IB Psychology IA changes 2027: the research proposal, explained

From the May 2027 session, the IB Psychology Internal Assessment changes format completely: instead of conducting an experiment and writing it up, you write a research proposal for a study, and no experiment is carried out at all. The proposal is marked out of 24, up from 22 for the old experimental report, and the criteria are new. If you sit your exams in May 2027 or later, this is the format you are assessed on.

Who is affected

Exams in May 2027 or later: you write the research proposal, marked out of 24 with the criteria below.
Sessions through November 2026: the experimental report remains, marked out of 22 (Introduction 6, Exploration 4, Analysis 6, Evaluation 6).

Some topics must not be the focus of the proposal, even though the study is never run: abuse (sexual, physical or emotional), self-harm (including suicide), pornography, rape or other sexual acts, and serial killers or acts of torture. Ingestion and the use of animals are not allowed either.

The new criteria (marked out of 24)

Criterion	Marks	What it assesses
A: Introduction	6	A clearly stated, focused aim or research question; a real-life problem and its impact on the population of interest; the findings and conclusions of two pieces of relevant research, linked to the proposal.
B: Research methodology	6	The choice of one of the four research methods (experiment, interview, observation, or survey or questionnaire) and the procedure explained (sampling technique, sample characteristics, design if experimental, setting and process), with relevant ethical considerations explicitly linked to the study.
C: Data collection	6	One data collection tool you create (at least five items, copy in the appendix), the decisions behind it, including how it measures what it is meant to measure, and the potential challenges of collecting the data.
D: Discussion	6	Potential findings and their implications for policy or practice, how researcher bias may affect the study, and one additional research method that would add to understanding.

The word limit is 2,200, and the guide says reading stops when the limit is reached, so anything past it is not marked. References and appendices are not counted. SL and HL students write the same proposal against the same criteria.

What changed from the experimental report

No experiment. The old IA required you to run an experiment based on a published study, collect data and analyse it statistically. The new IA is a proposal: you design a study you do not run.
Marks: 22 → 24, and four evenly weighted criteria of 6 replace the old 6/4/6/6 split.
Weighting at SL: 25% → 30%. At HL the IA stays at 20%.
Analysis of collected data disappears as a criterion, replaced by the design of a data collection tool (Criterion C) and a discussion of potential findings (Criterion D).
Discussion is forward-looking: instead of evaluating what happened, you discuss what the study might find and what that would mean for policy or practice, how your own position could bias it, and which other method would add to the picture.

How to check your proposal draft

Introduction: Is the aim focused on a real-life problem and a specific population of interest, and do the two studies you summarise connect to your proposal?
Research methodology: Are the method and procedure explained for this question, and are the ethical considerations tied to your study rather than copied from a template?
Data collection: Does your tool have at least five items, a copy in the appendix, and an explanation of how the tool measures what it is meant to measure? Have you explained what could go wrong when collecting the data?
Discussion: Do you set out potential findings and their implications, discuss researcher bias, and argue for one additional method?

Check your draft with IBLens

With your teacher's agreement, you can check it with IBLens, which is session-aware for Psychology: choose Internal Assessment (IA) or coursework and then Psychology in the grader, and keep "Exam session" on Exams in May 2027 or later, the default. Your proposal is graded out of 24 against the four criteria above, criterion by criterion, with a free preview before any payment. Switch the session to Exams in November 2026, or work submitted in May 2026 for the experimental report out of 22.

Check your Psychology IA against the 2027 criteria →

Frequently asked questions

Do I still run an experiment for the Psychology IA?

Not from the May 2027 session onward. The new Internal Assessment is a research proposal: you design a study, explain its method, procedure and ethics, create a data collection tool and discuss the potential findings, but the study is never carried out.

Is the new Psychology IA different for SL and HL?

No. SL and HL students write the same research proposal and are assessed against the same four criteria out of 24.

What is the word limit?

2,200 words. Anything past the limit is not marked, so a proposal that runs long loses whatever sits past it. IBLens counts the words of what you paste against the limit.