This IB Math IA guide explains the exploration, the IB math IA format and why you cannot buy a Math IA: it must be your own work. You will also find advice on keeping the piece focused and on where to find honest IB maths help.
The Mathematics internal assessment is a mathematical exploration: a short written piece in which you investigate a topic of your choice using mathematics. Instead of answering a question set by someone else, you decide what to explore, choose the mathematics that fits it, and explain your thinking on the page for a reader who has not seen your working before.
Your teacher marks the exploration against published criteria, and the IB moderates that marking. This means the published criteria are your most reliable guide to what is being looked for. Read them early, keep them beside you while you plan, and return to them whenever you are unsure whether a section is doing its job. Understanding the task clearly at the start saves a lot of rewriting later.
The exploration applies to both Analysis and Approaches (AA) and Applications and Interpretation (AI), and both are assessed against published criteria.
Whichever ib math course you follow, the task is the same in spirit: investigate something you care about, use mathematics you understand, and explain it clearly.
Your teacher can tell you how the criteria apply in your class.
A natural topic often sits close to something you already notice. It might come from a hobby, a sport, music, games, money, the natural world or a question that surfaced in a lesson and stayed with you. If your ib ia math plan begins with real curiosity, the writing tends to feel more personal and the reflection becomes easier to do honestly.
Try not to choose a topic because it sounds impressive. A modest question that you can follow from start to finish is usually a stronger foundation than an ambitious one you only half understand.
Pick something you are curious about and can explain clearly. The mathematics should be at a level you can handle with confidence, because understanding matters more than difficulty. A good test is to explain your idea aloud to a classmate or a family member. If you can describe the question, the method and why it interests you without reading from notes, you probably have a workable topic.
Check early that you can find or generate data if your idea needs it. Many promising ideas stall because the information turns out to be hard to collect, unclear in origin or too messy to use. Spend a short session confirming that the data, or a way of creating it, really exists before you commit.
To test whether a topic is too broad, try writing your question as one sentence. If the sentence needs several ideas joined together, or you cannot say what you would actually calculate, narrow it. A smaller question explored carefully usually leaves room for clear working and honest reflection.
A clear format helps your reader follow you. Introduce the question and why it interests you, set out your method, do the mathematics with clear working, then reflect on what your findings mean and what limits them. Use your own words and explain each step so that a classmate could follow it.
Treat the list below as a checklist while you draft. Each line is a part of the exploration, and you can tick it off only when it is genuinely on the page rather than just in your head.
When you review, read as if you were meeting the work for the first time. Wherever you had to stop and work something out, a reader will need more explanation too. Short, plain sentences and explained notation make the mathematics easier to follow.
Many students search for the IB maths IA word count, and the safest answer is to check the current official IB guidance and ask your teacher. This page does not quote a figure, because the official guidance is the only reliable source and it can be updated.
Whatever the limit, a focused exploration begins with a narrow question. If your question is precise, you do not need to cover every possible angle, and you spend your words on the part that matters: the mathematics and your thinking about it.
Cut repetition as you edit. If two paragraphs make the same point, keep the clearer one.
Let your working carry the argument, with short explanations beside each step rather than long passages that restate what the mathematics already shows. A tight, readable piece is easier to mark and easier to be proud of.
Make a note of the limit as soon as you have confirmed it, and keep it where you will see it while you draft.
Common mistakes include a topic that is too broad, copying methods without explaining them and leaving out reflection on limitations. Another is using heavy notation that is not explained. Each of these makes it harder for the reader to see what you understand, even when the mathematics itself is sound.
Most of these problems can be spotted with a careful read-through. Ask yourself whether every method is explained in your own words, whether every symbol is introduced, and whether you have said honestly what your approach cannot show.
Ask for ib ia help when you feel stuck on the question, cannot tell whether your topic is too broad, or have a draft and are unsure how it measures up against the criteria. Start with your teacher, who marks the work, and consider a tutor for extra discussion and review. Asking early is much easier than repairing a draft at the last minute.
A tutor can help you plan and review your work. In practice that means talking through topic ideas, checking whether the mathematics is within reach, and reviewing a draft against the criteria. A tutor can suggest where the explanation or the reflection needs more work, and ask the questions a reader would ask.
A tutor cannot write your exploration or do the mathematics for you. The exploration must be your own, so the ideas, the working and the words need to come from you. Good support leaves you understanding your own piece better, rather than handing you something finished.
A useful session often looks like a conversation about a printed draft. You explain what you meant, the tutor points to where it was unclear, and you go away and revise in your own words. That keeps the work yours while still giving you a second pair of eyes.
Remember
Support is available across the IB Mathematics course, including the IA. If you are looking for ib maths help, start by being clear about what you need: understanding a topic from lessons, choosing an exploration idea, or reviewing a draft. Knowing this makes the first conversation with a tutor far more useful.
Before you reach out, gather three things: your subject, your topic idea even if it is rough, and your deadlines. Through the consultation form on this site, our team will help you find a suitable tutor.
A simple rhythm keeps the IA manageable: plan, draft, review, revise. Plan the question and structure, write a first draft in your own words, get feedback against the criteria, then revise what was unclear. Repeating that cycle in small steps is calmer than trying to write everything at once.
No. The Math IA must be your own work, so buying one is academic malpractice and not a legitimate option. If you are struggling, speak to your teacher and consider tutoring support. A tutor can help you plan, discuss ideas and review a draft, while the exploration itself stays yours.
This page does not quote a figure, because the current official IB guidance is the only reliable source. Check that guidance and ask your teacher to confirm the limit. To stay within it, narrow your question, cut repeated points and let your mathematical working carry the argument.
Both Analysis and Approaches and Applications and Interpretation include a mathematical exploration assessed against published criteria. The task is the same in spirit for both courses, so your teacher is the best person to explain how the criteria apply to your own class.
A good topic is one you understand well, can explain clearly and can investigate with mathematics at a suitable level. It should come from real curiosity, and you should be able to find or generate any data you need. Understanding matters more than difficulty.
Introduce your question and why it interests you, set out your method, do the mathematics with clear working, then reflect on what your findings mean and what limits them. Write in your own words and explain each step so that a classmate could follow it.
A tutor can help you plan and review your work, for example by discussing topic ideas or reviewing a draft against the criteria. The exploration must be your own, so a tutor cannot write it or do the mathematics for you.
Share your subject, your topic idea and your deadlines through the consultation form and our team will help you find a suitable tutor for math ia help or wider IB subject support.