Main differences between the Diploma Programme and the Finnish National lukio Programme

  1. The IB Diploma Programme lasts for two years.
  2. In the IB DP, each course is only offered once per academic year.
  3. The grading scale is from 1 (lowest) to 7 (best).
  4. In addition to the final examinations in May, the students also need to complete various research papers in each of their subjects and complete the Core elements in order to pass the diploma.
  5. The DP Programme cannot be studied independently.
    • Once a student has more than three absences per course, they need to contact the subject teacher to discuss whether there is something they need to do to compensate for the missed lessons.
    • If the student is absent for 1/3 of the course or if absences continue for several terms, the school has the right to remove the student from the course if necessary. This means that the student will need to retake the year.
    • Because of the need to participate in lessons, the head principal will not allow leave of absences that last for over 5 week days.