"The International Baccalaureate aims to develop inquiring, knowledgeable and caring young people who help to create a better and more peaceful world through intercultural understanding and respect.

To this end the organization works with schools, governments and international organizations to develop challenging programs of international education and rigorous assessment.

These programs encourage students across the world to become active, compassionate and lifelong learners who understand that other people, with their differences, can also be right."

• The students begin with more freedom of choice than in a usual high school. They can select their subjects based on categories enabling them to arrange their schedules according to their interests. That is one of the reasons why IB is considered to be similar to higher education. This provides the students with the opportunity of exercising decision making and specialization even before getting into university.
  
• Students study six subjects selected from the subject groups. Normally three (max. four) subjects are studied at higher level (meaning more time spent in classes - courses representing 240 teaching hours). This inherently means higher requirements and further opportunities for specialization. The remaining three subjects are studied at standard level (courses representing 150 teaching hours). The six academic areas are the following:
  1. Language A1 is the study of literature in a student's first language, including the study of selections of world literature.
  2. Second language (Language B)
  3. Individuals and societies (e.g. Business and management, Economics, History, Philosophy etc.)
  4. Mathematics and computer science (four levels are available)
  5. Experimental sciences (e.g. Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Environmental Systems etc.)
  6. One of the following options
     1. Arts (Music, Theatre and Visual Arts)
     2. A program organized by the home school (special rules apply)
     3. Another subject from the first five areas
  
  
  The list above is not complete, as it is only aiming at explaining the IB system. In each UWC school there are different subjects available.
  
  The language of education and examination in the last four categories are the following: English, French and Spanish (in most UWCs it is English). The exam papers are sent to London for central grading. There are 20 people on the committee for examination grading, each from different country.
  
  Examination includes internal and external elements. In most cases not only the oral or written grades matter. For example in case of the experimental sciences laboratory work is also accounted for. (Teachers also have to send reports of their students to the center ensuring that different schools grade in a similar manner.)
  
  Grading is conducted on a seven scale list:
  • 1: very weak, unacceptable
  • 2: weak
  • 3: almost passing
  • 4: acceptable - passing grade
  • 5: good
  • 6: very good
  • 7: outstanding

The strict grading system adapt to the elite school requirements. In order to be able to obtain the best grade, it is not sufficient to replicate what was heard in the classes. It also requires independent research and ideas. Seven is the rarest grade accounting only for about 7-9% of the examinees. Both 4 and 5 account for about 26% of the results, being the most frequent grades.

Some universities require special combinations of subjects. This is allowed by the IB, but it has to be supported by documents from the university and one has to apply for a special curriculum.

There is also a possibility for studying a seventh subject. This is rather rare, as the course loads are heavier than in a normal high school.

Nevertheless, subjects are only part of the IB program. During the two year of studies the following requirements also have to be fulfilled:

EXTENDED ESSAY - The extended essay, with a prescribed limit of 4,000 words, offers students the opportunity to investigate a topic of individual interest and acquaints them with the independent research and writing skills expected at university.

THEORY OF KNOWLEDGE (TOK) - The interdisciplinary TOK course offers students and their teachers the opportunity to reflect critically on diverse ways of knowing and on areas of knowledge. It encourages them to consider the role and nature of knowledge in their own culture, in the cultures of others and in the wider world. In addition, it prompts students to be aware of themselves as thinkers, encouraging them to become more acquainted with the complexity of knowledge.

CREATIVITY, ACTION, SERVICE (CAS) - The CAS requirement is a fundamental part of the program and takes the importance of life outside the world of scholarship seriously, providing a refreshing counterbalance to academic studies.

•  Creativity is interpreted to include a wide range of arts activities as well as the creativity students demonstrate in designing and implementing service projects.
•  Action can include not only participation in individual and team sports but also taking part in expeditions and in local or international projects.
•  Service encompasses a host of community and social service activities. Some examples include helping children with special needs, visiting hospitals and working with refugees or homeless people.

Students are expected to be involved in CAS activities for the equivalent of at least three hours each week during the two years of the program.

A system of self-evaluation encourages students to reflect on the benefits of CAS participation to themselves and to others, and to evaluate the understanding and insights acquired.

These are the main building blocks of the IB. When taking six subjects, the highest available score is 42. There can be 3 bonus points achieved by presenting a sound Extended Essay and ToK essay. Graduation in the IB program requires a minimum of 24 points from six subjects.

As we have seen from all the above in addition to academic skills, the Diploma Program assessment encourages an international outlook and intercultural skills where appropriate. Assessment tasks are designed to support and encourage good classroom teaching and learning. Student results are determined by performance against set standards, not by each student's position in the overall rank order. No wonder the IB is one of the most successful and recognized programs worldwide.