Criteria and Conditions for School Membership in the IB

The International Baccalaureate Organisation authorizes qualified secondary schools to offer the curriculum and to administer the examinations. A student must be enrolled in an authorized school to be eligible to sit for IB examinations.

IB member schools subscribe to the following:

1. Participating schools shall be committed to the promotion of international understanding through education as expressed by the objectives and practices of the International Baccalaureate Organisation (IBO). In particular, they shall accept:
   
   
   • The primary importance of the Diploma;
   • The balanced academic programme, the central role of the Theory of Knowledge, and the importance of the CAS (Creativity, Action, Service) requirement;
   • The emphasis given to teaching and the personal development of students;
   • The involvement in support activities such as workshops and conferences for IB Teachers, Administrators, and Heads of Schools.
     
   
   
2. Schools shall demonstrate to IBO that they will have the required teaching faculty, administrative staff and other resources with which to carry out the IB programme successfully. Since IBO is conscious of the vastly different levels of resources available to schools in different parts of the world, agreement on this issue shall be a matter of mutual consultation and guidance, if necessary over an extended period of preparation. Any deficiencies noted at the time of application will be explained in writing by IBO, and a timetable will be agreed upon for them to be corrected.
   
   
3. Schools shall demonstrate their legal status and financial viability on the basis of appropriate documentation.
   
   
4. Schools may be asked to furnish proof to IBO that their application to participate has the approval of their local, regional, or national authorities.
   
   
5. Schools shall be open to visits from members of the IBO Administration or their delegates. Schools shall formally agree to bind themselves to full acceptance of all IB regulations, encompassing the proper conduct of all courses and examinations (including internal assessment), the early appointment of a Coordinator, and the prompt payment of all fees and other charges as billed.
   
   
6. The policy of IBO is to promote the Diploma. However, depending on their state of preparation at the time of application, schools may be accepted in one of three categories:
   
   
   • To teach the Diploma programme immediately;
   • To teach Certificate courses only for an interim period to be defined by the Director General, in anticipation of moving on to the Diploma programme;
   • To remain in an affiliated status, normally for not more than one year, during which time preparations will be undertaken to teach as specified in (a) or (b) above.
     
   
   
7. IBO may conduct a review of the performance of any IB school at periodic intervals and shall communicate any concerns and criticisms immediately to the school in question. Recognition may be withdrawn at the end of the following academic year unless IBO is satisfied that deficiencies have been remedied, or at any other time if, in the judgment of the Executive Committee, serious irregularities have occurred. In all such instances due consideration shall be given to protect the interests of students already enrolled.
   
   
8. Schools or branches of the same school are admitted as separate entities. This same condition applies also to the payment of all fees.
   
   
9. Schools are accepted to teach their own students only and may register candidates from other schools (or from other branches of the same school) for examinations only if they are re-sit candidates whose circumstances prevent them from attending their original school for the repeat examination session. They may not register candidates from non-IB schools for IB examinations.
   
   
10. IBO reserves the right to deny admission to any school whose philosophy or policies are not felt to be in harmony with those of the IB.