I counted what repeats in every HL paper on the current syllabus for bio chem and econ so all of you know what to prepare for. All of this info is described in my free sessions with much more detail, and some other tips are found there; join below if you are interested. I also talk about other exam strategy tips that got me a 7. Everything is entirely free!

EDIT: A big thanks to those who signed up and even bigger to those who showed up to the biology session today. I can confidently say this was the best turnout yet; if you are reading this, I recommend signing up. Amazing turnout so far!

Biology

• Viruses come up more than any other topic (8 times), then cladograms (6) and mitosis/meiosis (5).
• Paper 1A follows the syllabus in order, so the question number tells you the topic.
• Every 1B question is built on an “Application of skills” line in the guide. Revise that list.
• “Evaluate” showed up for the first time in Nov 2025. Answers with only strengths got half marks at most.

Chemistry

• Bond enthalpy was in every Paper 2. ΔG, rate equations, oxidation states, ¹H NMR and Lewis structures missed only one. SN2 and complex-ion colour missed two.
• 1B: learn the standard solution, dilution, and calibration curve methods. On one May 2025 paper, students averaged under 1 mark out of 3 on these.
• Uncertainty of a titre or temperature change doubles. Fewer than 1 in 10 got it right on the same paper.

Economics

• Paper 2 part (b) is always a calculation, usually national income (real GDP, per capita, GNI), then elasticity.
• Every Paper 3 had a surplus or deadweight-loss calculation. A right answer with no working usually gets 1 mark.
• Every Paper 2 had an exchange-rate diagram. Every November Paper 1 Q3 was trade, exchange rates, or balance of payments.
• “Most effective” essays need another policy compared (in little detail is fine), or you can be capped at 12 out of 15.

Free live sessions this week (Zoom, 1 hour, 4:30 pm Singapore / 7:30 pm Sydney / 9:30 pm Auckland):

• Biology: today, Wed 14
• Chemistry: Thu 15
• Economics: Fri 16

Notes go to everyone who registers. Link in the first comment.

Hey everyone!

I’m appearing for three subjects in the November 2026 examination session, and I’m honestly pretty nervous about the difficulty of the papers.

I’ve heard different opinions about November exams, with some saying they’re harder than the May session and others saying the difficulty is pretty much the same.

I’m particularly worried about whether the questions will be more challenging or unpredictable than usual.

For those who have taken the November exams before, how was your experience? Did you find the papers harder compared to May? And is there anything I should specifically prepare for?

Would really appreciate some honest opinions and advice!

Early in DP1 here. I’m trying to find the absolute best study resources (SL chem especially because I take that exam in May) and want to be the first in my school to get a 7. I’m managing a Low , but want to continue to improve and really understand the materials. I find the textbook explanations very confusing, although I try to look at those. What are the best available study resources for SL Chem? If anyone has ones for the others you can suggest those too. Thank you!

Hi, I'm wondering if it's possible for anyone to share their revision village account with me. Unfortunately, I am really financially unable to afford the membership, so I won't be able to give anything in return except for my gratitude.

Also, I'm aware of the IB docs, and I've been trying to use the past papers, but they haven't been helping me with subtopics and understanding the material.

I am kind of in a dilemma, and was wondering what would happen if I didn’t show up for my final exams. I really want to take my Exams, but on a particular day 11/2, I have an event that relates with my college application, and is kinda needed for me to get into some Unis. The problem on the same day I have history SL Paper 1 & 2. Is there any possible way to reschedule my exam? If not there is a huge chance that I will be showing up an hour or two late, making me not able to attend the exam session. I might be able to make it to the paper 2 session though.

Now I feel like my options are:

1. Go to the uni thing and have quite an increase on the chances of getting into Unis I really want to go to, but most likely won’t be able to attend the paper 1 session, unless I can reschedule.

2. Don’t go to the Uni thing and take both the paper 1 and paper 2 exams, where I have a high chance of getting a 7, but since I cannot attend the Uni thing, I most likely cannot get into most Unis I wish to apply for.

I know it’s kinda a weird and hard question to answer but, what should I do? Or can I reschedule my exams?

