IB FAQs and Glossary
IB Diploma Programme FAQs and IB Glossary
1. Is ICS authorized to deliver the IB Diploma Programme?
a. Yes.
b. Our teachers have all attended required IB workshops.
c. We received our official IB authorization in March, 2026 and are delivering the IB Diploma Programme in this school year for the class of 2028. The courses for the first cohort (class of 2028) are slightly different than following years.
2. Will all six subject groups be available for students who want the full IB Diploma, or IB courses?
a. Yes, ICS offers courses in all six subject group areas. That is a requirement to be an IBO school.
b. Students may choose to take 6 IB Courses even if they are not an IB Diploma candidate.
c. ICS offers 10 IB courses (most 2-years long), the equivalent of 18 different one-year classes.
3. What IB Courses does ICS offer? Please see the IB website for course briefs in each subject. Each course is 2 years except where indicated. For HL/SL explanation, see IB Glossary.
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Subject Group |
ICS IB Courses Offered (2 years except where indicated) |
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Language & Literature |
English Language & Literature HL/SL |
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Language Acquisition |
Spanish HL/SL |
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Individuals & Societies |
History of the Americas HL |
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Sciences |
Biology HL/SL |
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Mathematics |
Math Analysis & Approaches HL/SL |
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The Arts |
Visual Arts HL/SL |
- What does it mean to be a “full IB Diploma candidate?”
a. DP candidates take 6 IB courses (3 HL and 3 SL), one from each subject area. IB DP candidates are exempt from state graduation requirements.
b. DP candidates also complete the IB Core: Theory of Knowledge (TOK) course, Extended Essay (EE) and Creativity, Activity & Service (CAS)
c. IB Core class: TOK classes as well as EE and CAS support will happen in a .5 credit called “IB Core.” Students attend their IB Core class either before or after the regular school day. Two classes per week will be TOK classes and one class per week will be EE and CAS lessons and support. This course runs both years of IB DP through March of year 2 (ending before the start of IB exams).
d. For the first cohort, class of 2028 Year 1 (2026-27 school year)
i. The 0-period section will be Mon/Weds/Fri from 7:00-7:50am.
ii. The 7-period section will be Tues/Thurs from 2:40-3:30pm and Fri from 7:00-7:50am.
iii. Both groups will meet on Friday mornings.
iv. This schedule may change slightly as we add more students to the IB DP. It will remain in the before/after school time slot with afternoon priority given to students enrolled in ICS 0-period music class. We will also consider transportation issues.
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IB Core Course sections |
Monday |
Tuesday |
Wednesday |
Thursday |
Friday |
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0-period |
7:00-7:50 am |
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7:00-7:50 am |
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7:00-7:50 am |
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7-period |
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2:40-3:30pm |
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2:40-3:30pm |
7:00-7:50 am |
5. Is the IB Core class required?
a. Yes. If a student is a full IB Diploma candidate, they must take the IB Core class both years of IB DP (grades 11-12). Consistent attendance is vital.
b. This class is not required for students taking IB Courses only.
6. Will my IB DP student still be able to participate in after-school activities?
a. Full IB DP students have an option to take their IB Core course before school. This allows students to attend sports and clubs after school. If they choose the afternoon option, they can still attend clubs 3 days per week. (See #4)
b. Afternoon IB Core students should not plan to participate in any sports or activities during IB Core class time.
c. Families should avoid scheduling events or appointments during this class time.
7. Can I take TOK if I’m not a full IB Diploma (IB DP) candidate?
a. No, IB Core is not offered for non-IB DP students (IB Course students).
8. Is participation in the full IB Diploma Programme optional?
a. Yes, students may choose whether or not to enroll in the full IB Diploma Programme.
b. If they are not full DP, they will still take mainly IB Courses. ICS is a “Schoolwide IB” school and will not offer non-IB options for every subject area. IB Course students must fulfill state and district graduation requirements.
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If we want our IB DP student to get a Washington State high school diploma, does that mean we will still need to complete the Choice School Fitness Waiver process in addition to the IBDP requirements?
a. No. if your student is a full IBDP student, they do not need to fulfill the Washington State PE requirement. The IBDP is considered to fulfill all graduation requirements in Washington. All ICS IBDP students fulfilling DP requirements will automatically receive a WA high school diploma.
b. If they exit the IBDP before they graduate, they will need to fullfill all Washington State graduation requirements, including the completion of the fitness waiver for the Physical Education credit requirement.
10. Are IB exams optional like AP exams?
a. Students who are IB Diploma Candidates must complete all assessments for every course and the DP Core (see #4).
b. Students taking IB Courses can opt out of taking the IB end-of-course exams. Unlike AP courses, IB Course assessments include several elements, including non-exam assessments (Internal Assessments, IAs) completed at ICS during the course of their 2-year study of the subject. When these are factored into the course grade, the student will be responsible for completing the non-exam assessments. If a student completes the IAs but not the exams, their course will still be listed as an IB course on their transcript, but they will not receive an IB score and will not be eligible for university credit. They will still receive ICS credit.
c. Students may also choose to take an ICS IB course and opt out of all IB assessments. In this case, the course will be listed on their transcript without the IB designation and without opportunity to receive university credit.
