same study area from two different prospectives added to her conceptual understanding of things (she was harder to confuse come test time).
Advice: Whether you fancy your self a Cambridge STEM prodigy or not, I would make the time before arriving at USNA to review US-based AP curriculum in STEM areas to identify where the two programs differ. If you are a STEM stud it will help you challenge/advance your course levels in plebe summer testing. If you aren't a "STEM guy" way better to explore what's in those US AP courses now! Time will be precious during plebe year.
The Good News: Testing! Again, US programs vary, but generally if you are in a Cambridge program you are experiencing more testing, and more intense and consequential testing than US students. USNA is a high-pressure environment and there where are times when DD wasn't as prepaired for exams as she wanted to be................... In those times knowing how to take a test--and keeping her "cool" because she'd "been there before" was a HUGE advantage for her.
That's it, good luck to you.
If you are admitted, tell mom and dad to explore joining a west coast UNSA Parents Club. Ours welcomed overseas families, and it can help with a place to spend thanksgiving, or a bed when you are stuck with a layover out of Seattle, LA, SF, Etc.
