What is the difference between an internal school deadline and an IB coursework deadline?

An internal school deadline is set by the school so teachers and coordinators have time to mark, standardize, authenticate, check, and upload work. The IB-facing deadline is the date by which the school must complete the required submission process. Students should normally work to the earlier school deadline because they do not independently control the school's administrative submission. Coordinators should label draft deadlines, final student deadlines, marking deadlines, and upload deadlines separately. The current session's Diploma Programme Assessment procedures should be used to confirm the official requirements rather than dates copied from an earlier cohort.

Can a coordinator replace a coursework file after it has been submitted?

A coordinator should not assume that submitted work can be replaced. The available action depends on the component, current system status, timing, and applicable IB procedure. This is why the final version, candidate identity, subject, level, and component must be checked before authentication and submission. If the wrong file has been submitted, the coordinator should preserve the evidence and contact the appropriate IB support channel immediately. Continuing to edit or repeatedly upload files without guidance can make the record harder to resolve.

Who is responsible for authenticating an IB internal assessment?

Authentication is a school responsibility involving both the student and the relevant teacher, with the coordinator overseeing completion of the required process. The teacher's judgment should be based on observing the work develop, discussing it with the student, and checking whether its quality and content are consistent with the student's demonstrated abilities. A plagiarism or AI-detection score cannot establish authorship by itself. Students must identify borrowed ideas and acknowledge any AI-generated material incorporated into the work. If the teacher is not satisfied that the work is authentic, the concern must be addressed under school policy and current IB procedures before submission.

How can coordinators prevent IA files from being uploaded to the wrong candidate?

Use a master register that links each candidate identifier to the registered subject, level, component, final filename, and required submission status. Store definitive files in a controlled folder rather than accepting attachments from several email threads during upload week. The uploader should match the file against the live IB record, not merely against a teacher-created class list. A second member of staff should independently verify the candidate and component before final submission. After submission, review the dashboard for duplicates, missing candidates, and unexpected filenames or file sizes.

What evidence should a coordinator retain after coursework submission?

The school should retain secure copies of submitted work and the administrative records needed to demonstrate what was submitted. Useful evidence includes the final file, mark sheet, authentication record, checklist, uploader and checker initials, submission status, and any system confirmation. Screenshots and error messages should also be retained when a technical problem occurs, although they do not replace completion of the official process. Access to these records should be restricted because they contain assessment and student information. Storage and deletion arrangements must follow IB requirements, school policy, and applicable data-protection law.

What should a coordinator do if coursework is missing close to the deadline?

First establish exactly what is missing: the student file, teacher marks, criterion information, authentication, supporting material, or the final submission action. Contact the responsible teacher and student immediately, record the issue, and preserve the most complete authentic version available. Do not invent a mark, submit another student's file, or authenticate work that the teacher cannot verify. Consult the current Diploma Programme Assessment procedures because consequences and available actions depend on the component and circumstances. If the school cannot resolve the issue within the prescribed process, contact the appropriate IB support channel promptly and keep a written record of the advice received.

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IB Coursework Submission Mistakes Coordinators Must Catch

IB Coordinators Assessment Administration IB IA

• 4 Oct 2026•10

IB Coursework Submission Mistakes Coordinators Must Catch

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IB Coursework Submission Mistakes Coordinators… | RevisionDojo

Back to all posts

IB Coursework Submission Mistakes Coordinators Must Catch

IB Coordinators Assessment Administration IB IA

• 4 Oct 2026•10

IB coursework submission mistakes usually result from small administrative failures: an outdated candidate list, the wrong file attached to a component, unverified marks, incomplete authentication, or work uploaded but not formally submitted.

Diploma Programme coordinators should treat submission as a controlled process rather than a final-day task. The safest approach is to use the current session's Diploma Programme Assessment procedures, set earlier internal deadlines, maintain one master tracker, and require an independent check before final submission.

Why coursework administration needs formal controls

The IB uses both internal assessment and external assessment. For most internally assessed components, teachers award marks and the IB moderates selected samples. Other coursework, including the extended essay and TOK essay, is submitted for external assessment.

Each category has different administrative requirements. Depending on the component, a school may need to enter marks, record criterion-level information, upload a sample, attach supporting evidence, authenticate work, or submit every candidate's work. Coordinators should never assume that one subject's procedure applies to another.

The authorities are the current assessment procedures, relevant subject guide, IBIS requirements, and eCoursework guidance. Previous-session checklists may support planning, but they cannot replace current IB documentation.

