Singapore: IB Diploma Results 2023

Results for the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP) and Career-related Programme (IBCP) are out – and more than 1,800 students at international and local schools in Singapore are celebrating an average score of 35.05, well above the global average for the May 2023 session of 30.24.

At a Glance: 2023 Results

• Singapore's average IBDP score is 35.05 which surpasses the global average; it is lower than last year’s average of 37.49 points.
• The global average score is 30.24 (marginally lower than last year's figure of 31.98).  
• In Singapore, 409 students out of 1,894 achieved 40-plus points.
• Singapore’s pass rate is 94.79%.  The global pass rate is 79.35% (85.6% in May 2022).
• The number of students taking the IBDP in Singapore was 1,894 compared to 1,739 last year.
  
• A total of 179,917 students took the IBDP and IBCP examinations worldwide, compared with 173,878 IBDP students in 2022.  
• There were 179 top scoring students with 45 points worldwide.
• The global average IBDP grade is 4.84. Students receive grades ranging from 7 to 1, with 7 being the highest for each subject. 

How to uncover a school's true IB results. Click here to read more...

Olli-Pekka Heinonen, Director General of the International Baccalaureate, said:

“This year again, IB students in Singapore have shown outstanding resilience, adaptability, and dedication to their learning. Their academic results reflect the IB family’s shared commitment to excellence. The IB is grateful and salute everyone including the educators who have supported our students throughout their learning journey, illustrating everything the IB stands for.” 

What do this year's results mean?

Both the UK and global average pass rates are lower than last year's but, after the discussion around the grade inflation of the Covid-19 years, this was to be expected. 

This years's grade awarding system returns to the IBO's pre-pandemic one. After the IB introduced “appropriate grade boundaries” in 2021 and 2022 due to the disruption caused by Covid-19, it decided that "the distribution of grades awarded for our qualifications returned close to those of May 2019."

Both 2020 and 2021 saw a rise in pass rates, average scores, diploma scores and the number of students achieving the top score. Last year's results, which were only marginally lower than 2020-21, marked a milestone in terms of 'a return to normality'. 

To ensure that last year’s grades were fair and continued to take into account the disruption caused by Covid-19, the IBO said that “appropriate grade boundaries will be set for each route, building in generosity that reflects the disruption experienced in teaching and learning around the world”.

Commenting on the grading for this year's exams, the IBO states: 

"In line with other national and international awarding organisations, the profile of grade distribution returned close to pre-pandemic standards. This return to established distributions of awarded grades is aligned with university expectations and has been a phased process: results for the May 2022 and November 2022 examination sessions were closer to the results of 2019 than those of 2021". 

The global average IBDP score for the May 2023 session is 30.24 points.

This compares with an average of 31.98 in 2022 when students returned to exams following the Covid 19 pandemic, against 32.98 in 2021, when students received Teacher Assessed Grades.

The global average in the last full set of examinations taken by students in 2019 was 29.62, which was actually a lower average than those of 2018 of 29.76. While the 2023 global average is lower than last year, it, still remains 0.60 points above the 2019 average of 29.62.

The discussion about results should not detract from the incredible efforts of students to learn and teachers to teach. Students have worked hard during an extremely difficult time in their secondary education – and today is a day to celebrate their achievements.

The IB in Singapore

The two-year IBDP programme is currently offered at 26 local and international schools in Singapore; the IBCP is currently offered at just three schools.

In Singapore, the IBDP is taken at the following international schools in May: Canadian International School, Chatsworth International School (Bukit Timah Campus), Dover Court International School, Dulwich College (Singapore), XCL World Academy, EtonHouse International School (Orchard), OWIS (Nanyang), GESS, GIIS SMART Campus, HWA International School, ISS International School Singapore (High School), Nexus, NPS International School, Overseas Family School, Stamford American International School, Tanglin Trust School, United World College of South East Asia (UWCSEA), Dover and East Campuses.

Some Singapore schools follow a January to December calendar and sit the IBDP exams in November. These include St Joseph’s Institution International, Anglo-Chinese School (Independent), Australian International School, Hwa Chong International School (HCIS), Madrasah Aljunied Al-Islamiah, School of The Arts Singapore (SOTA),Singapore Sports School (SSP), St Joseph's Institution and ACS (International) Singapore.

Singapore 2023 IB Results Table

The table below includes the average scores for 2023 as we receive them, as well as the size of the cohort, the pass rate, the highest score achieved out of 45, the percentage of students achieving 40-plus and 35-plus points, and the average grade. 

np = not published

Nov cohort identifies IB students who sit their IB exams in the November session; they receive their results in January of the following year. For the latest IB results for these schools, please refer to the table below, which lists their average scores for the most recent November 2022 cohort.

IB Results 2019-2023

Global Average Figures

Historical global average figures for IBDP results are documented in the table below.