IB Internal Assessment Guide: Criteria, Timeline, Integrity and What a Tutor May Do

An Internal Assessment (IA) is a piece of coursework that a Diploma Programme student completes during the two years of the course, that the subject teacher marks first, and that the International Baccalaureate (IB) then moderates by sampling. It counts towards the final subject grade, it is the student's own work from the first idea to the last reference, and it is the one assessed component where nobody is watching the clock in an exam hall. This IB Internal Assessment guide explains how the criteria really work, how to lay out the calendar so that IA deadlines stop colliding with everything else, where teacher feedback ends, and what a tutor is and is not allowed to do.

It is written for DP1 and DP2 students and for the parents who are suddenly being asked to sign things, buy lab equipment or find a "good IA tutor". It stays at the level that applies to every subject. If you want worked examples of strong and weak research questions, the sibling post on IB IA examples by subject is the place; if you want the calendar that includes the Extended Essay, Theory of Knowledge (TOK) and Creativity, Activity, Service (CAS), read the IB DP core timeline. Here the focus is the machinery: what the IA is, how it is marked, how to survive it, and how to stay on the right side of the integrity rules.

IB Gram is an independent platform and is not affiliated with the International Baccalaureate, Cambridge International Education, Pearson Edexcel or any school named here. Syllabuses change, so wherever a number matters, confirm it in the current subject guide and with your school's DP coordinator.

What Is an IB Internal Assessment?

An Internal Assessment is the part of a DP subject grade that is produced during the course instead of in the May examination hall. It is set within the IB's framework, supervised and first-marked by the school's teacher, and then a sample is sent to an external moderator who checks that the teacher's marking matches the IB standard. If the moderator finds the school marking too generously or too harshly, the marks for the whole cohort in that subject can be moved up or down. That is why your teacher is strict about criteria even when you think a paragraph "obviously" deserves the mark.

The form of the task depends on the subject. The sciences ask for a scientific investigation. Mathematics asks for a written exploration. Economics asks for a portfolio of commentaries on news articles. Language subjects use an oral or an essay. Each subject guide defines the task, the word or page limit, the criteria and the mark allocation, and the guide you follow is the one that applies to your examination session, not the one a friend used last year.

The reason the IA exists is simple. An examination measures what a student can do in two or three hours on a day they cannot choose. Coursework measures what they can do when they plan, research, draft and revise over weeks. A student who is a slow starter in a timed paper can show real strength in an IA, and a student who writes brilliantly under pressure can still lose marks by treating the IA as a weekend job.

How Do IB Internal Assessment Criteria Work?

IB internal assessment criteria are a short list of named qualities, each scored against level descriptors, and the final IA mark is the sum of the criterion scores. In DP Mathematics, for example, the exploration is marked out of 20 across five criteria: Presentation (4), Mathematical communication (4), Personal engagement (3), Reflection (3) and Use of mathematics (6). In the DP sciences, the investigation is marked on four criteria of 6 marks each: Research design, Data analysis, Conclusion and Evaluation. Different subjects, same logic: every mark belongs to a criterion, and every criterion has a ladder of descriptors.

The descriptors are the whole game, and they are phrased with care. The wording between adjacent bands is often a single adjective: "relevant" versus "appropriate", "some" versus "thorough", "limited" versus "mostly". The IB does not mark on impression. A marker reads your work, finds the descriptor that best fits what is on the page, and awards the band. If the evidence for the higher band is not visible, the lower band is the answer, however much effort went in.

This produces a habit worth building from the first draft: read the criterion, then point at the sentence that earns it. If you cannot find that sentence, a reader cannot either.

Why a criterion is not a checklist

Many students treat the criteria as boxes to tick: "I have a conclusion, so Conclusion is done." That reads the descriptors as presence tests. The bands are quality tests. A conclusion exists in a weak IA and in a strong one; what separates them is whether it answers the research question, whether it is justified by the data actually collected, and whether it admits what the data cannot show. The same applies to Reflection in Mathematics: a final paragraph saying "I enjoyed this" is present but earns little, while a reflection that is woven through the work, comparing methods and judging limits at the point they matter, climbs the ladder.

