The IB Diploma Programme (IBDP) is a two-year programme available to students aged 16 to 19, which has an international focus, is recognized worldwide and opens doors to leading universities everywhere. It is currently offered in about 150 countries around the globe; IB students thus become part of a greater community united by the same mission statement and learner profile.
What is the IBDP?
The IBDP Curriculum
The Diploma Programme’s Core consists of the Extended Essay (EE), Theory of Knowledge (TOK) and Creativity, Activity & Service (CAS). In addition to these core components, students choose six subjects at two different levels. This enables students to tailor their subject choices to suit their interests and future plans and provide them with a solid educational foundation.
For more details go to www.ibo.org
Who is the IDBP for?
The IB Diploma Programme is aimed at young people aged 16-19 who seek a demanding, yet rewarding, broad and balanced education based on the IB learner profile.
GIBS IBDP students will acquire two diplomas, the IBDP and the Austrian Standardisierte Reifeprüfung. The bilingual programme at GIBS starts in grade 5, the IB Diploma Programme is offered during the final years (in grades 11&12). IB preparation courses take place in grade 10, final exams in grade 12.
Admission
Admission to the IBDP is by selection. GIBS students apply in grade 9, two years prior to the start of the programme. International students can apply at any time and but have to sit a placement test in Mathematics and English. German (A, B or Ab Initio) is an obligatory subject.
Admission policy: download
Admission Criteria
The programme is open to GIBS students and to incoming international students with the appropriate language and academic skills. Admission is based on Styrian residency, the evaluation of interview results, previous academic performance, and on the number of places available. Applicants are ranked by the admissions team and the head of school.
Financial Commitment
GIBS is a state-funded Austrian Gymnasium. To cover additional costs for the Diploma Programme, IB students are required to pay a contribution to the GIBS Support Association as well as pay the IBDP registration and exam fees and buy IB textbooks.
The Association of Central European IB Schools (ACES) represents and promotes the educational and public interests of IB member schools and their communities, ‘working together to support learning‘.
As a community we foster sharing among member schools and support professional development.
IB Facilities
IB students give a school tour of the IB facilities.
CAS Projects
The three strands of CAS, which are often interwoven with particular activities, are characterized as follows:
- Creativity – arts, and other experiences that involve creative thinking.
- Activity – physical exertion contributing to a healthy lifestyle, complementing academic work elsewhere in the DP.
- Service – an unpaid and voluntary exchange that has a learning benefit for the student. The rights, dignity and autonomy of all those involved are respected.
In order to demonstrate these concepts, students are required to undertake a CAS project. The project challenges students to:
- show initiative
- demonstrate perseverance
- develop skills such as collaboration, problem solving and decision making.
Link: CAS Guide
Culture Day @ GIBS
GIBS is known to be a multicultural school, with students of over 20 nationalities currently attending it. Given the global nature of this school, GIBS students of 7i decided to take it upon ourselves to organise an event that effectively showcases this cultural diversity; Culture Day. This event, a day to appreciate and celebrate…
Gesundheitszentrum Eggenberg on Instagram
CAS project by Elena Kohlfürst.
Eggenberg hilft der Ukraine
Together with Julia, Maja, and Jonas, and the support of Ms. Greimel, Ms. Raposo, and the parents’ association, Mr. Steinbrenner who also approached us in the first place, I started my CAS project in the second to last week of March 2022. The project was organization donations events at our school to support the population…
Faces in the Clouds – Richard Senger, 8i
As part of his IB diploma, 8i student, Richard Senger, wrote and produced 17 songs, that are now available on all music-streaming platforms. After 9 months of work, the album “Faces in the Clouds” has been released, including a number of 80s pop and indie pop songs. You can find his music under the artist…
Fight Ocean Pollution
On June 8th, a few weeks ago, Noura and Bianca from 7i organised a fund raiser to spread awareness about ocean pollution. The main event, a bake sale, was very successful and raised a lot of money, enough to surpass their goal. All the money earned will be donated to a German non-profit organisation called…
Grazer Frühjahrsputz and the Seven Summits
The Seven Summits are the highest mountains of each of the seven continents. Climbing to the summit of all of them is regarded as a ‘mountaineering challenge’.Our PE team created their own summit challenge during their weekly corona-double periods of sports and climbed the Schloßberg, Kalvarienberg, Buchkogel, Schloß St. Martin and Orthacker…we made it ! Many classes…
GIBS Talent Show
Last spring Danny and Erik hosted the first talent show at GIBS in several years! Claudia from 8i came in at 1st place with her art skills followed by Ephraim from 5a with his periodic table song. Thank you to everyone that participated! Danny & Erik
Photography Competition 2020
Charlotte, Jana, Athena and Claudia from Year 7i conducted the first photography competition in GIBS, in June 2020 as a part of CAS project for the IB Program. All GIBS students and teachers were able to participate and the project was conducted with the help of the CAS Advisors Mrs Greimel and Mr Wardell. There were 4 photography categories…
CAS Portfolio
Five Year IB Programme Review
Evaluation Visit January 2023
Every IB world school has to undergo a review and programme re-evaluation every five years to secure that the school continues to meet all IB standards and practices and can remain an authorized IB world school.
The GIBS school community has engaged in this reflective process during the past year and we are about to complete the IB five years review in January 2023. In September 2022 we submitted all preliminary documents (among them our school policies, unit plans, handbooks) and received positive feedback. In December we handed in an elaborate self-study questionnaire and a programme development plan focusing on inclusive access arrangements and individualization of learning.
Our evaluation team, Dr. Martin Nutz, principal of the German Embassy School in Addis Abeba, and Christian Bock, Academic Director and IB coordinator at UWC Robert Bosch in Freiburg, have assessed all documents and will be visiting GIBS virtually from 23 till 25 January 2023.
At the end of this three days’ remote evaluation visit, there will be a 30min school community meeting, during which you will have a chance
- to hear the feedback from the evaluation team
- to get to know Katrin Fox, our IB world school manager, and
- to be informed about the next steps by the GIBS school development team.
If you would like to join this meeting, please contact the office@gibs.at to obtain the LINK.
Ursula Schatz
IBDP coordinator – Evaluation Visit
Contact
Philipp Stummer, IBDP coordinator philipp.stummer@gibs.at
Ursula Schatz, Deputy coordinator ursula.schatz@gibs.at
Edda Berger-Cian, Head of GIBS principal@gibs.at
Graz International Bilingual School
Georgigasse 85
8020 Graz +43 05 0248 021
The Association of Central European IB Schools (ACES) represents and promotes the educational and public interests of IB member schools and their communities, ‘working together to support learning‘.
As a community we foster sharing among member schools and support professional development.