Welcome to this free Support Site on the Extended Essay for the IB Diploma Programme. The content, created by Brad Philpot and John Royce, provides coordinators, supervisors, teachers and students access to student samples, writing tips, guidance and discussion groups. This site is developed independently from the IB.

Feel free to browse this Support Site as much as you need - a subscription is not needed.
Please contact us for questions: brad@philpot.education

This section offers you a quick guide to the guide and some tips on how to get started. It is not presented as a replacement for the official guide, which can be found here.  Rather this section captures the essentials of the guide for students and supervisors who are looking to start this journey. 

The Extended Essay is externally assessed by IB examiners. The following pages provide you with the assessment criteria, the grade boundaries, the TOK / EE matrix and tips on how to unpack the criteria. "Begin with the end in mind," as Stephen Covey famously said. It is recommended that you practice assessing extended essays, using these criteria, before writing an essay or submitting predicted grades to the IB. See the section with example essays. 

The Extended Essay is written under supervision, meaning that every student has a supervisor. Supervisors are usually subject teachers of the subject in which the essay is registered. What are the roles and responsibilities of the student and supervisor? What kinds of expectations can be set? What do realistic deadlines and timelines look like? This section explores the supervision process and the relationship between the supervisor and student. 

The Extended Essay is an exercise in 'inquiry'. Inquiry is the art of identifying knowledge, framing questions and finding answers. It is a skill. One of attributes of an IB learner is being an 'inquirer'. The pages below focus predominantly on the early stages of research, in which you are identifying your aims, writing your research question and considering your methodology. 

The Extended Essay is a research paper. But what does 'research' look like? Where does it happen? How can you get good at doing research? Answers to these questions may be different for everyone. But some research skills are useful to all Extended Essays, such as the ability to gather data, organise notes and evaluate sources. These pages provide you with tips and activities to develop good research skills for your Extended Essay.  

After hours of research and reflection, it's time to write the Extended Essay. This, however, is easier said that done. Most often notes evolve into paragraphs, outlines evolve into headings and quotations evolve into arguments. First drafts are often rough and you may stumble upon game-changing ideas late in the process. Here are few pages to guide you through the writing and reviewing processes. 

It is recommended that students maintain a Researcher's Reflection Space (RRS) or journal as they engage in inquiry, conduct experiments, take notes or build a bibliography. After submitting the essay, each candidate must complete and submit a Reflections on Planning and Progress Form (RPPF). The pages below offer candidates and supervisors guidance on the RPPF. The RRS is explored in the section on research. 

To better understand the scope and nature of Extended Essay, it helps to read a few examples. Each example below is accompanied by a list of tips to consider when writing about the subject under which is was registered. Mark an example essay from your subject area, applying the assessment criteria, before reading the examiner's comments and marks that are provided.