Increasing access for diverse schools and students worldwide
For more than 40 years the International Baccalaureate (IB) has built a reputation for high-quality, challenging programmes of education.
The Diploma Programme is founded on a philosophy of building tolerance and understanding among internationally minded students of different cultures and backgrounds.Through its mission—“to develop inquiring, knowledgeable and caring young people who help to create a better and more peaceful world”—the IB is committed to meeting the education needs of a diverse community of schools and to improving access to high-quality education for students around the world.
I grew up in a pretty underprivileged neighborhood. A lot of kids in my neighborhood didn’t really think about going to college—that wasn’t really an option for a lot of them—and so having gone through the IB programme left a huge impression on me, and just helped steer me in the right direction. Even though I didn’t know exactly what I was going to do, or exactly how I wanted to change the world, at least I had all the tools, or at least I had a great starting point. I have the IB programme to thank for that.
Today, approximately 65% of the students in the Diploma Programme are in state schools. Research also shows that, regardless of an IB student’s background or socio-economic status, they do exceptionally well at university and in most cases perform significantly better than their peers who did not participate in the IB Diploma Programme.Bharani Rajakumar, 2002 IB Diploma Programme graduate, Eastside High School; bachelor of science, University of Florida; master of business administration candidate, Carnegie Mellon University, USA
In 2008, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation funded a study by McKinsey & Company that revealed the IB’s unique benefits for underserved students. Focusing on the “diploma gap”—the under-representation of low-income and minority students in the Diploma Programme—the study concluded, “The Diploma Programme stands out among other high school curricula available today in the US public education system because it offers a rigorous, aligned, integrated instructional system that is both appropriate and valuable for students of average skill proficiency, and transformative for minority and low-income, i.e., ‘high-needs’, students.”
Access and the IB Diploma Programme
What do universities need to know about the Diploma Programme?
Why should universities recognize the Diploma Programme? - Individual student testimonials
How do universities establish a policy? - Suggestions for developing or amending your policy on IB recognition
Learn more about the experiences of IB Diploma Programme graduates in university
More resources for university recognition
