How to Study for the IB Diploma: Tips for a 40+ Score

October 2026  ·  10 min read

The IB Diploma is a two-year programme, and most students who score 40 or more do not get there through talent alone. They get there because they understand exactly where the 45 points come from, spread their coursework sensibly across both years, and start exam practice early enough to learn each paper's style.

This guide explains how the score works, how to choose and balance Higher Level (HL) and Standard Level (SL) subjects, how to manage the Internal Assessments (IAs), Extended Essay (EE) and Theory of Knowledge (TOK), and gives you a two-year plan and a 12-week revision plan you can adapt.

How is the IB Diploma scored out of 45?

You study six subjects, one from each of groups 1 to 5 (language and literature, language acquisition, individuals and societies, sciences, mathematics) plus either an arts subject from group 6 or a second subject from groups 1 to 4. Each subject is graded from 1 to 7, giving a maximum of 42 points.

The core adds up to 3 more points. Your TOK and Extended Essay grades, each on an A to E scale, are combined through a matrix to give 0 to 3 points. Two As, or an A and a B, earn the full 3. The third core element, Creativity, Activity, Service (CAS), carries no points but must be completed for the diploma to be awarded.

The diploma itself needs at least 24 points plus several pass conditions, including completed CAS, no E in TOK or the EE, and no grade 1 in any subject. Check the current IB rules with your coordinator, because the full list of conditions is longer than most students realise.

What grades do you need for a 40+ IB score?

Forty out of 45 sounds daunting until you break it down. There are several ways to reach it, and none of them require straight 7s.

The lesson: core points are the cheapest points on the board. Two strong core grades are worth the same as turning three 6s into three 7s. And because there is no fixed percentage for a 7 (grade boundaries are set per subject, per level and per session), consistent 6s across all six subjects are a safer foundation than a couple of 7s and a weak spot.

Should you take HL or SL for each subject?

You take three or four subjects at HL and the rest at SL. HL courses have more teaching time (around 240 hours compared with 150 for SL), more content and usually an extra paper. Grades are on the same 1 to 7 scale at both levels, so a 7 at SL counts exactly the same as a 7 at HL towards your total.

That makes subject choice a strategic decision, not just a matter of interest:

• Check university requirements first. Many courses ask for specific HL subjects, such as HL Maths for engineering or HL Chemistry for medicine. Pick those before anything else.
• Choose HLs you can genuinely score 6 or 7 in. An HL you enjoy and are strong at is worth far more than a prestigious one you will struggle with for two years.
• Pick the right maths course and level. Mathematics: Analysis and Approaches is more algebraic and abstract; Applications and Interpretation is more applied and statistical. Both run at SL and HL. SL has two papers of 1 hour 30 minutes; HL has two 2-hour papers plus a 1-hour Paper 3.
• Stick with three HLs unless you have a reason. A fourth HL adds workload without adding points, and it takes time away from the core.

How do you manage the IA, EE and TOK alongside lessons?

Coursework is where IB students lose the most time and sleep. Nearly every subject has an Internal Assessment, worth a significant share of the final grade (often around 20 to 30 percent, depending on the subject). Add the 4,000-word Extended Essay, the TOK exhibition and the 1,600-word TOK essay, and you have roughly ten major pieces of coursework landing in the same eighteen months.

The pieces themselves are rarely the problem. The collisions are. Use these rules to keep them apart:

1. Collect every internal deadline on one calendar in the first weeks of DP1, including your school's draft dates, not just final submission dates.
2. Start each IA with a narrow research question. A focused question (for example, a specific variable in a chemistry investigation or a single modelling problem for your Maths exploration) is quicker to write and easier to score well on than a broad one.
3. Pick an EE topic you can sustain for months in a subject you are strong in, ideally one of your HLs. The IB recommends about 40 hours in total, including reflection sessions with your supervisor.
4. Treat the first draft as the important one. Teachers can usually give feedback on one draft only, so submit a complete draft, not an outline.
5. Read the assessment criteria before you write a word, then check your final piece against each criterion line by line.
6. Finish all coursework before exam revision begins. Your aim is to arrive at the final 12 weeks with nothing left to submit.

For TOK, the essay is written on one of six prescribed titles published by the IB for your session, and it carries more weight than the exhibition. Start building a bank of real-life examples from your subjects early, because specific, well-chosen examples are what lift a TOK essay from a C to an A.

What does a two-year IB study plan look like?

Here is a typical timeline for a May exam session. Your school's dates will differ, so swap in your own deadlines, but keep the shape: coursework in the middle, exam practice building steadily, nothing new in the last term.

If you are in a November session school, the same shape applies on a shifted calendar. And if you are applying through UCAS, remember that early deadlines (such as Oxford, Cambridge and most medicine courses) fall in mid-October of DP2, which is exactly when IA drafts tend to peak. Plan your personal statement into the summer. Our guide to English requirements for studying abroad covers the language side of applications if you are applying outside your home country.

