IB Roadmap

Year 9 to University,
Step by Step

The exact actions, milestones, and IBtheTOP services for every stage of the IB journey — from Pre-DP foundations to results day. Use it as a planning tool, not a brochure.

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Y9
Phase 1 · Pre-DP Foundation

Year 9 — Build the English & method base

The year nothing "official" happens — and the most important year to get right. Everything downstream rests on English fluency and the habit of showing work in math & science.

For the student
What to do
  • All year Build the English reading/writing base — IB is reading-heavy across every subject. Identify the 1–2 subjects your child feels most challenged by and focus extra time there.
  • If newly arrived (< 1 yr) Prioritise General English via book reading — it's the gating skill for everything later.
  • Aug – Dec (Term 1) Start subject terminology drills in English: science vocab so question stems decode instantly; math "show-your-working" proofs since IB awards method marks.
  • Jan – Mar (Term 2) Use mid-year mock tests to identify your weak subjects and adjust focus accordingly.
  • Jul – early Aug (summer) Expose the student to IB-style assessment formats: long short-answer questions, written explanations, lab write-ups — before pressure starts.
Key Milestones
  • No external exams — focus on school internal grades (especially for US-bound students where internal GPA matters).
  • Take the IBtheTOP level test for placement.
  • Identify the student's path:
    Track 1 = Pre-IB / MYP / IGCSE student needing IB pre-learning.
    Track 2 = International-school newcomer needing English-medium adjustment.
  • Start building a 1–2 subject "hardest list" that the student will focus extra hours on.
Our Programs
  • Pre-IB Program — Track 1 or Track 2 path, English-medium curriculum bridge
  • Lower-grade Book Reading program — builds the English baseline that gates every IB subject downstream
  • Coding class + self-study room — habit-building for the IB years ahead
  • Holiday Workshops every break (summer, Chuseok, winter, Lunar New Year, spring) — concept pre-learning ahead of school term
  • Subject-strength assessment as part of the level test — identifies the 1–2 subjects to prioritise
Y10
Phase 2 · Pre-DP / IGCSE

Year 10 — IGCSE scores & subject decisions

The year of two big things: generate IGCSE scores that universities will see, and close the painful Pre-IB → IB Math gap. Get the summer right and you'll walk into DP1 ahead.

For the student
What to do
  • All year Future English A students: start non-fiction text analysis and literary reading now to soften the DP1 jump.
  • All year Use school lab reports & MYP projects as IA / EE training — they're direct rehearsals.
  • Jan – Mar (Term 2) Close the Pre-IB Math → IB Math HL gap — the largest jump of any subject. Unless the student is doing IGCSE Additional Maths, dedicated pre-learning is essential.
  • Jan – Jun (Terms 2–3) Choose your 6 IB subjects based on academic potential and target-university requirements. Combo decided in Term 2, finalised by end of Term 3.
  • Apr – Jun (Term 3) Sit IGCSE final exams — they appear on university applications (UK especially weights them).
  • Jul – early Aug (summer before DP1) Focus pre-learning on the 2–3 subjects you feel most challenged by — not all 6. Go deep on weakest subjects first, then HL. Trying to cover everything in one summer ends up covering nothing properly.
  • Jul – early Aug (summer before DP1) Stack the resume with internships, volunteering, Olympiad-style competitions.
Key Milestones
  • Term 2 (Jan–Mar) — IB 6-subject combo decided; Pre-IB Math → HL gap closing.
  • Term 3 (Apr–Jun) — IGCSE final exams; final subject combo locked.
  • Winter (Dec–Jan) — adventurous students join the DP1 Winter Workshop for an early taste of IB content.
  • Spring (Apr–Jun) — first university info sessions at school; career/major reflection.
  • Summer (Jul–Aug, before DP1) — pre-learning of the 2–3 IB subjects you feel most challenged by, plus resume-building activities (internships, volunteering, Olympiad-style competitions).
Our Programs
  • Pre-IB Program — recommended start: Term 2 of Year 10. Closes the Pre-IB Math → HL gap; bridges science vocabulary.
  • Subject-selection consultation — our subject-selection formula + academic-potential assessment + mentors from target career fields (medicine, finance, engineering, etc.)
  • Winter / Lunar New Year / Spring Workshops — concept consolidation across terms
  • Summer Workshop (critical) — deep-dive pre-learning on the 2–3 IB subjects you feel weakest in
  • IGCSE preparation tracks for students aiming at strong scores for UK applications
Y11
Phase 3 · DP1 · IB Year 1

Year 11 — The jump, the IAs, the predicted grades

The year that decides your university offer. Predicted grades are built from monthly quizzes, IAs and end-of-year mocks — not the May final. Miss the IA cadence in the first 2 months and you're playing catch-up the entire year.

