An IB internal assessment tutor can help your child understand the criteria, build the research, data-handling and writing skills the IA needs, and plan their time, but under IB rules the tutor must never write, rewrite or design the work. The IA counts for a significant share of the final grade in most IB Diploma subjects, so families often look for extra support. This guide explains what help is allowed, what actually improves IA marks, and how to choose a tutor.

Written by Tutopiya, an online IB tutoring company. Academic integrity rules are set by the IB and applied by schools; when in doubt, ask your child’s teacher or IB coordinator.

Key takeaways

• The IA usually counts for around 20–30% of the subject grade, depending on the subject.
• Tutors can teach skills and explain criteria; they must not write or edit the work.
• The school teacher is the official supervisor and authenticates the work.
• Starting skills work in DP1 makes DP2 deadlines far easier.

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What is the IB internal assessment?

The IA is coursework assessed by the student’s teacher against the subject’s published criteria, then moderated by the IB. Its form depends on the subject: a scientific investigation in the sciences, a mathematical exploration in Maths, commentaries in Economics, a historical investigation in History, an oral in Language A, and so on.

Subject	IA form (current guides)
Biology, Chemistry, Physics	Scientific investigation
Mathematics (AA and AI)	Mathematical exploration
Economics	Portfolio of commentaries
History	Historical investigation
Psychology	Experimental study (SL and HL)
English A	Individual oral

Weightings and requirements change between guide versions, so check the current subject guide with the teacher.

What help is allowed under IB rules?

Tutors can teach and explain; they can’t produce or polish the work. The IB’s academic integrity policy (see the IB Diploma Programme pages) expects the work to be the student’s own, and schools authenticate it.

Allowed	Not allowed
Explaining the assessment criteria	Writing any part of the IA
Teaching data analysis and statistics	Supplying data, graphs or calculations to submit
Discussing whether a topic is feasible in general	Choosing and designing the investigation
Teaching how to write an evaluation	Rewriting or line-editing drafts
Practising skills on a different example	Working directly on the submitted text

A useful rule: the tutor can work on practice examples and skills, while the student applies them independently to the real IA.

Where do students lose IA marks?

Most lost marks come from a vague research question, weak analysis, and shallow evaluation.

• a research question too broad to investigate properly;
• data that doesn’t answer the question;
• analysis that describes rather than interprets;
• evaluation that lists generic errors instead of specific limitations;
• poor communication: structure, units, labelling, referencing.

These are skills, so they can be taught on practice material before the real IA.

How to use an IA tutor well: step by step

1. Read the criteria together with the tutor, early in DP1.
2. Practise skills on sample material, such as analysing a published dataset.
3. Let the student draft topic ideas; the tutor discusses feasibility in general terms.
4. Agree a timeline that matches school deadlines.
5. Keep the teacher as the supervisor for feedback on the actual draft.
6. Use the tutor for skills gaps the teacher identifies.

Subject-specific skills a tutor can build

Subject	Skills worth practising
Sciences	Uncertainties, graphing, statistical tests, evaluation
Mathematics	Choosing appropriate maths, communication, reflection
Economics	Linking articles to diagrams and theory, evaluation
History	Source evaluation, structuring an argument
Psychology	Research design, ethics, statistics

Our subject tutors, such as IB DP chemistry tutors and IB DP mathematics tutors, teach these skills through practice examples.

When should IA support start?

The best time is DP1, before topics are fixed. Skills such as data analysis and evaluation take several weeks to build, and DP2 deadlines often cluster with the extended essay and TOK. Our guide to DP1 tutoring explains how to use the first year.

Stage	Focus
DP1, first term	Learn the criteria, practise skills
DP1, second term	Topic ideas, feasibility, practice data
DP2, first term	Student completes the IA with teacher supervision
After submission	Exam preparation

How Tutopiya tutoring works

Tutopiya offers one-to-one online IB tutoring, with IA support within IB rules.

• A specialist for the subject and level.
• Skills and criteria teaching, never writing or editing the IA.
• A free first trial lesson, with no card needed.
• From 4 hours a month per subject. Each tutor sets their own rate, which you see before booking.
• AI lesson analysis gives a summary, flashcards and quiz questions after each lesson.

See our IB tuition page.

Common mistakes

• Asking a tutor to “check” the draft line by line → ask for skills feedback instead.
• Starting too late → build skills in DP1.
• A research question that’s too broad → narrow it early with the teacher.
• Generic evaluation → name specific limitations and their effect.

Talk to us

For the extended essay, see our guide to IB extended essay tutoring. To discuss IA support, contact our team.

Summary: an IB IA tutor can teach the criteria and the skills behind high marks, but the work must stay the student’s own; start in DP1, practise on sample material, and keep the teacher as supervisor.

Frequently asked questions

Can a tutor help with the IB internal assessment? +

Yes, within the IB's academic integrity rules. A tutor can explain the assessment criteria, teach research, data and writing skills, and discuss ideas in general terms. The tutor must not write, rewrite or design the work, and the student's teacher remains the official supervisor.

What can't an IA tutor do? +

An IA tutor must not write any part of the IA, edit drafts line by line, provide data or analysis to submit, or choose and design the whole investigation. These would breach IB rules and could put the student's diploma at risk.

When should IA tutoring start? +

Ideally when the student starts thinking about topics, often in DP1. Skills such as data analysis and evaluation take time to build, and school deadlines arrive quickly in DP2.

How much of the IB grade is the IA? +

It varies by subject, typically between about 20% and 30% of the final grade. Check the current subject guide or ask the teacher for the exact weighting.

Can Tutopiya help with the IA? +

Yes, within IB rules. Tutopiya IB tutors teach the skills and criteria behind the IA and give general feedback. The first trial lesson is free with no card required.

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