Reading a descriptor like a marker

Take any criterion and underline three things: the verb (explains, justifies, evaluates), the object (the method, the data, the conclusion) and the qualifier (some, mostly, consistently). Then draft a plain sentence in your own words: "At the top band I must evaluate the method in a way that is thorough and linked to the data." That sentence is your checklist item. Do this for each criterion before you write a line of the report, and repeat it again before you submit.

Which Subjects Have an IA, and How Different Are They?

Nearly every DP subject has some form of internal assessment, though the form varies a great deal. A quick map of the common ones, with the caution that you must check the current guide for the subject and level you actually take:

• Mathematics (AA and AI, SL and HL): one written exploration, 12 to 20 pages, 20% of the grade, the same task across both courses, with HL work judged against a higher standard on the Use of mathematics criterion.
• Sciences (Biology, Chemistry, Physics): one scientific investigation, up to 3,000 words, 20% of the grade, four criteria of 6 marks each. Students may collect data in groups of up to three but each writes an individual report.
• Economics: a portfolio of three commentaries, each up to 800 words, each on a published news article, each drawing on a different syllabus unit and a different key concept.
• Language and literature subjects: an Individual Oral. For English A Language and Literature, that is 15 minutes: a 10-minute analysis linked to a global issue, then 5 minutes of questions.
• Other subjects: history, psychology, geography, computer science, design technology, visual arts and others have their own tasks. Names and weightings differ; your teacher will give you the guide.

Two points help families keep perspective. First, an IA is not a mini Extended Essay. It is shorter, more tightly bounded and tied to a single subject's methods. Second, the IA is not a bonus. It is part of the grade, which means a student with a strong IA and an average exam can still reach a respectable subject grade, while a student with a rushed IA starts the exam season with a deficit that no revision plan fully recovers.

How Much Is the IA Worth, and Why Does It Matter So Much?

In the subjects where the weighting is 20%, the IA shapes one fifth of the subject grade. The practical meaning is easier to see through a comparison than a percentage.

The structural point is the last row. Everything in an examination is decided in the hall. Everything in an IA is decided over weeks of work you control. In subjects where the IA is 20%, it is the largest slice of the grade that rewards planning over speed. Teachers see the same pattern each year: students who keep an IA in good order through DP1 tend to arrive at DP2 mocks with one worry fewer.

There is a second reason it matters. A weak IA is a late discovery. Exam weakness shows up in unit tests months in advance, but IA weakness often stays hidden until the final draft is read against the criteria, by which time the data, the experiment or the topic is locked in. The calendar below exists because of that asymmetry.

What Does a Realistic IA Timeline Look Like?

Most DP schools in India follow an academic year that runs roughly April to March, with May examinations at the end of DP2, so the IA calendar is dictated by when the school sets internal deadlines, not by when the IB would "accept" the work. Those internal deadlines are earlier than the IB's final submission because the school must mark, standardise and upload. The following sequence is a template for any IB Internal Assessment guide reader to adapt. Your school's dates override it.

1. 1Choose the subject area and a short list of topics. Do this in the weeks after the school announces the IA, not the week before the proposal is due.
2. 2Test the topic for feasibility. Can the data be collected, can the mathematics be done, can a relevant article be found, in the time and with the equipment you have?
3. 3Draft the research question and a one-page plan. The question is the spine. A weak question limits every criterion.
4. 4Collect data or develop the core method. For sciences this is lab time; for mathematics it is development of the model; for economics it is a library of candidate articles.
5. 5Write a full first draft against the criteria. This is the one draft your teacher may comment on under the IB's policy.
6. 6Revise independently using the teacher's feedback. Feedback names issues; it does not fix them.
7. 7Check referencing, word and page limits and the integrity declaration.
8. 8Submit to the school deadline, keeping an unaltered copy.

The compression usually comes from collisions. A DP2 student in August or September can be asked to finish two subject IAs, begin the Extended Essay write-up and prepare a TOK exhibition, all while mocks loom. The fix is not heroic effort in September; it is finishing at least one IA fully in DP1 or early DP2 so that the stack is never more than two items deep. The IB DP core timeline lays the whole stack out term by term.

Why Do Students Lose Marks on the IA?

The losses repeat so reliably that they can be listed. The causes are usually structural, not intellectual.