Common IB coursework submission mistakes

Recurring mistake	Why it matters	Preventive control
Using an old deadline	Dates and requirements may change between sessions	Build the calendar from current-session documentation
Confusing school and IB deadlines	Staff lose time for marking, standardization, authentication, and uploading	Label every internal and IB-facing deadline clearly
Incorrect candidate, subject, or level	Work may be associated with the wrong registration	Reconcile submissions against live IBIS data
Wrong or unfinished file	A draft or another student's work may reach the examiner	Use a locked final-file folder and two-person check
Uploading without submitting	Work may remain pending	Verify final platform status and retain confirmation
Incorrect marks or samples	The moderation record becomes incomplete or inaccurate	Compare teacher records with IBIS entries and selected samples
Incomplete authentication	The school cannot confirm authorship properly	Resolve authenticity before uploading
Unusable media or PDF	Required evidence may be inaccessible	Open and test every final file

Deadline and workflow errors

One final deadline does not provide enough control. Schools need separate milestones for student submission, teacher marking, departmental standardization, authentication, and coordinator upload. This creates time to correct IA upload errors before the IB-facing deadline.

The IB holds schools responsible for submitting work and required information by the applicable date. Earlier school deadlines are therefore administrative safeguards, not alternative IB deadlines. RevisionDojo's guide to school and IB-facing IA deadlines can help coordinators explain this distinction to students and families.

A workflow dependent on one teacher, computer, or afternoon is fragile. Name a deputy, confirm staff access before submission week, store final files securely, and avoid scheduling the final upload on the external deadline. If a system problem occurs, preserve screenshots, timestamps, error messages, and correspondence, then follow current IB support procedures promptly.

Candidate and component matching errors

Valid work can still be submitted against the wrong student, subject, level, or component. Similar filenames, level changes, amended registrations, and inconsistent department folders increase this risk.

A master register should record:

candidate identifier;
registered subject, level, and component;
required mark or sample status;
final filename and authentication status;
uploader and checker initials;
final submission status.

Use a consistent local filename convention while following current IB guidance on anonymity within the work. Reconcile the tracker against the live IB system, not only department spreadsheets. RevisionDojo's guide to when the IB collects IA work explains why teacher marking, sample selection, and coordinator submission are separate stages.

File and upload errors

Files called final, final2, and final_revised invite mistakes. After a teacher confirms the definitive version, place it in a read-only submission folder. Any replacement should require documented authorization.

Conversion can alter equations, fonts, images, pagination, or annotations. Audio and video may open but contain no sound, the wrong recording, or an incomplete performance. Staff should open files from the actual submission folder, inspect key pages and references, and test media using a documented protocol. Current file-type and size restrictions must come from live eCoursework instructions because they can vary by component.

An uploaded file is not necessarily submitted. It may remain pending, incomplete, unauthenticated, or ready to submit. The tracker should distinguish file received, uploaded, checked, authenticated, and submitted to the IB, with confirmation evidence retained after the final action.

Marks, samples, and supporting information

A correct file does not compensate for incorrect marks. Teachers should provide signed-off mark records, and another staff member should compare them with IBIS entries. Checks should cover totals, criterion marks where required, level, component, comments, and supporting forms.

Coordinators must upload the samples selected by the system, not the students a department expected to be sampled. The complete cohort's work should remain securely stored as required. The current General regulations: Diploma Programme state that submitted internally and externally assessed work must be stored until the session closes, 15 September for a May session and 15 March for the preceding November session.

Authentication and academic integrity

Authentication must reflect professional judgment, not a similarity score. Teachers should observe the work's development, discuss it with the student, and review drafts, research records, citations, data, version history, and unexpected changes in style or quality.

If authorship remains doubtful, the school must resolve the concern under its academic integrity policy and current IB procedures before submission. AI-generated text, images, or graphs are not automatically the student's own work, so incorporated AI material must be acknowledged and referenced. Staff should consult the IB academic integrity policy, the IB's AI guidance, and RevisionDojo's academic integrity guide.

A coordinator's final submission protocol

Use a two-person check for every candidate or batch. One person uploads; another verifies the candidate, registration, component, filename, mark, authentication, and final status.

The final protocol should include:

freeze the current candidate and component list;
reconcile registrations, subjects, and levels in IBIS;
confirm marks and criterion information;
verify the selected sample or full-cohort requirement;
open documents and test media files;
resolve authentication and integrity concerns;
upload from the controlled final-file folder;
verify submitted status and save confirmation;
review the dashboard before the internal cutoff.

Finish with an exception review. Search specifically for missing candidates, blank marks, pending statuses, duplicate filenames, unexpected file sizes, and components showing no submission.

Conclusion

The most serious IB coursework submission mistakes are preventable when coordinators separate deadlines, control final files, reconcile registrations and marks, verify authentication, and distinguish uploading from completed submission. Current IB documentation must remain the authority, supported by a school calendar, master tracker, contingency plan, and independent check.

RevisionDojo can help students understand IA citation requirements and review drafts through the IB Coursework Grader. Coursework Review and Jojo AI can support clearer work before the school's lock date, but they do not replace teacher authentication or official coordinator checks.

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