IB Physics

IB Physics can be taken at either Standard or Higher Level. Higher Level Physics students learn all of the content and skills expected at Standard Level, as well as additional HL-only topics. Topics examined at Standard Level include Mechanics, Thermal Physics, Waves and Oscillations, and more. Higher Level Students study additional topics, including Wave Phenomena, Fields, Electromagnetic Induction, and Quantum and Nuclear Physics. Both Standard and Higher Level Physics students also choose one of four optional topics, known as the Options, to study. These Options include Relativity, Engineering Physics, Optics, and Astrophysics.

Finally, both Standard Level and Higher Level students complete the internally assessed Independent Investigation, a report on an independently selected, designed, and analyzed experiment of their choice.

Starting with the May 2025 cohort, all students in IB Physics will undertake their IB Physics studies under a new syllabus and curriculum. On the new syllabus, both SL and HL students will student similar but not identical content with a new curricular structure, including material organized into five Themes, rather than Topics. Additionally, there will be no Option, although understandings and skills from the previous Options have been moved into the main syllabus. Paper 3 has been eliminated, and Paper 1 will contain a new section of data-based questions similar to Section A of the old Paper 3.

To succeed in IB Physics, it will be important for students to develop excellent study habits and engage in systematic practice of the questions and concepts they will be expected to answer and apply in their examinations. This is where Revision Village comes in - equipping each student with exactly the right materials to improve their understanding and scores on the IB Physics examinations. Students can review important concepts with the Key Concepts videos, ensuring their grasp of the underlying material is solid, and use the Popular Quizzes for a brief, concentrated study session prior to an in-class assessment. They can then move to revising using the questions and problems available in the Questionbank, which contains IB-style questions, arranged by topic and sorted by difficulty, accompanied by markschemes and video solutions. Near the end of the course, students can use the Revision Ladder to increase their skills across the entire syllabus, step-by-step, and full-length Mock Exams to ensure that they are 100% prepared to earn a 7 on the IB Physics exams.