IB EE Examples by Subject

The IB Extended Essay is a 4000-word independent research project that every Diploma candidate must complete. It is one of the most significant pieces of academic writing most students have produced — and one of the most variable in quality. The difference between a grade A and a grade C EE is not usually the quality of the research. It is how clearly the research question is focused, how rigorously the evidence is analysed, and how honestly the limitations are discussed. This guide provides concrete extended essay examples across major subject areas and explains what each high-scoring version does that lower-scoring versions don't.

IB EE Marking Overview

The Extended Essay is marked on five criteria (A–E), totalling 34 marks. Combined with the TOK essay, this contributes up to 3 bonus points toward your IB Diploma total. A grade A corresponds to roughly 28+/34; B is around 22–27; C is 16–21; D is 9–15; E (failing) is below 9.

IB Extended Essay Examples by Subject

Economics Extended Essay

Strong research question: "To what extent has the introduction of London's Ultra Low Emission Zone increased consumer surplus for residents while reducing it for commuters?"

What makes this work: it is specific (one policy, one city, a defined time period), it uses Economics concepts precisely (consumer surplus, externalities, cost-benefit analysis), and it has a debatable answer — the effects on different groups pull in opposite directions. The student can use Transport for London data, academic studies of ULEZ impacts, and newspaper reports as sources.

What a 7-scoring version does: defines the market clearly, draws and explains supply and demand diagrams with welfare triangles, uses real data to quantify the effects on at least two stakeholder groups, and evaluates limitations (data quality, counterfactual problem, distributional assumptions).

What a 5-scoring version does: describes the policy and its effects without applying diagrams or welfare analysis, uses broad claims without data, and concludes vaguely that "the ULEZ had both positive and negative effects."

History Extended Essay

Strong research question: "To what extent was Stalin's collectivisation policy the primary cause of the 1932–33 famine in Ukraine?"

What makes this work: it asks a causal question with a debatable answer (historians disagree), it is narrow enough to answer in 4000 words (one policy, one famine, one country, one time period), and it requires evaluating multiple sources including Soviet archives, demographic data, and historiographical debate.

A 7-scoring History EE weighs competing causes (collectivisation policy, grain quotas, kulak deportations, deliberate targeting by Soviet authorities) against the evidence for each, uses primary sources critically, and reaches a justified but qualified conclusion — not a simplistic "yes" or "no."

Biology Extended Essay

Strong research question: "How does the concentration of anthocyanin in red cabbage vary with soil pH, and what does this suggest about its role as a stress indicator in plants?"

What makes this work: it is experimentally testable (the student can grow red cabbage in soils of different pH and measure anthocyanin spectrophotometrically), it connects to plant biology theory, and the second part of the question ("what does this suggest about its role") ensures the analysis goes beyond description.

For Biology, the methodology section must be detailed enough to replicate; the analysis must include statistical processing (means, standard deviations, significance testing); and the evaluation must discuss whether the observed effect is physiologically plausible given the literature on anthocyanin biosynthesis.

English A: Literature Extended Essay

Strong research question: "How does Kazuo Ishiguro use unreliable narration in 'Never Let Me Go' to critique institutional complicity in human rights violations?"

What makes this work: it links a specific literary technique (unreliable narration) to a specific thematic claim (institutional complicity, human rights). The student can analyse close textual passages, compare critical interpretations, and develop an original argument that is not simply "Ishiguro uses symbolism to convey themes."

English EEs score poorly when they substitute plot summary for analysis or when the argument is too broad ("Ishiguro explores memory and identity"). A 7-scoring English EE makes a specific, arguable claim and defends it through close reading of selected passages, with engagement with secondary critical sources.

Mathematics Extended Essay

Strong research question: "How accurately does the logistic growth model predict the long-run population of a bounded ecosystem, and under what conditions does the model break down?"

Maths EEs succeed when the mathematics is commensurate with the level (HL students should use calculus; SL students can use algebra and statistics), when the exploration is genuine (the student tests the model rather than just deriving it), and when the limitations of the model are mathematically analysed rather than vaguely noted.

Common failure: a Maths EE that merely solves textbook problems and presents correct answers without any analysis or exploration of where the mathematics comes from or where it breaks down. The exploration must feel like investigation, not a worked-solutions exercise.

Psychology Extended Essay

Strong research question: "To what extent does social media use predict depressive symptoms in adolescents, and does this relationship differ by platform type?"

Psychology EEs are best approached as literature reviews with a critical analytical argument, rather than primary research (running an original study in 4000 words is usually not feasible). A high-scoring version reviews 3–5 studies systematically, evaluates their methodology (sample size, operationalisation of variables, cultural context), and reaches a qualified conclusion about what the evidence does and does not establish.

Physics Extended Essay

Strong research question: "How does the drag coefficient of a cycling helmet change with wind speed, and what are the implications for optimal aerodynamic position in time trials?"

A Physics EE that involves original experimental data scores well on Criterion C (Critical Thinking) because the analysis can compare experimental results to theoretical predictions. If original experiments are not feasible, a strong Physics EE analyses published datasets critically and applies theoretical models — but must go beyond simply describing the physics.

What All High-Scoring Extended Essays Have in Common

Across every subject, the IB Extended Essays that score grade A share three characteristics that lower-scoring essays lack:

  1. A research question specific enough to answer. Not "the impact of X on Y" but "to what extent did X influence Y under conditions Z during period P?"
  2. Analysis that argues, not describes. Every section that presents evidence should also evaluate it — what does this evidence tell us? How reliable is it? What does it not tell us? What competing explanation could account for the same evidence?
  3. A conclusion that directly answers the question. Not "in summary, there are many complex factors" but a qualified, evidenced position that the student has earned through the investigation.

Getting Your Extended Essay Assessed Before Submission

Reading strong IB extended essay examples helps calibrate what good looks like. But the gap between knowing what good looks like and knowing whether your own essay meets that standard is where most students lose marks.

IBLens analyses your Extended Essay draft against the official IB rubric — the same criteria your examiner uses — and provides criterion-by-criterion feedback so you know exactly where marks are being lost before you submit.

Upload your Extended Essay draft to IBLens for rubric-based feedback →