For the student
What to do
  • Monthly (Aug → Jun) Hold your line on unit quizzes (쪽지시험) — these feed directly into predicted grades.
  • Aug – Oct (Term 1) Survive the jump from Pre-DP to IB — the difficulty step-up is the #1 reason students fall off pace. Identify the 2–3 subjects feeling hardest and double down on those.
  • Sep – Oct (Term 1) Start IA #1 and begin EE subject selection. IAs are ~20% of the final and directly shape predicted grades.
  • Dec – Jan (winter) Start university admissions consulting — decide country, draft target university list, shape activity list, plan supercurriculars.
  • Jan – Mar (Term 2) Continue IA work; finalise EE topic; first PS skeleton draft for UK applicants.
  • Apr – Jun (Term 3) Prepare for the end-of-Year mocks as if they were the May exam — mock results heavily influence predicted grades.
  • May – Jun (before summer) Ask teachers for recommendation letters. September is when they're flooded — late asks = late applications.
  • May – Jul (end of Term 3) Attend the school's university info session; lock country / major.
  • Jul – early Aug (summer) Finish IA / EE writing. Re-do science IA experiments now if results are unsatisfactory — Korea has very limited lab access outside school. Prepare full application materials (Common App essays, Personal Statement, supplementals) so submissions go in at the start of DP2.
Key Milestones
  • Term 1 (Aug–Dec) — first IA launched within the first 2 months; EE subject chosen.
  • Monthly (Aug→Jun) — unit quizzes feeding directly into predicted grades.
  • Winter (Dec–Jan) — university admissions consulting begins; country, target university list, activity list decided.
  • Term 2–3 — IA drafts, EE outline, ToK presentation prep.
  • Term 3 (Apr–Jun) — end-of-Year mock exams (heavily influence predicted grades).
  • May–Jun (before summer) — ask teachers for recommendation letters (Sep is too late).
  • Summer (Jul–Aug) — IA / EE final write-ups, science IA re-experiments if needed, full application materials drafted (Common App essays, Personal Statement, supplementals).
Our Programs
Y12
Phase 4 · DP2 · IB Year 2

Year 12 — Applications, finals, results day

Three things happen at once: ToK essay launches, university applications go in, and the May finals approach. Year 12 isn't harder than Year 11 — it's just busier. The students who succeed are the ones with a calendar.

For the student
What to do
  • Aug – Dec (Term 1) ToK essay — prompt released in August, first draft starts then, deadline before winter break.
  • Aug – Dec (Term 1) Submit university applications; sit interviews; receive offers. (US Early Action: Oct–Nov; UK UCAS: Jan deadline for most courses, Oct for Oxbridge/Medicine.)
  • Aug – Mar (Terms 1–2) Finalise remaining IAs and EE.
  • Aug – Apr (Terms 1–3) Cover remaining content — in English Lang/Lit, most literary works (Paper 2) are studied in DP2 (SL = 4 works, HL = 6 works). Focus extra hours on the 2–3 subjects you scored lowest in mocks.
  • Oct – Apr (from Chuseok) Shift to past-paper-driven (기출문제) problem-solving as the primary study mode.
  • Jan (winter break) Heavy past-paper review; finish any outstanding IA / EE / ToK.
  • Apr – Jun (Term 3) IB final exams (3–4 weeks late April to early June). School lessons stop — self-study time, students attend only on exam days.
Key Milestones
  • August — ToK essay prompt released; first draft begins.
  • Oct–Nov — US Early Action / Early Decision deadlines.
  • October — Oxbridge / Medicine UCAS deadline; January — UCAS standard deadline.
  • Before winter break — ToK essay submitted.
  • Term 1–2 — offers received, conditional offers locked.
  • Term 2–3 — IA / EE / ToK final cutoffs.
  • Late April – early June — IB final exams (3–4 weeks).
  • July 5 — results released, conditional offers confirmed.
Our Programs
Post
IB
Phase 5 · Post-IB Exam · University Entry

Post-IB — Met or Missed the Conditional Offer

The four-week wait between June exams and July 5 results is the calmest stretch of the entire IB. After results day, students fork into one of two tracks: met or missed the conditional offer (visa & matriculation or appeal then retake).

For the student
What to do
  • Jun – early Jul Wait out the gap between exams (early June) and the July 5 results release. Use the time for internships, language study, university-coursework prep.
  • Jul 5 onwards (Met the con) Confirm university placement. Prepare student visa — F-1 (US), Student visa (UK), Schengen (EU). Sort accommodation, flights, matriculation paperwork.
  • Jul (Missed the con) Don't panic. Two routes:
    Route 1: Appeal / negotiate — if you missed by 1–2 points, the university may still accept. Request an EUM (Enquiry Upon Results) for a re-mark if a paper looked wrong, and have your school advocate.
    Route 2: Retake — register for the November re-sit.
  • Jul – Nov (retake track) Focus only on the subjects you scored short in. 4 focused months of past-paper-driven prep usually moves a 5 to a 7.
Key Milestones
  • July 5 — IB results released.
  • Mid-July — EUM (Enquiry Upon Results) re-mark request deadline if a paper looked wrong.
  • Late July — November re-sit registration deadline.
  • August–September — visa application & matriculation for confirmed students (F-1 for US, Student visa for UK, Schengen for EU).
  • November — re-sit exams.
  • January (following year) — January university intake using November results.
Our Programs
  • November Re-sit Prep Program — focused 4-month plan on the specific subjects scored short. Past-paper-driven, examiner-style marking, weekly progress checks.
  • Admissions Consulting (appeal & re-application):
    · Paschar Consulting — US re-applications, deferral negotiations
    · Oxbridge Solution — UK appeals, UCAS Extra, gap-year re-application
  • Post-IB Career & Major Mentoring — consultations with alumni in finance, science, engineering, and beyond to help students translate results into a major and career path
  • Visa & matriculation guidance — signposting + checklists for the F-1, UK Student visa, and Schengen processes (student handles official paperwork)
No matter what stage

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