11. What happens if I miss my scheduled IB exam at the end of 12th grade?
a. IBO does not run any prescheduled make-up exam sessions.
b. If students are ill or have other adverse circumstances approved by the IBO, they can take exams the following May in the next exam session.
12. Can students change their minds about pursuing the full IB Diploma?
a. Yes, if students decide that the full IB Diploma is not the path they want to pursue, we will work with them to ensure they can fulfill all the state and LWSD graduation requirements. This decision must be made by the end of 11th grade.
13. If my student chooses to take IB Courses instead of the full IB Diploma, how will ICS report that on transcripts and counselor recommendations?
a. IB courses will be designated on the student’s transcript with IB in the course name.
b. For universities: our IB programme will be explained in the ICS counselor Letter of Recommendation. It will also be noted in the School Profile that students have the option of doing the full IB Diploma or IB courses and that ICS does not offer AP courses (class of 2028 and beyond).
14. Will ICS support dual enrollment or Running Start classes alongside IB courses?
a. Yes, but students who are in these classes cannot be full IB Diploma candidates.
b. They will still take IB Courses.
c. Students must take 4 or more ICS classes to stay enrolled at ICS.
15. How does ICS handle scheduling conflicts between Running Start and on-campus classes?
a. We have a personalized process for scheduling Running Start. Scheduling is different for each student.
16. Can an IB student take AP exams independently?
a. Yes, students can always register for an AP exam without taking a course as long as the exam is offered by LWSD. College Board reports scores to universities when a student requests reporting.
b. IB courses do not directly support student preparation for AP Exams.
c. ICS students in the past have taken AP Exams in personal interest areas as a self-study, for example Music Theory and Chinese or Japanese Language and Culture. They may continue to do this.
d. Students taking AP exams in 11th grade need to be careful not to miss attending their IB courses where important learning will continue.
e. IB exams and AP exams happen at the same time during the first two weeks of May. This would make taking AP exams in 12th grade very challenging if not impossible for students taking IB exams.
17. Since my student will be completing Spanish 4 in 10th grade, will IB Spanish be offered? What will be the alternative if they do not want to continue with it?
a. Yes, IB Spanish HL (higher level) and SL (standard level) are both offered
b. Students must take an IB Language B (language learning) course to receive the IB Diploma. At ICS, this is IB Spanish.
c. Students may choose not to continue with Spanish after 10th grade, but they would not qualify as a full IB DP candidate. (See #7 and #8)
18. What systems will be in place to help students manage IB assessment deadlines without becoming overwhelmed?
a. IB teachers and the DP Coordinator set up a balanced calendar of assessments for each cohort of students, taking into account school holidays and other deadlines such as college admissions in order to promote well-being for our students.
b. Each of the major assessments, both in the courses (IAs) and in the core (EE, CAS) will be assigned with a process for completing it over a stretch of time. Students who follow these processes and meet interim deadlines will be well-positioned to complete the assessments.
c. Students who struggle to meet deadlines will be supported in their courses by the teacher, counselor, DP Coordinator, and special education teacher where applicable. They will also be supported in making the best decisions for their path through the IB Programme.
19. Are ICS teachers prepared to teach IB Courses?
a. Yes, all ICS teachers who teach IB Courses complete IBO approved workshops for their courses.
b. ICS teachers prepared Course Outlines explaining the structure of their course and giving examples of their lessons. IB approved the Course Outlines as part of the authorization process.
c. The IBO preparation to teach IB courses is very thorough, including course content, methods, concepts and assessments.
d. The rigor and teaching approaches established by IB are very similar to the ways ICS courses have always been taught. Teachers will adjust to specific requirements of the courses and assessments, but it will not be a significantly different approach to teaching and learning.
e. ICS teachers are well-prepared to teach IB courses, and ICS students are well-prepared to take IB courses.
