How to choose an intensive IB private course

An intensive IB private course is one-to-one tutoring built around the IB Diploma Programme, usually focused on a single subject, a specific paper or an upcoming Internal Assessment deadline. The tutor works directly with one student, sets a clear target, and plans the sessions backwards from the exam or submission date. Because the format is private, the pace, content and homework load can all be adjusted as the student goes.

What "intensive" means in an IB private course

In the IB world, "intensive" describes the schedule, not the content. A standard private course might meet once a week across a term; an intensive course compresses that contact time into a shorter window, often a few days, a week of school holidays, or a run-up to mocks and finals. The IB Diploma Programme itself stays the same: six subject groups, Higher Level and Standard Level, Theory of Knowledge, the Extended Essay, CAS, Internal Assessment and the external papers at the end of Year 13.

Intensive formats are common when a student needs to:

• Close a specific gap before a mock or final exam, such as IB Maths AA Paper 1 or an IB Chemistry Paper 2 section.
• Finish an Internal Assessment: the IB Psychology ERQ, an IB Economics commentary, an IB ESS fieldwork report or an IB Philosophy essay.
• Rebuild a subject after a difficult term, a transfer between schools, or a change of HL/SL choice.
• Prepare for retake sessions, which the IB runs in November and May each year.

What a tutor covers in an intensive IB private course

Because the IB Diploma is broad, a private course is always narrowed to a goal before the first session. A good tutor will start by mapping the relevant syllabus: which topics are assessed on the external paper, which skills the Internal Assessment marks against, and which command terms the student is losing marks on. From there, the plan is usually a mix of three things.

First, content catch-up. The tutor teaches the missing topics in the order the student will meet them in the paper, not in the order the textbook lists them. For Higher Level subjects this matters more, because HL papers combine more syllabus content in a single question.

Second, exam technique. This is where IB private tutoring tends to add the most marks per hour. The student practises past-paper questions under timed conditions, then reviews them with the command terms and mark scheme in hand. Common fixes include writing to the mark weight of each question, structuring Extended Response answers, and managing the reading and writing load of Paper 1s in languages.

Third, Internal Assessment work. An intensive block near the IA deadline is normal. The tutor does not write the IA for the student, which would breach IB assessment rules, but they can move a draft from a 3 to a 7 by tightening the focus, matching the assessment criteria, and removing the descriptive paragraphs that lose marks.

How long an intensive IB private course lasts

There is no fixed length set by the IB. In practice, intensive private courses tend to fall into three shapes.

• Short block (5 to 10 hours): used for a single problem area, such as IB Economics Paper 2 microeconomics, or a final polish on an IA draft.
• Medium block (15 to 30 hours): the most common shape, often run across a half-term or a two-week holiday. Enough to cover a full subject's content gaps and a first full past paper under timed conditions.
• Long block (40+ hours): reserved for serious retake cases, school transfers, or HL subjects where the student is close to a grade boundary and needs both content and paper technique rebuilt.

After each block, the student should sit at least one full past paper on their own, marked by the same tutor, so the gains show up in a score before the next round of teaching is planned.

Group intensive courses vs. one-to-one private courses

Group intensive courses are widely offered in many cities, but they have a fixed pace and a shared syllabus. They suit students who learn well alongside others and who need a structured run-through. They are less useful when a student is significantly ahead or behind the rest of the group, which is the situation most "intensive IB private course" searches start from.

A one-to-one private course costs more per hour, but the time is used on the student's actual gaps rather than on topics they already understand. For Internal Assessments, Extended Essay supervision, and Theory of Knowledge, the private format is often the only realistic option, because the work is individual by definition.

How to judge whether an intensive IB private course is worth it

Four questions separate a useful course from an expensive one.

1. What is the measurable target? A good tutor will name the grade boundary the student is moving from and to, the paper or IA being targeted, and the date by which the work will be done.
2. Who is the tutor? The IB Diploma is a specific programme with specific command terms, IAs and grade boundaries. A tutor who has taught the relevant subject at HL, marked mock papers, or worked as an IB examiner is more useful than a generalist.
3. What materials are used? The tutor should be working from current IB past papers, the subject guide, the relevant IA criteria, and the official mark scheme. Generic revision guides are a warning sign at this level.
4. How is progress checked? There should be timed past-paper questions, marked against the official criteria, at regular points. Without that loop, hours of teaching do not reliably turn into marks.

Costs, scheduling and what to ask before booking

Private IB tutoring rates vary widely by market and by subject, and the IB does not set a standard fee, so any quote you are given should be checked against the tutor's qualifications and the hours included. Before paying, ask for a short diagnostic session or a written plan: which topics will be covered, which past papers will be used, and what the student is expected to do between sessions. Homework is what makes an intensive block work, because the contact hours are short.

Scheduling is usually built around the IB calendar. The May exam session sits in the second half of the the academic year, with Internal Assessment deadlines in the months before it. November retake sessions have their own, earlier submission dates. An intensive course planned without reference to those dates will arrive either too early or too late.

A short checklist before you start

• Decide whether the course is for content, exam technique, or a specific Internal Assessment.
• Agree a target grade and a target paper or piece of work.
• Confirm the number of hours and the timeline against the IB exam or IA deadline.
• Plan one timed past paper or IA draft review inside the block, not at the end of it.
• Keep the student responsible for the work done between sessions.

Once the goal is clear, an intensive IB private course is a focused, time-limited way to move a grade boundary or finish a specific piece of IB work. If you want a structured plan for a specific subject, paper or Internal Assessment, IB Courses runs online preparation for the IB Diploma Programme that can be shaped to the date and the gap you are working with.

Frequently asked questions