The student we met
He was nine weeks into DP2 with no EE topic. His school supervisor had moved on from his initial idea without giving him a workable replacement. His predicted IB was 38. He came to us in mid October with a deadline he was certain to miss.
What we found
He was a strong History HL student with a genuine, specific interest in twentieth century South Asian decolonisation. He had been steered toward broader, safer topics by his school. We let him return to his actual interest and built a research question tight enough to defend in 4,000 words.
The plan
Four week sprint to lock the research question. Six week sprint for primary and secondary sources. Eight weeks for draft one, draft two, and draft three. Final two weeks for the abstract, the bibliography, and the mock viva. He met every internal deadline because we set them, posted them, and held him to them.
What changed in the marks
Draft one came back with criterion scores in the C range. Draft two moved most criteria to B range. Draft three earned all A and B marks. The submitted essay scored an A. With his TOK grade B, the EE A delivered the maximum three bonus points.
Where he is now
Studying History at the University of Edinburgh on the back of a final IB score of 41. He told us afterward that the most useful thing was not the writing coaching. It was watching us hold the deadlines for him while he did the work.
“My EE coach didn't just read drafts. She taught me how to argue. That is what got the A.”