A coordinator can assess a complete retake request much faster than a chain of partial messages. This checklist separates the information needed to search for a host school from the final documents that the accepting school may request.
Prepare your legal identity, candidate history, latest results, exact subject names and levels, target session, location and university deadline before contacting schools. Then confirm curriculum, component treatment, total cost, school cutoff and written proof of the official entry.
Use the legal name shown on your identity document and previous IB record. Include date of birth, previous school, candidate number and session number when available.
A candidate number helps match records, but losing it does not make a search impossible. Contact the previous coordinator for the record details rather than guessing.
Attach or summarize the latest official results. State the current grade, target grade and why the change matters: Diploma condition, university offer, subject prerequisite or another defined threshold.
If an EUR is pending, say so and include the school deadline or expected update. A host school needs to know whether the subject list could change.
Write the official subject name and level for every entry. 'Maths' or 'science' is not enough because AA, AI, Biology, Chemistry and Physics have different entries and timetables.
For Group 1 and Group 2, state the language and course clearly. For subjects outside Groups 1 and 2, IBretake currently handles examination requests in English only.
If the subject curriculum changed after your original sitting, ask which syllabus applies. The IB notes that candidates may need to follow the new curriculum when a subject has been revised.
List any IA, oral, portfolio, EE or other non-examination question separately. Do not phrase an unconfirmed hope as a requirement; ask what can be carried forward, revised or submitted under the current rules.
Tell the coordinator where you are based and which countries or cities you can realistically reach. Include visa, school-day, work or accessibility constraints early.
Do not describe a worldwide search if you cannot travel worldwide. A smaller, truthful range produces more useful responses and avoids wasting school capacity.
There are three different clocks: the IB examination calendar, each school's internal registration cutoff and the university's evidence deadline. The school cutoff is the operational date that decides whether it can still enter you.
Ask who will send the final confirmation, where exam instructions will arrive and how quickly you must answer. Keep one email thread and reply with complete documents.
For IBretake, the student price is EUR 150 registration, EUR 600 for the first exam, EUR 570 for the second and EUR 540 for each exam from the third onward, converted to the selected checkout currency. These prices apply to the current search request, not earlier paid bookings.
Before transferring money, verify the beneficiary, IBAN for the selected currency, SWIFT/BIC, unique payment reference and total displayed in checkout. Keep the bank confirmation.
A promising email or a paid search is not itself the official IB entry. The accepting school completes registration and should confirm the final subject list, level, session, exam location and instructions.
Read the confirmation line by line. Correct spelling and subject details immediately, store the contact information and put every paper date in a calendar.
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