Master concepts and the IA in IB Physics SL/HL with 1:1 lessons
One-on-one IB Physics (SL / HL) tutoring programme. In a free initial consultation we assess your level and agree the plan and the exact price together. Parents and students are both welcome to reach out.
What is the IB Physics (SL / HL) exam?
IB Physics is a subject in the experimental sciences group of the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme, offered at Standard Level (SL) and Higher Level (HL). The course covers a broad range of topics from mechanics to quantum physics through both conceptual understanding and laboratory work. SL and HL share the same core topics; HL treats them in greater depth and extends them with additional content.
Diploma candidates choose at least one subject from the experimental sciences group, and for many students that subject is physics. Students planning an engineering, physics or technology degree usually choose HL. A strong physics grade is concrete evidence of quantitative and analytical thinking on an application file.
Why prepare for IB Physics (SL / HL) with Studrise?
Exam-focused expert tutors
Every lesson is taught by expert tutors who know the IB Physics (SL / HL) format inside out and focus on exam strategy.
A plan built around you
After your level assessment, we build a personal roadmap around your strengths and weak spots.
Flexible 1:1 schedule
Lessons run online and one-on-one on days and times that suit you — no clashes with school.
A clear start
It starts with a free initial consultation: level, plan and price are settled before the programme begins.
How it works
Free initial consultation
A short call and assessment to clarify your current level, your goal and your exam date.
Personal roadmap
We build a topic-by-topic weekly study plan and match you with the right tutor.
Reach your goal with 1:1 lessons
Start one-on-one lessons with your tutor and track progress with regular practice tests.
IB Physics (SL / HL) exam format
IB Physics assessment is made up of external exam papers and an Internal Assessment:
Paper 1
Multiple-choice questions and data/graph analysis · different length at SL and HL
Paper 2
Short and extended-response questions · different length and weighting at SL and HL
Data booklet
A booklet of equations and constants is provided in both papers · calculator allowed
Internal Assessment
Individual experimental investigation report · about 20% of the total grade
IB Physics (SL / HL) topics
The topic areas on the exam and their weight. Lessons don't follow this order — we start from the area that will move your score the most.
A — Space, time and motion
Kinematics, forces, work–energy, momentum, rigid-body rotation; HL: relativity
- Kinematics with vectors and projectiles
- Newton's laws, friction, fluid resistance
- Work, energy, power and efficiency
- Momentum, impulse, collisions
- HL: rigid-body rotation, Galilean and special relativity
B — The particulate nature of matter
Heat, gases, thermodynamics, current
- Temperature, specific heat, changes of state
- Heat transfer and black-body radiation
- Gas laws and the kinetic model
- HL: laws of thermodynamics, heat engines, entropy
- Current, resistance, circuits, emf and internal resistance
C — Wave behaviour
Oscillations, waves, interference, Doppler
- Simple harmonic motion; HL: energy–time relations
- Wave properties, reflection, refraction, polarisation
- Interference, diffraction, double and multiple slits
- Standing waves and resonance
- The Doppler effect
D — Fields · E — Nuclear and quantum
Gravity, electric, magnetic, induction; atom, radioactivity, fission–fusion
- Gravitational and electric fields, potential; HL: field–potential derivative relation
- Magnetic force on moving charges and wires
- HL: electromagnetic induction, Faraday and Lenz
- Atomic models, energy levels, radioactive decay, half-life
- Fission, fusion, stars; HL: quantum physics (photoelectric effect, de Broglie)
IB Physics (SL / HL) question types and strategy
Each question type has its own approach. In lessons we work on these strategies alongside the content.
Paper 1A and 1B — multiple choice + data
Paper 1A: SL 30 / HL 40 multiple choice. Paper 1B: data-based questions on experimental data. Together SL 90 min, HL 120 min; the physics data booklet and a calculator are allowed.
About 1.5 minutes a question in 1A; eliminate options by magnitude. In 1B, uncertainties, error bars and the physical meaning of a slope earn points; check units and significant figures in every answer.
Paper 2 — structured long-answer questions
SL 90 min / 50 marks, HL 150 min / 90 marks. Short-answer and extended structured questions mixing calculation, explanation, evaluation and experimental design.
Answer to the command term: "state" is a word, "explain" is cause and effect, "evaluate" is strengths and weaknesses. About 1.5 minutes per mark; read each question's mark allocation and size the answer to it.
Internal Assessment — the scientific investigation (20%)
One investigation report (about 3,000 words) on the student's own research question. Four criteria: research design, data analysis, conclusion, evaluation; six marks each, 24 in total.
Phrase the research question with independent and dependent variables and a measurable range; at least five data points with repeats. In the evaluation list errors with their effect and a fix. Finishing the IA by the end of year 1 leaves year 2 for the exams.
Scoring and target scores
IB Physics is graded on a 1–7 scale, where 7 is the highest. The subject grade combines the external exam papers with the lab-based Internal Assessment. Grades from six subjects, plus extra points from Theory of Knowledge and the Extended Essay, make up the total diploma score out of 45. A 6 or 7 is considered strong, and engineering and physics programs often look for a 6 or above in HL physics.