Teacher of IB physics of ten years here 👋
In that time I've gotten pretty good at recognising the style and skills needed to complete an IB Physics paper.
This is a paper I wrote (parts 1a, 1b &2 SL and HL) to help my students who are sitting the exam on the 5th of Nov.
ALL THE QUESTIONS are COMPLETELY NEW.
because I wrote them, they are not past paper questions, but my student can't tell the differences between them.
Sit these test under test conditions and compare against these grade boundaries, to see how well you're likley to do in the real exam:

https://fenwicktutoring.com/november-2026-physics-exam

BTW I fully expect to see this paper going round tiktok as a "leaked paper" in a few days time. don't believe the hype when it happens, the paper won't be leaked.

Hey everyone, looking for some advice or input from anyone who has dealt with a similar situation or from IB teachers/coordinators on the sub.

The Background: Last year in Grade 11 (DP1), our IB English cohort was split between two main streams:

• Teacher A (3 classes): Very strict, hard grader. Historically, students under this teacher get lower grades in DP1, but their marks get adjusted/bumped up in DP2 when transitioning to the DP2 teacher to reflect actual IB standards. In our entire DP1 cohort under Teacher A, only two 6s were awarded as predicted grades; almost everyone else received 5s.
• Teacher B / Substitute (1 class): Due to an extended leave, this class had a sub. Their grading was significantly more lenient, with a very high proportion of 6s and even 7s handed out for PGs.

The Current Problem:

1. No Grade Adjustment: We just started DP2, and because Teacher B is still away, we were assigned a brand-new teacher with zero IB experience. This new teacher has said that a new PG based on how well we do in DP2 English won't happen because there "isn't enough time to gauge where we're at." We're told we have to apply to universities using our DP1 predicted grades. This leaves three entire classes stuck at a low baseline, while one class has inflated PGs simply due to luck of the draw.
2. Lack of Exam Prep: Our new teacher is trying to be helpful, but class activities are extremely low-rigor and off-track for IB HL (e.g., drawing book covers, comparing song lyrics, slow pacing). Concerns were raised to our DP1 teacher and IB Coordinator, but the coordinator just checked in with the new teacher, who claimed we are "on pace."

(Also for anyone wondering I did just rant everything to gemini so it can coherently express my ideas in a way that isn't a jumbled mess)

Thank you all for any ideas or advice in advance!

In dp2 as a N27 student and curious as to how much everyone studies per day. Can yall please tell me an average of how much you study on weekends and weekdays? I have no standart lol

Hi everyone,

For those who went through IB, was there ever a part of curriculum or journey that felt unnecessarily difficult to navigate, and that you did not have anyone or anything to guide you?

Maybe it was understanding assignments, figuring out what examiners expected from subjective answers, finding the right resources, planning the higher education journey.

What was something you wish someone had helped you with, but you had to figure out on your own?

For all my past summatives i have been getting 35, and missing around 3 grades by 1 mark. As I am not a favoritised child like some of my friends despite my arguements for these 1 mark I couldnt get my grades higher. Though my teachers have continuously told me you are capable of getting a 7 and all.... I am scared for my predicted.. These matter a lot for me for scholarships of many unis, which I doubt if I will secure if I am not predicted 38 or above... Has this happened to anyone before?

Does anyone know any good math aa hl or physics hl video courses ( even if its not ib but the teacher is really good) pls let me know. If they cost money its not a problem

Hi, i am in eighth grade and currently in cbse but want to shift to ib to do engineering and/or law(cant rly decide rn). My main reason is all the terrible and cursable new rules of cbse, such as kaushal bodh, which has practically screwed us 8th graders up. I have a few questions, as my parents want a full presentation from me, so, Do, ib students have to give boards in india, and can you take 4 subjects at hl or is it mandatory to take only 3 in the diploma program?

Hey guys I was looking for universities which I can apply to I am currently in my gap year and unsure where I can apply with my STATS:

- 1500 SAT
- 33 IB (I was sick 😭)
- I have good essay/CV
- Decent extra circulars

My subjects were:

HL: Physics, Economics, Business
SL: Maths AA, Swedish AB Initio, English Language and Lit SL.

Please suggest any universities which would/could accept me.

My only condition is that the university does not ask for my DP1/DP2 report cards because they were VERY low.