20. Does IB have global and US university recognition?
a. Yes, the IB Diploma is respected by universities worldwide and opens doors for international opportunities.
b. IB is also well-known by US universities and respected as excellent preparation for university. For some highly selective universities, students may have an advantage from pursuing the IB Diploma. Other universities will view it similarly to a rigorous AP course transcript.
c. Some universities offer automatic scholarships for IB DP students, for example University of Oregon offers $2000-$6000 per year depending on the student’s IB score.
d. The IB website has information about university preparation here: https://www.ibo.org/university-admission/
e. IB Video: Admissions officers from selective universities (University of Pennsylvania, Barnard College, Georgetown University, McGill University, Leiden University, Rice University, etc.)
f. IB Video: Stanford admissions officer and IB Parent
21. Will my student need to pay any fees to participate in IB?
a. Yes, like AP Exams, families cover the cost of IB assessments charged by the IBO.
i.Costs for full IB DP assessments are currently about $950
ii.Cost per course is about $125
iii.Cost for DP Core is about $155
iv.Mailing costs for exams are about $45/student
b. Some courses may also include an extra charge for materials not supplied by the district, like lab and visual art materials. This is true for many ICS classes, even non-IB classes.
c. Full DP students will also cover the subscription cost for Managebac, an IB assessment management system. This varies depending on the number of students.
d. We estimate costs for full IB DP students to be about $1300-$1400 for the two-year programme.
e. Students will pay their own late fees of $40/course if they miss IBO payment deadlines or change levels (HL to SL, etc). In rare circumstances, students may request other services from IB, in which case they are responsible for paying the fees charged by IBO.
22. Does LWSD cover any costs of running the IB Programme?
a. Yes. The district pays for annual IB fees, teacher IB workshops for the initial cohort of teachers, new textbooks and teacher support materials for the first year of IB courses, and release time for the IB coordinator.
IB Terms and Acronyms Glossary
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Acronyms & Terms |
Explanation |
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IB |
International Baccalaureate, describes both the organization and the curriculum |
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IBO |
International Baccalaureate Organization, the parent organization for all IB programmes and schools worldwide. A foundation registered in Switzerland, the IB is non-profit. It is governed by an elected Board of Governors, which appoints the Director General, sets the strategic direction of the organization, adopts a mission statement, makes policy, oversees the IB's financial management, and ensures the autonomy and integrity of IB Diploma Programme examinations and other student assessment. Board membership represents cultural and geographical diversity. |
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DP |
Diploma Programme, the curriculum offered by IB and designed for students in grades 11-12. It consists of two-year courses in 6 subject areas, 3 at HL and 3 at SL as well as the IB Core requirements (see below). | ||
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IA |
Internal Assessment, the assessments students complete during the IB courses. Some of these are marked by the teacher and moderated by IB. Others are marked by trained IB examiners. Each IB course has one or more IAs. |
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HL |
Higher Level: designation for the courses taught and assessed at a more rigorous level. Includes more instructional hours than SL and usually more topics are covered or they are covered in more depth. IB Diploma students take 3 HL courses. |
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SL |
Standard Level: designation for the courses taught and assessed as a less rigorous level. These courses have different IAs and exams than HL and may have fewer topics taught or texts studied. IB DP students take 3 SL courses. The system of selecting 3 HL and 3 SL courses promotes well-being and balance for IB DP students. |
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IB Courses |
IB curriculum courses which are taken individually. Students get LWSD credit and will also earn college credit when they complete all IB assessments and receive passing scores. Course students will take a combination of IB Courses that fit their graduation requirements. They may choose any combination of HL and SL IB Course levels (with counselor input). | ||
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TOK |
Theory of Knowledge is an IB DP core requirement. It’s taught as a course over 100 hours both years of the DP. Students must pass the course to receive their IB Diploma. TOK is a course about how we know what we know. It examines knowledge in a variety of subject areas and real-world contexts. | ||
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EE |
Extended Essay is a 4000-word research paper completed in one of the subject areas of a student’s DP courses. The requirements and expectations are slightly different for each subject. Students will work on this essay over more than 11 months. ICS EE coordinator will teach DP students about how to approach the research and writing of their EE. They will have ICS teacher in the subject they choose as their EE supervisor with a minimum of 3 required meetings. The EE is marked by an IB examiner. | ||
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CAS |
Creativity, Activity & Service is an ungraded, required element of the IB DP. Students must be continuously involved in outside experiences in the three areas. “Activity” is physical activity like sports or hiking and can be achieved through team participation or solo pursuits. “Service” is unpaid volunteering. Students show their ongoing involvement (two years) through written reflections and evidence gathered in a portfolio. They will each be assigned to a CAS advisor who reviews their progress. If students fail to complete CAS, they will not receive their IB Diploma. | ||
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IB Core |
Elements of the IB DP outside the 6 academic courses: TOK, EE, and CAS. Only full Diploma candidates complete the IB Core. EE and CAS are independent but supported by teachers and other community members. | ||
| International Mindedness | This is an essential IB philosophy that refers to understanding, respecting, and valuing different cultures while embracing diversity. It encourages students to see themselves as part of a global community and to engage with global issues, fostering intercultural understanding and collaboration. | ||
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Learner Profile
Please see the ICS website for more explanation of each attribute. |
The IB Learner Profile includes a broad range of human capacities and responsibilities that go beyond academic success, implying a commitment to help all members of the school community learn to respect themselves, others and the world around them. The IB DP is committed to developing learners who are:
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