A topic that is too wide. "The effect of exercise on health" is a book; "the effect of a fixed warm-up routine on resting heart-rate recovery in school students" is an investigation. The narrower question lets a student collect enough data to say something definite.

A topic that is too thin. The opposite failure appears in mathematics and economics. A pleasant topic that requires only Standard Level skills produces a pleasant report that cannot reach the top band for the use of mathematics or analysis.

Criteria met in the student's head but not on the page. The investigator knows why they chose a method. The marker does not, unless the report says it.

Late data. An experiment that fails in week 8 of a 10-week plan has no room for a repeat. The student writes up weak data, and every later criterion suffers.

Evaluation that lists but does not judge. "Possible errors include parallax and human reaction time" is a list. "Reaction time of roughly a fraction of a second matters here because the timings were short, so the uncertainty is a large share of the result" is a judgement.

Referencing left to the end. Sources recalled from memory at 1 a.m. are where accidental malpractice begins.

Treating the draft as the final. The IB lets the teacher read and comment on one draft. Students who treat the draft as a rough sketch waste the only structured feedback they get.

What May a Teacher Do With an IA Draft?

Under the IB's academic integrity policy, a teacher may give feedback on one draft. That feedback can say what is strong, identify criteria that appear under-met, point to a paragraph that is unclear or a limit that has been exceeded, and ask questions that push the student to think. The teacher may not rewrite sentences, correct the mathematics line by line, add references, or return a version that has been edited into shape. The reason is that the school certifies the work as the student's own, and the IB treats that certification seriously.

Students often misread this rule from the other direction, and it costs them. If a teacher says "your evaluation is thin" and nothing else, a student who responds "please tell me what to write" has misunderstood the arrangement. The correct response is to reread the evaluation criterion, compare it with the descriptors, and draft changes. The teacher's remark is a prompt, not a work order.

Where feedback is generic, the useful move is to ask a precise question in return. "Which part of my method do you think weakens the data most?" gets a more useful answer than "Is this good?" Teachers also have limited hours for IA feedback, with a whole cohort arriving at the same deadline, which is exactly why the planning described above matters. The earlier a student arrives with a clear question and a visible draft, the better the feedback.

What Is Academic Integrity in the IA, in Plain Language?

Academic integrity means that every IA is the student's own work and that every idea, figure, quotation or method that came from elsewhere is acknowledged. The IB defines malpractice broadly: plagiarism (presenting another's work or ideas as your own), collusion (allowing your work to be copied or submitted by another student), duplication of work (submitting the same work for two components) and any behaviour that gives you or another candidate an unfair advantage. The school submits the work and runs it through similarity checking, and malpractice findings are handled by the IB, not the school alone.

The consequences are not small. A confirmed finding can result in no grade for the subject, and in serious cases no diploma. Because the stakes are high and the line is easy to cross accidentally, students should learn three habits early.

• Keep a source log. For each source, write the full reference when you first use it, not the night before submission.
• Paraphrase with understanding, not with a thesaurus. If you can explain a source without looking at it, you can paraphrase it. If you cannot, quoting it with a reference is safer.
• Keep your raw material. Lab notebooks, spreadsheets, earlier drafts and screenshots of the development of a model are evidence that the work is yours and its timeline is genuine.

Group work and the sciences

In the sciences, students may collect data in groups of up to three, but each writes an individual report. The data may be shared; the analysis, graphs, evaluation and conclusion must be individual. Two reports that share identical graphs with identical captions or evaluations written in near-identical sentences will be flagged by similarity checking, regardless of what the students intended.

Generative AI and online solutions

Schools now publish their own rules on using AI tools and online solution banks. The safe reading, until your school says otherwise in writing, is that any text, mathematics or analysis you submit must be produced by you, and any tool you consult must be declared where your school requires it. Ask the coordinator what is permitted before using one, not after a similarity report arrives.

What May a Tutor Do on an IA, and What Is Off Limits?

A tutor may teach the underlying skill, question the student's reasoning, point at a criterion and ask the student to reread their own paragraph against it. A tutor may not write, rewrite or edit the student's submission. This is the IB's position, and it applies to parents and friends as well. A responsible tutor does not argue with this boundary; a responsible tutor builds the sessions around it.