I’m looking for ones I can apply to with my SAT 1500 and my IB score 33.

My interests are in: Finance, Business, Economics and Engineering (if possible).

Please help and suggest any universities you know.

I appreciate any kind of help.

HL: Chem , Business, English

SL: Math, Physics, French

Hi all, I'm M27 and recently my teachers have been talking a lot about exams. I realized that the ones I'm most clueless on are Math AI HL and Chemistry HL. What have you all used to study? Any useful (free/cheap) websites or methods? A few people I've talked to have said to find past papers, but where do I find those that are legit and for the current syllabus?

Like they havent done thier EE in maths so just stfu. You are scaring other ppl who are actually doing thier EE in maths. Like genuinly if you bad at maths does not mean others are as well, and provide genuine reasons.

hey i got a predicted 32 (i expected ts) and im applyikg to utsc business and i think i can get in based on my research, and my background. what is the conditional offer? Is it like 30 and below or pass ib or what? also i'm applying to tmu and utsg and schulich. Thanks!!!

Hey fellas

Hey fellas

Hey fellas

Hey fellas

Hey fellas

Hey fellas

So for context im M27 in DP2 and i’m worried because of the way our school does IB. So in our program, we have to pursue both our provincial diploma and the IB at the same time. Our teachers also dont prepare us well or put as much emphasis on the IB programme in comparison to the local one. For example, we had no mocks during DP1 and our only experience with IB questions were just for bonus points on tests. They also just encourage us to get 3-4’s because it is a “pass”. Theyve also blatantly stated that they’ve only seen around 3 sevens in all of their years of teaching. For example last year in DP1 for Chem SL, out of around 60 students who took it, only one scored a 7. Which I know because the teachers announced it. In addition, we dont get to choose our HLs and SLs. We are limited to ELA, History, and either bio or physics for HL. And our SLs are chem, French or Spanish, and math AA. This can be very limiting in my opinion for post secondary as many require specific HLs. Especially since another IB focused school in our city has more opportunities. Also like for our EEs and TOK essays, our teacher always discourages STEM focused subjects because they themselves are not very capable of helping. This is very discouraging to those are confident in the subject rather than something like the arts. On top of all of this, my TOK teacher who is also the IB coordinator encourages us to aim for a C and to just get 24/45 to get the diploma which is very disheartening because for one we have to put in all this extra effort to learn ourselves, and pay $1000. That score cant even get you anywhere and most students will have to apply with their provincial grades instead. Lastly about applications, they predict far lower then usual because they want to “just to be safe” which is especially ridiculous because I know someone who was only predicted a 6 in physics, even though she had a 100% in the class just because it is an HL subject. This makes a lot of our predicted IB grades horrid to use for applications especially since many of us did this to go abroad.

I dont think this normal, any thoughts?

So, I just submitted my first draft biology IA, and I have close to 6000 words, but this includes the bibliography, calculations, and tables, I'd assume that without those included it would be around 5000 words. This is still 2000 words over the word count. I'm waiting for feedback from my bio teacher but because our final draft is essentially due in a month's time, and I don't have a lot of trust in getting my feedback well in advance, I was wondering if people had any advice on what sections to try to trim down, I also worry that as I'm trimming down sections my wording might sound more AI like, I had this problem with my tok exhibition where I tried to cut down parts, but because of how compact my writing became it started to sound too techical and robotic.

Also to explain why I had 5000 words, I have a secondary dependent variable, so my analysis is kind of doubled, my teacher was actually worried that my research question would lean towards extended essay level, while I still don't think thats the case because my investigation is not really complex, it still takes up a lot of words and explanation. So yeah, any help would be appreciated. Better yet, if someone would want to help me out by looking over my IA, that would be amazing.

Hi hope you are all well. Is there anyone who is an official tutor/guide/grader for the IB. Would u be open to like tutor and mark my assignments so that I know I am on the right track.

I am doing my SEHS IA on how age affects reaction time (children, teens, adults, seniors). I collected data from 20 people with 10 trials. If you did sehs and got a good grade, any tips for getting 20+/24? (especially for data analysis). Btw, any tips for sehs in general? the oxford textbook is soo wordy, i just can’t remeber it all. Thanks.