Failed IB Diploma Exams? Here's Your Recovery Plan

Pro tip: A retake can only help your diploma total, because the IB counts the highest grade for a retaken subject or core requirement. Two practical constraints apply. First, an IB World School is under no obligation to accept a retake candidate, so you must find a school that will register you before you plan anything. Second, if the subject has changed since your original sitting you must follow the new curriculum and meet the new assessment requirements. Whether you need to redo internal assessment is not answered centrally by the IB, which directs the question to your coordinator, so settle it before registering. Course candidates, meaning students who took individual DP courses rather than the full diploma, face no IB restrictions on retaking, but the same school admissions policies apply.

• Assuming 24 points guarantees the diploma
  It does not. The IB states the award is subject to minimum levels of performance and completion of all three core elements, and that a candidate scoring far above 24 can still be refused the diploma for a failing extended essay grade or non-completion of CAS. Get the full list of conditions from your coordinator's copy of the assessment procedures early, not in the final term.
• Treating CAS as optional because it carries no points
  CAS contributes zero to the 45-point total and is still a requirement for the award. Students must undertake a CAS project and evidence seven learning outcomes. Log reflections as you go, because reconstructing two years of evidence in the last month is how otherwise strong candidates end up with Diploma Programme course results instead of a diploma.
• Taking four higher levels without a reason
  The IB permits three or four higher levels, but higher and standard level subjects are worth the same 7 points. A fourth higher level adds 90 recommended teaching hours over standard level for no extra ceiling. Take it because a university course wants it, not because it looks harder.
• Neglecting standard level subjects
  On a three higher level diploma, the three standard level subjects are worth 21 of 45 points, exactly the same as the higher levels, on 150 teaching hours each instead of 240. They are the best value points in the diploma and the most commonly under-revised.
• Leaving the extended essay until year two
  It is a 4,000-word independent research paper, externally assessed, and part of the only 3 points you can secure before the examination session. Schools set internal deadlines ahead of the IB's, and a failing grade on it is one of the conditions that can cost the whole diploma.
• Missing the free transcript deadline
  Six higher education institutions can be sent your results at no charge if the coordinator submits the request before 5 July for a May session or 16 December for a November session. Every request after release costs 19 US dollars each, whether or not you already used the free six. An admissions centre such as UCAS counts as one of the six.
• Requesting a re-mark without understanding the risk
  An enquiry upon results can lower a grade. Only the coordinator can place one, it costs money, there is a deadline, and written consent from the candidate or legal guardian is required first. If a school submits without that consent and the grade drops, the IB will not reinstate the original.
• Deciding on a re-mark without looking at the boundaries
  The candidate website can show the scaled total mark, the lower and upper grade boundary, and the number of marks needed for a grade increase. That is the number that tells you whether a re-mark is worth attempting. Access is at the coordinator's discretion, so ask for it before deciding.
• Retaking without checking for a curriculum change
  The three-session rule was removed in 2023 so there is no cap on sessions, and the highest grade counts towards the award. But if the subject has changed since you sat it, you must follow the new curriculum and meet the new assessment requirements, and an IB World School is under no obligation to accept you as a retake candidate at all.
• Sharing your PIN with a university
  The IB states explicitly that under no circumstances should a candidate give their personal code and PIN to universities or admission centres. Transcripts go from the IB to the institution directly, either through a secure IB website or on paper, and the institution chooses which format it receives.

• Six subject exams + Extended Essay + TOK
• Digital components for many subjects now
• 45 points maximum, 24 minimum for diploma
• Higher Level (HL) vs Standard Level (SL)
• Internal assessments count significantly
• Recognized by top universities worldwide