That leaves a large and useful space. The table below separates what a good tutor can usefully do from what crosses the line.

A simple test is to ask whose sentence is on the page. If the student reached it through their own thinking after a conversation, it is theirs. If the tutor dictated it, it is not. Families should treat any provider who offers to "complete" an IA, or who sells a promised IA outcome, as a malpractice risk and walk away. No tutor can guarantee a grade, and no ethical one will touch the submission.

IB Gram works inside the rule. A family sends a query or books a free consultation, IB Gram asks about the programme, subject, level, school calendar and schedule, and shortlists tutors with verified profiles who fit; a demo or trial session can be arranged before committing. Tutors support the learning around the IA: the maths, the lab technique, the writing skills, the planning. They do not author the work. For a subject with an IA and a specific need, see the IB DP tutor options in Gurugram, the IB Extended Essay tutor service and the IB Chemistry IA tutor service.

How Should a Student Choose an IA Topic?

A good IA topic sits where three things overlap: the student's genuine interest, the subject's assessable methods, and the resources they can actually reach. Interest matters for a reason beyond motivation. Several criteria, such as personal engagement in mathematics, reward visible evidence that the student made decisions because they cared. Resources matter because no mark descriptor rewards a plan that could not be run.

Use a short sequence of filters. This part of the IB Internal Assessment guide is best done with a pencil.

1. 1List five things you have noticed, in the subject or outside it, that you could not fully explain.
2. 2For each, write what could be measured, modelled or argued. Delete any that cannot be.
3. 3Check the criteria. Which topics would let the top band be reached in each criterion?
4. 4Check feasibility. Equipment, data, access to experts, time, and your school's safety and ethics rules.
5. 5Narrow the best candidate until a single question has a definite answer.
6. 6Test it on one person, preferably the subject teacher, who can tell you in two minutes if it will stretch or sink.

Avoid a topic simply because a senior used it. IA reports are checked for similarity against a very large body of earlier work, and a borrowed topic invites accidental overlap even if every sentence is original. A topic that comes from your own life tends to produce a different report from anyone else's.

What Does a Good Research Question Look Like Across Subjects?

Any IB Internal Assessment guide has to deal with the question first, because it controls everything after it. A research question, or the equivalent aim in your subject, has to be specific, answerable, bounded and connected to the syllabus. The details differ by subject, but the pattern repeats. In sciences, a question names the independent variable, the dependent variable and the context. In mathematics, it names the mathematical idea and the situation it will be applied to. In economics, the commentary question is shaped by the chosen article and the key concept.

Compare a common weak pattern with a stronger rewrite.

The rewrites are not better because they are longer. They are better because the next step is obvious. When you read a research question and still do not know what data you would collect on Monday, rewrite it. Worked examples across individual subjects, with commentary on what lifts a criterion, are in the post on IB IA examples.

How Do You Plan an IA So Deadlines Do Not Collide?

Treat the IA as a small project with milestones, not as a task with a due date. The method that works for most students is to work backwards from the school's submission date and place buffers where problems actually occur.

Start with three dates: the school's final deadline, the date the teacher will read your draft, and the date your data or core method must be finished. Subtract two weeks from each as a safety buffer. Then place a fixed weekly IA slot in the timetable. One 90-minute block a week is more reliable than a Sunday marathon, because IA work needs thinking time that fatigue destroys.

Practical points that save marks:

• Data collection is the riskiest stage. Finish it first and do not combine it with writing.
• Write as you go. A method section written the day after an experiment is accurate; one written six weeks later is not.
• Do not wait for the perfect draft. A complete rough draft in hand is worth more than a polished introduction with no conclusion.
• Schedule the integrity check. Reserve an evening for references, similarity self-checks and word or page counts.
• Keep revision for mocks separate. In DP2, defend your revision time by finishing an IA before it becomes a month of competing deadlines. The last 30 days before IB exams post shows how fragile the final month is.

When is the best time to write each IA?

Not all IAs behave the same. A maths exploration can be developed in short bursts across weeks. A science investigation depends on lab access and has a hard front end. An economics portfolio depends on the news cycle and finding articles that match the chosen syllabus unit. If you have a choice of order, finish the IA with the hardest logistics first.

