IB coursework structures
Every IB Internal Assessment, Extended Essay and TOK piece has a structure its criteria reward: the sections in order, what goes in each, and what counts toward the limit. Each page below sets one out in our own words, names the IB documents behind it, and opens it in a free workspace where you write it yourself.
59 structures, grouped the way the IB groups its subjects. Every section is tagged: required by the IB, rewarded by a criterion, or common practice.
The workspace is free with an account, and it never writes or rewrites your text. What we will and will not do with your coursework →
Core
- TOK essay 1,600 words · 10 marks
- TOK exhibition 950 words for the whole exhibition · 10 marks
- Extended Essay 4,000 words · 30 marks
Studies in language and literature
- Language A HL essay 1,200 to 1,500 words · 20 marks
- Language A EE 4,000 words · 30 marks
Language acquisition
- Classical languages research dossier 7 to 9 annotated primary sources plus 1 introductory source that inspired the line of inquiry · Criteria and marks not confirmed yet
- Classical languages composition 100 words of Latin or 120 words of Greek · 25 marks · still being checked
- Classical languages EE 4,000 words · 30 marks
- Language B EE 4,000 words · 30 marks
Individuals and societies
- Business management IA 1,800 words · 25 marks
- Digital society IA 1,500 words for the inquiry process document · 24 marks
- Economics IA 800 words per commentary · 45 marks
- Geography IA 2,500 words · 25 marks
- Global politics IA 2,000 words for the report · 30 marks · still being checked
- History IA 2,200 words · 25 marks or 24 marks
- Philosophy IA 2,000 words · 25 marks · still being checked
- Psychology IA 2,200 words · 24 marks
- Social and cultural anthropology IA Word limit not confirmed yet · Criteria and marks not confirmed yet
- World religions IA 1,500 to 1,800 words · 30 marks · still being checked
- Business management EE 4,000 words · 30 marks
- Economics EE 4,000 words · 30 marks
- Geography EE 4,000 words · 30 marks
- History EE 4,000 words · 30 marks
- Individuals and societies EE 4,000 words · 30 marks
- Psychology EE 4,000 words · 30 marks
Sciences
- Biology IA 3,000 words · 24 marks
- Chemistry IA 3,000 words · 24 marks
- Computer science IA 2,000 words for the documentation · 30 marks
- Design technology IA 3,500 words and 35 A4 pages · 33 marks · still being checked
- Physics IA 3,000 words · 24 marks
- SEHS IA 3,200 words · 24 marks · still being checked
- Computer science and Design technology EE 4,000 words · 30 marks
- Sciences EE 4,000 words · 30 marks
Mathematics
- Maths IA About 12 to 20 pages at double line spacing · 20 marks
- Mathematics EE 4,000 words · 30 marks
The arts
- Film portfolio 9 pages in all · 24 marks
- Music contemporary music-maker A continuously narrated multimedia presentation of at most 15 minutes · 32 marks
- Music experimenting with music A report of at most 1,500 words · 28 marks
- Theatre production proposal At most 12 pages of text and images · 20 marks
- Visual arts resolved artworks A rationale of at most 700 words on at most 2 screens · 32 marks · still being checked
- Visual arts selected resolved artworks A PDF of at most 8 screens with a rationale of at most 700 words and 5 artwork texts of at most 1,000 words in total · 40 marks · still being checked
- Dance investigation 1,500 words at SL or 2,500 words at HL · Criteria and marks not confirmed yet
- Film collaborative film project A project report of at most 2,000 words plus a list of sources · 24 marks
- Film comparative study A recorded multimedia study of at most 10 minutes · 32 marks
- Film textual analysis 1,750 words plus a list of sources · 28 marks
- Music exploring music in context A written document of at most 2,400 words · 24 marks
- Music presenting music Programme notes of at most 600 words in total · 38 marks
- Theatre collaborative project A project report of at most 10 pages of text and images · 24 marks
- Theatre research presentation A video of at most 15 minutes in 3 parts of at most 5 minutes each · 24 marks
- Theatre solo theatre piece A report of at most 2,500 words · 24 marks
- Visual arts artist project 2,500 words on at most 12 screens · 40 marks · still being checked
- Visual arts connections study 2,500 words on at most 10 screens · 24 marks · still being checked
- Visual arts inquiries portfolio 3,000 words on at most 15 screens · 32 marks · still being checked
- Arts EE 4,000 words · 30 marks
Interdisciplinary
- ESS IA 3,000 words · 30 marks
- Literature and performance written assignment At most 2,000 words · Criteria and marks not confirmed yet
- ESS EE 4,000 words · 30 marks
- Interdisciplinary EE 4,000 words · 30 marks
- Literature and performance EE 4,000 words · 30 marks
Checked 29 October 2026 against the IB's subject guides, examiner instructions and curriculum updates, and written in our own words. LimeAdmissions is independent of the International Baccalaureate Organization, which has not endorsed these pages.