How should you revise for IB exams in the final 12 weeks?

IB exams are spread over roughly three weeks in May (or November). With six subjects and multiple papers each, you need a plan that rotates subjects rather than finishing one before starting the next.

• Weeks 12–9: Fill the gaps. Use your mock results to list weak topics in every subject. Rebuild your notes on those topics only, then test yourself with past-paper questions on each one. Aim for two or three subjects a day in 45 to 60-minute blocks.
• Weeks 8–5: Past papers by paper. Move from topic questions to full papers, one paper at a time, timed. Mark against the official markschemes and log every lost mark by cause: content gap, misread command term, or running out of time.
• Weeks 4–2: Full exam rehearsal. Sit complete papers under real conditions, including the reading time and the calculator rules for your maths paper. Prioritise HL subjects and anything below your target grade.
• Final week and exam period: Light and targeted. Review your error log, formula sheets and essay plans. Between papers, revise only the next exam. Sleep matters more than one more past paper.

A typical revision day in weeks 8 to 5 might be: one timed paper in the morning, marking and corrections straight after, then two shorter blocks in the afternoon on weak topics in two other subjects. Spaced, mixed practice like this beats rereading notes, and our post on the best way to learn vocabulary explains how spaced repetition can help with Language B and ab initio word lists too.

What study techniques work best for IB subjects?

Different subjects reward different practice, so match your methods to what each paper actually asks.

• Maths and sciences: Do questions, not notes. Work through past-paper questions by topic, then by paper. Learn the command terms (“show that”, “hence”, “explain”), because they tell you exactly how many steps and how much detail the markscheme expects.
• Humanities and Language A: Practise planning, not just writing. Ten-minute essay plans for many past questions build more flexibility than one full essay a week. Keep a bank of evidence and quotations organised by theme.
• Language B and ab initio: Speak and write a little every day. Record yourself for the individual oral, and practise text types (emails, blogs, speeches) under time.
• All subjects: Use active recall and spaced review. Close the book, write down what you remember, then check. Revisit each topic after a few days, then a week, then a month.

For timed practice in IB Mathematics, Derstina includes IB Diploma exam prep with timed mock exams and daily practice, which is a convenient way to keep maths ticking over during coursework-heavy months.

How do you avoid burnout over two years?

The IB is long enough that consistency matters more than intensity. Keep a steady weekly rhythm rather than swinging between all-nighters and weeks off.

• Plan your week on Sunday: lessons, deadlines, CAS commitments, and two or three specific study goals per subject.
• Keep CAS genuinely enjoyable. It is meant to balance academic work, so pick activities you would choose anyway.
• Protect sleep, especially in the weeks before deadlines and exams.
• Ask teachers early when a topic does not click. A ten-minute question in DP1 saves hours of confusion in DP2.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a good IB Diploma score?

The maximum is 45 points and the minimum to be awarded the diploma is 24, provided the other pass conditions are met. A score in the high 30s is strong, and 40 or above is the range that the most selective universities and courses tend to ask for. What counts as good for you depends on your offers, so check each university's published IB requirements, including any specific HL grades.

How many hours a day should I study for the IB?

Outside lessons, most students manage well with one to two focused hours on school nights in the first year, rising to two to three hours during coursework peaks and exam revision. Short, planned sessions with a single goal beat long, unfocused evenings. Protect sleep and keep at least part of one day a week free, because the diploma is a two-year run, not a sprint.

Should I take three or four HL subjects?

Take three HL subjects unless you have a clear reason to take four, such as a university requirement or genuine strength across four areas. Only the three or four HL grades you take count towards the HL points condition, but a fourth HL adds a large amount of teaching time and exam content without adding any extra points to your total. Most students aiming for 40+ are better served by three well-chosen HLs and three SLs they can score 6s and 7s in.

How are the three IB core points calculated?

Your Theory of Knowledge and Extended Essay grades, each on an A to E scale, are combined through the IB's core points matrix to give 0 to 3 points. Two As, or an A and a B, earn the full 3 points, while lower combinations earn 2, 1 or 0. An E in either TOK or the EE is a failing condition, so the diploma cannot be awarded regardless of your subject scores.

When should I start revising for IB exams?

Start structured revision about 12 weeks before your first May or November paper, after your coursework deadlines have passed. Light, continuous review should begin much earlier: summarising each topic as you finish it in class means you are revising notes in DP2, not making them. Your school mocks, usually in the first months of DP2, are the natural checkpoint for deciding where to focus.

Can you get 45 points in the IB Diploma?

Yes, but it requires a 7 in all six subjects plus the full 3 core points, which means top grades in TOK and the Extended Essay as well. Grade 7 boundaries are set separately for each subject and session, so there is no fixed percentage to aim for. A more useful target for most students is a balanced 40+, built from mostly 6s and 7s and at least 2 core points.