How Do IA Marks Connect to the Rest of the Diploma?

Each subject grade is scored 1 to 7 and combines the externally assessed papers with the IA. Six subjects give a maximum of 42 points; TOK and the Extended Essay add up to 3 more, making 45, and 24 points is the minimum for the diploma, subject to the IB's failing conditions. Creativity, Activity, Service (CAS) must also be completed.

An IA mark therefore feeds a subject grade, which feeds a total, which feeds university offers. This is why a couple of marks can matter at a boundary. A student who is one mark under a grade boundary in a subject benefits directly from an IA that earned its last available mark, and the same student loses ground when a conclusion is missing or a reflection is empty. The IA is where small, controllable improvements exist.

For the university side of the story, including predicted grades and how offers are calculated, see the sibling guide on IB university preparation.

How Do Mocks, Predicted Grades and the IA Interact?

Predicted grades are teacher estimates, sent to universities in DP2, and they draw on the whole picture: classwork, mock results and IA progress. A late or weak IA gives teachers less to predict from. A strong, early IA is one of the clearest pieces of evidence a teacher has of a student's independent working. In practice, an IA submitted early with a good draft often supports a more confident prediction than a stack of average test scores.

Mock examinations are a separate event, often held several months before May on dates each school sets. IA deadlines and mocks tend to overlap in DP2, which is why a student who has finished the main IAs before the mock season has a calmer revision phase. The overview of how the exam year fits together is in the IB exam preparation hub.

Do You Need a Tutor for the IA?

Most students do not need a tutor for the IA as a whole, and there are three honest reasons why. First, the teacher is the primary support and gives structured feedback. Second, the IA is meant to be independent, so help has natural limits. Third, a tutor cannot fix a weak topic selection after the data are collected. A student who plans early, reads the criteria carefully, asks specific questions of the teacher and keeps a tidy source log can reach a strong IA alone.

A tutor becomes useful in specific situations:

• A skills gap sits under the IA. For example, a student attempting a mathematics exploration with weak algebra, or a physics investigation with shaky uncertainty handling. Teaching the skill is allowed and valuable.
• The student keeps missing milestones. A weekly session with a set agenda can supply the structure the student lacks.
• The student cannot read the criteria. Walking through descriptors with examples from unrelated topics makes them concrete.
• The student is overloaded. A tutor can help with planning and prioritising across IAs, the Extended Essay and revision.
• The student is new to the IB. A student who joins from CBSE, ICSE or a state board in DP1 may have never written a research-style report. Time spent on how an IA is structured pays back.

If a tutor is going to help, the family should ask three questions up front. What will you do in a session? What will you not do? How will I know the work is still the student's? A good answer describes questioning, teaching and planning, not editing. For help finding the right subject and level fit, see the IB DP tutors in Gurugram or the broader verified tutors directory.

What Should Parents Do, and Not Do, During the IA?

Parents have a real role, and it is mostly logistical and emotional. The useful actions are simple: know the school's dates, ask the student to show a plan, make time and space for the work, and notice when stress is high. The IA is a long project and the usual failure is silent drift, not dramatic collapse.

Parents should not edit, proofread line by line, or buy a "model IA". Even well-meant help, such as fixing a sentence, can cross the integrity line if the result is not the student's own writing. Parents should also resist the temptation to compare a child's topic with a friend's child's topic. Different subjects, different teachers and different levels produce very different tasks.

If a child seems stuck, the most helpful questions are open and practical: "What is the next step?", "What would help you most this week?", "Is the next deadline realistic?" A parent who asks and listens often learns more than one who reads the draft. If the student needs outside support, the family can ask the school's DP coordinator for what the school allows and then look for tutors who understand the boundary.

Related Guides

These posts cover neighbouring ground in more depth, so this guide keeps to the shared rules.

• IB IA examples by subject: strong and weak research questions, structures and what lifts a criterion, subject by subject.
• IB DP core timeline: the two-year calendar for CAS, the Extended Essay and TOK next to your subject IAs.
• How to write an IB Extended Essay: research question, reflection sessions, supervisor meetings and structure for the EE.
• IB exam preparation: the hub for the May session, mocks and paper practice.
• IB command terms explained: how command terms set the depth an answer needs, useful for evaluation in an IA.
• Last 30 days before IB exams: the final month, once the IAs are in.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is an IB Internal Assessment in simple words?

