IB Visual Arts Tutoring for Students in the UAE
Visual Arts is assessed on documented thinking, which is why capable artists sometimes score below students who make less impressive work.
- 3 examined components, weighted as shown below
- 6 syllabus areas mapped to your scheme of work
- Taught by a specialist in this subject, not a generalist
- 90-minute online lessons, scheduled in UAE time
How it is examined
The components, what each one is worth, and what it asks for. Planning revision without this in front of you is how students spend weeks on the part that carries the fewest marks.
| Component | Weight | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Comparative Study · Coursework | 20% | 10–15 pages (SL) / 10–15 pages (HL) |
| Process Portfolio · Coursework | 40% | 9–18 pages (SL) / 13–25 pages (HL) |
| Exhibition · Coursework | 40% | 4–7 works (SL) / 8–11 works (HL) |
What the syllabus covers
Unit by unit, in the awarding body’s own terms so you can match it against your school’s scheme of work.
Core and SL content
Comparative Study · Process Portfolio · Exhibition
Additional HL content
Extended Process Portfolio · Additional Exhibition Works · Advanced Art Theory
Where marks are actually lost
The comparative study is an academic piece: artworks analysed in cultural context, compared on formal and conceptual grounds, and connected to the student’s own practice. It is written work, marked as written work, and students who treat it as a gallery tour lose most of the criteria. Two-thirds of it is analysis rather than description.
The process portfolio is the component most misunderstood. It is evidence of experimentation, including what failed, with reflection on why — not a neat record of finished pieces. Students curate it retrospectively into a highlights reel and lose the marks that were sitting in the messy middle of the year. Photographing and annotating as you go is the whole technique.
The internal assessment
The IA is marked by your teacher against published criteria and moderated by the IB. We supervise it — we do not write it, because Visual Arts coursework a student cannot defend is worth less than a weaker piece they can.
Selecting works from different cultures
Selecting works from different cultures
Artistic analysis and comparison
Artistic analysis and comparison
Use of visual arts terminology
Use of visual arts terminology
Cultural context and influence analysis
Cultural context and influence analysis
Personal reflection
Personal reflection
Frequently asked questions
The questions UAE students and parents ask us most often about this program.
Related programs
Other preparation tracks students often combine with this one.
IB Diploma Tutoring
Subject-specialist tutoring for IB Diploma students, at Higher and Standard Level, covering taught content, internal assessments and the core. Delivered online and planned around your school’s deadlines.
IB Pricing
The Diploma is not one thing to buy. Six subjects, an extended essay, internal assessments and TOK each need something different, and they are priced separately here so you can buy only what you need.
How it works
Every student starts with a free consultation and ends with a plan that has a date on it. What happens in between depends on which exam you are sitting.
Tell us where Visual Arts is going wrong
Send a recent piece of marked work or a test paper with the marks on it. That shows us more in five minutes than a description of the problem does in an hour.