The IB World Religions SL syllabus covers nine religions: Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism, Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Taoism, Jainism and the Bahá'í Faith. However, students do not necessarily study all nine for assessment.
How the nine religions are organized
In Part 1: Introduction to world religions, the religions are divided into three sections. Each is studied through the three fundamental questions: What is the human condition? Where are we going? How do we get there?
| Paper 1 section | Religions |
|---|---|
| Section A | Hinduism, Buddhism and Sikhism |
| Section B | Judaism, Christianity and Islam |
| Section C | Taoism, Jainism and the Bahá'í Faith |
A school selects five religions for Part 1, including at least one from each section. Paper 1 contains one stimulus-based question for every religion, but students answer five questions, with at least one answer from each section.
Which religions can be studied in depth?
Part 2: In-depth studies includes only six of the nine religions. Students study two, selected from different sections.
| Section A | Section B |
|---|---|
| Hinduism, Buddhism or Sikhism | Judaism, Christianity or Islam |
Taoism, Jainism and the Bahá'í Faith are covered only in Part 1 and therefore appear only on Paper 1. They cannot be selected as the in-depth religions for Paper 2.
A common misconception is that every student must study all nine religions. The syllabus offers nine, but each course studies five for Part 1 and two of the six eligible religions for Part 2.
Exam technique
Before revising, confirm your school's selected five introductory religions and two in-depth religions. For Paper 1, organize knowledge around the three fundamental questions; for Paper 2, prepare detailed arguments using accurate terminology and examples contextualized by denomination, culture and geography.