It is subject coursework done during the Diploma Programme and marked first by your teacher, then moderated by the IB. It counts towards the final subject grade, with the weighting set by each subject guide. The task depends on the subject: an investigation in sciences, an exploration in mathematics, a portfolio in economics. Whatever the form, the work must be the student's own.

When should I start my IA?

Start with the criteria and topic ideas in the first term of DP1, and aim to have the first IA fully drafted before DP2 begins. The IB's final dates are later than the school's internal deadline, so use the school's. Starting early matters most for subjects with data collection, because a failed experiment late in the plan leaves no time to repeat it.

Can my teacher edit my IA?

No. A teacher may give feedback on one draft, which means pointing out strengths, weaknesses and criteria that look under-met. The teacher may not rewrite, correct line by line or return an improved version. The student must make the changes. If you receive extensive written corrections on a draft, ask your coordinator whether that is within your school's practice.

Can a tutor write or edit my IA?

No. A tutor may teach the underlying skill, question your reasoning and ask you to reread a paragraph against a criterion, but may not write, rewrite or edit your submission. This is the IB's integrity policy and it applies to parents too. A provider who offers to complete an IA for you, or promises a grade, is offering malpractice, and the consequences fall on the student.

How do I know if my IA topic is good enough?

A good topic gives you a specific question, data or material you can reach, and enough depth to meet the top bands of the criteria. Test it by writing the question and listing exactly what you would do on the first Monday. If you cannot, the topic is too vague. Show it to your teacher early, because a poor topic is cheaper to change in week two than in week eight.

What happens if my IA is flagged for plagiarism?

The school or the IB will investigate, and a finding of malpractice is handled by the IB. Penalties range from losing the grade in the subject to, in serious cases, no diploma. Keeping a source log, drafts and raw data helps you show your work is authentic. If you are asked about a flag, respond honestly and ask your coordinator for the process.

Can I use AI tools for my IA?

Only as your school's written policy allows, and treat the safe default as "do not submit anything generated by a tool as your own". The IB's rule is that work must be the student's own and sources must be acknowledged. Ask your DP coordinator what is permitted, what must be declared and what is prohibited, and keep a note of what you used.

Is an IA harder than an exam?

It is a different kind of difficulty. An exam tests speed and recall under pressure for a fixed window. An IA tests planning, independence and persistence over weeks. Students who panic in exams often do better in coursework, and students who procrastinate often struggle with IAs. The two are best approached with different habits: practice papers for exams, a weekly slot for the IA.

What if I am behind on my IA?

Act in this order: tell the teacher, rebuild a realistic plan from the school deadline backwards, cut the scope of the question if needed and protect a weekly work slot. A smaller, completed IA that meets the criteria earns more than an ambitious one that is half finished. If the delay is due to illness or a real emergency, your coordinator can explain the options.

Do IA marks matter if I am aiming for a good university?

Yes, because the IA feeds the subject grade, the subject grades make up the diploma total and universities see the total and the predicted grades. In subjects where the IA is 20%, a few marks can shift a boundary. A strong IA is also a good thing to talk about in applications, as evidence of independent work, though you should follow the specific university's guidance.

Your Next Three Actions

1. 1Open the current subject guide for each of your IAs and write the criteria and the word or page limit on one sheet, with the school's deadline dates beside them.
2. 2Book a 10-minute conversation with each subject teacher to confirm the topic shortlist, the draft date and how they like to give feedback.
3. 3Start a source log and a weekly 90-minute IA slot in your timetable today, before the first draft exists.

A strong IA, which is what this IB Internal Assessment guide aims at, is the predictable result of an early start, a careful reading of the descriptors and honest independent work. If your family wants a tutor to teach the skills that sit beneath an IA, book a free consultation or send a query through IB Gram and we will ask about your programme, subject, level, school calendar and schedule, then shortlist verified tutors, subject to tutor availability. You can also read about IB DP tutoring in Gurugram first.