Extended essay

What counts as a Global Politics EE

In the Diploma Programme, a political issue is defined as:

Any question that deals with how power is distributed and how it operates within social organization, and how people think about, and engage in, their communities and the wider world on matters that affect their lives.

That is a wide door. The work is narrowing your initial idea into a concise question you can actually research inside 4,000 words.

Essays may focus on a local issue, a global one, or any level in between — and sometimes the most interesting move is to investigate how the same issue unfolds at different levels. Research at global level benefits from the availability of secondary data; local-level questions are often better served by primary methods.

Beyond levels of analysis, a theoretical foundation or the perspective of a particular group will often be what turns a vague topic into a focused research question.

Research method

Choosing a method is not a formality at the front of the essay. It is the decision that makes the essay arguable: it settles what would count as evidence, and therefore what your conclusion is allowed to claim.

The six required elements

1 · Title page. Three things only:

• the research question
• Subject: Global Politics
• the final word count

A separate essay title is not required alongside the research question. Your name and your school appear nowhere on the title page or anywhere else in the essay.

2 · Contents page. Give a reasonable amount of detail for each section, and number every page.

3 · Introduction. It establishes the political issue, explains its significance, states the research question, identifies the main concepts or theoretical framework, and briefly explains the approach taken in the essay. Write it last, once the body is finished and you know what you actually argued.

4 · Body. Research, discussion, analysis, evaluation, broken into sub-sections that appear in the contents.

5 · Conclusion. It must relate to the research question you posed.

6 · References and bibliography. Errors, omissions and incomplete citations raise the essay as an exception and it is investigated as suspected academic malpractice. Never leave referencing to the end.

Structure and structural conventions — Criterion A

Presentation is no longer a separate criterion. These conventions have not stopped mattering; they are now assessed as part of criterion A.

• Use a clear introduction, body and conclusion.
• Organise sections so that each one contributes to answering the research question.
• Use page numbers and a readable 12-point font.
• Use one consistent citation and referencing style.
• Number and label tables and figures clearly.
• Refer to every table or figure in the discussion.
• Use appendices only when essential — examiners are not required to read them.
• Stay within the 4,000-word limit.
• An abstract is not required.

How the essay is marked

Criterion	Focus	Marks
A	Framework for the essay: research question, methods and structure	6
B	Knowledge and understanding	6
C	Analysis and line of argument	6
D	Discussion and evaluation	8
E	Reflection	4
Total		30

Planning the 4,000 words

The following is only one possible way to plan 4,000 words. Your structure and allocation should be determined by your research question and argument.

Start with a bullet-point plan as sub-headings, with a provisional word count for each.

Section	Words
Introduction — research question, framework and method	300
Argument section 1 — the claim, then the evidence that carries it	850
Argument sections 2–4 — the same again	850 each
Conclusion — back to the research question and what the argument settled	300

They are argument sections, not content sections. If a section could be titled with a topic rather than a claim, it is probably a summary, and summaries are where criteria C and D quietly lose their fourteen marks.

Then write section by section. Do not spend long on the introduction: you will rewrite it once the body exists.

Guiding questions for the final reflection

You will attend three compulsory reflection sessions, but you will submit one final reflective statement of no more than 500 words, after the final reflection session. Criterion E is worth 4 marks.

A strong reflection explains:

• how and why your research question developed or changed
• the important decisions you made about scope, method and sources
• the difficulties you faced, and how you responded
• what you learned about research, argument and evaluation
• how your thinking or perspective changed
• what you would do differently next time
• which skills you can transfer to future academic work

Exemplar essays

Strong Global Politics essays from previous cohorts are available on request from your supervisor rather than published here.

That is deliberate, and it is the standard this site teaches. These are students' own copyrighted work; publishing them permanently on the open web needs their informed consent, and a publicly indexed essay can rebound on the student who wrote it if a later candidate copies it. Ask, and you will get them.

This guidance follows the extended essay guide for first assessment 2027. It is independently prepared and is not an official IB publication.