IB Physics is taught across the two-year Diploma Programme, and exams are held twice a year, in the May and November sessions. Because topics build on one another, steady and continuous work is the most effective approach. One-on-one lessons are especially useful for clarifying abstract concepts, developing problem-solving technique and planning the Internal Assessment from experiment design through to the report. Practising past papers before the exam builds both speed and accuracy.
What we cover in IB Physics (SL / HL) lessons
Mechanics and energy
Thermodynamics and waves
Electricity and magnetism
Atomic, nuclear and quantum physics
Internal Assessment (IA) experiment design
Paper 1 and 2 exam strategies
What sets the price of IB Physics (SL / HL) tutoring?
There is no single list price; the fee depends on the programme. You get a clear quote in the consultation — nothing is added later.
Lessons per week
One, two or three lessons a week — set by the time until the exam and the score gap.
Total duration and package
Lessons are priced as a package; longer programmes lower the per-lesson cost.
Scope
One section (say, Math only) or the whole exam? A narrower scope means a shorter programme.
Tutor and level
The tutor you're matched with and your starting level shape the plan, and therefore the fee.
Adding coaching?
Coaching and application counselling is an optional, separately priced programme.
Every lesson you pay for is 1:1
No crowded classroom, no idle hours. Keep that in mind when comparing with group-course prices.
In the free initial consultation we assess your level, draw up the plan and give you the exact price. No surprises.
The new IB Physics (2025): themes, papers and SL/HL
Options are gone and five themes arrived; Paper 3 was dropped and a data-based Paper 1B added.
The new IB Physics syllabus was first examined in May 2025. Content is grouped into five themes: A space, time and motion; B the particulate nature of matter; C wave behaviour; D fields; E nuclear and quantum physics. The old option topics (relativity, engineering physics, astrophysics) were either folded into the themes or became HL additional content.
| Component | SL | HL | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paper 1A multiple choice + 1B data-based | 90 min · 45 marks | 120 min · 60 marks | 36% |
| Paper 2 short and extended structured | 90 min · 50 marks | 150 min · 90 marks | 44% |
| IA scientific investigation | 24 marks | 24 marks | 20% |
A calculator and the data booklet are allowed in every paper. Paper 1B asks uncertainty, graph and conclusion questions on an experiment's data, replacing the experimental part of the old Paper 3. In recent years 10–12% of HL and 7–9% of SL candidates scored a 7.
- Who should take HL: engineering, physics, astronomy and computer-engineering applicants; UK engineering programmes require Physics HL plus Maths AA HL.
- SL suits: medicine (some schools want chemistry/biology rather than physics), architecture, economics; social-science applicants completing the science group.
- For Turkish students: overlap with school physics is high (mechanics, electricity, waves); the difference is writing to command terms, uncertainty calculations and the IA.
For the other sciences see IB Chemistry and IB Biology.
A two-year IB Physics support plan
Themes in step with school, the IA in year 1, year 2 for past papers.
- Year 1, September–January: Themes A and B. Mechanics and heat; command-term drills (state/describe/explain/evaluate) and one Paper 2 question every lesson. Uncertainty and significant-figure rules from the first month.
- Year 1, February–June: Theme C + IA. Waves; IA research question in February, data collection March–April, report finished in June. Simulation and home-experiment options for students without a school lab.
- Year 2, September–December: Themes D and E, HL additional content. Fields, induction, nuclear and quantum; relativity and thermodynamics at HL. One full set before the school mocks.
- Year 2, January–April: one timed paper a week (1A+1B and 2 alternating), self-assessment with the markscheme, the data booklet learned page by page, error log.
- May: exam week; only error-log review between papers.
One or two lessons a week is enough; for exam-only support, a four-month past-paper programme from January is a realistic route to one band higher.
Round out your IB Physics (SL / HL) prep with coaching
Tutoring teaches the material; coaching manages the process. Your Studrise coach brings your study routine, goals and application timeline into one plan alongside your IB Physics (SL / HL) lessons — so what you learn in class turns into results.
Weekly plan & check-ins
A study plan with regular progress check-ins.
Data-driven strategy
Targets and plans updated from practice-test results.
Motivation & test anxiety
Support with time management, motivation and exam nerves.
Aligned with applications
Planning built around your university and program goals.
ADD-ON PROGRAMME
How do I get started?
Coaching is a separately priced programme alongside your lessons. In the initial consultation we agree its scope and price and build a coaching plan that fits around your lesson schedule.
Initial consultation is free
Our tutors
SAT, IELTS, AP, IB and more — you'll work with experienced, exam-focused tutors in every subject.
Addison Bunch
English Teacher
10+ years of experience
Burçak Gökmen
Biology Teacher
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Buğra Gökmen
Computer Science Teacher
7+ years of experience
Ela Pehlivanoğlu
Chemistry Teacher
10+ years of experience
Gözde Top
History Teacher
6+ years of experience
Lara Deniz Alper
Math & Economics Teacher
7+ years of experience
Mesut Mızrak
Physics Teacher
26+ years of experience
Şule Çağlın
Physics Teacher
7+ years of experience
Frequently asked questions
Start working toward your IB Physics (SL / HL) goal today
Fill in the form; in a free initial consultation we settle your level, programme and exact price together. No crowded classroom, no idle hours: every lesson you pay for is one-on-one.