IB Diploma Program
BIHS students may choose to pursue the full International Baccalaureate Diploma or attempt certificates in specific areas of strength. Students who wish to receive a full IB diploma will choose six subject areas in which they want to be tested at the Higher Level and at the Standard Level, remembering that they must take at least 3 but no more than 4 Higher Level exams.
The IB Diploma curriculum is divided into Higher Level (HL) courses (240 hours or two years of study) and Standard Level (SL) courses (150 hours or one year of study), taken during grades 11 and 12. All BIHS students will take HL English, HL History of the Americas, Theory of Knowledge, complete the extended essay, and Creativity-Action-Service (IBCAS) hours. All students in BIHS will fulfill coursework requirements mandated by the State of California and the Berkeley Unified School District, meet college entrance requirements, including the University of California and California State University a-g requirements, and meet the requirements of BIHS. More information is available on the IBO website.
To receive the full IB Diploma from the International Baccalaureate Organization, a student must:
- Enroll in and pass exams in at least one course from each of the six core subject areas:
- Language A (English)
- Language B (World Language)
- Mathematics
- Science
- Social Science
- Creative Arts OR other Elective (such as a second science or language course)
- Pass 3 Higher Level (HL) and 3 Standard Level (SL) or 4 HL and 2 SL tests
- Complete the Theory of Knowledge(TOK) course
- Complete the Extended Essay(EE)
- Complete 150 Creativity, Action, Service (CAS) hours
Tests are scored on a scale of 1 to 7 points, with 7 as the highest possible score. Students can also earn up to three extra points total for a superior performance on the Extended Essay and the Theory of Knowledge papers. Students must earn a minimum of 24 points out of a possible 45 (42 points for the 6 tests plus three bonus points for the EE and TOK) to be awarded an IB Diploma.