International Baccalaureate Exams (IB)
International Baccalaureate (IB) Credit Policy 2024-2025
The San Mateo County Community College District (SMCCCD) grants credit to students who attain satisfactory scores for completion of certain International Baccalaureate (IB) exams. The San Mateo County Community College District (SMCCCD) grants credit to students who attain scores of 4 or higher, toward its local associate degrees, CSU General Education (GE), and Intersegmental General Education Transfer Curriculum (IGETC) certification patterns.
Meet with a counselor for specific information regarding IB exam placement and credits awarded. Students intending to transfer to a four-year institution should consult a counselor or the individual university regarding its IB credit policy.
To receive credit, students must submit an official IB transcript to their SMCCD College. For information about obtaining a transcript, contact the International Baccalaureate.
The IB exam assesses student work and measures students’ academic, intercultural, and basic skills.
- Credit may be earned for the International Baccalaureate exams with scores of 4 or higher.
- A score of 5, 6, or 7 on Higher Level exams is required to grade credit for IGETC certification
If you took an IB exam and received a minimum score of 4 or higher in a subject, you can:
- Request your official IB Score Reports be sent to your SMCCCD college.
NOTE: If you have submitted your scores to another institution outside of our district, you will need to submit your scores again to SMCCCD. - Upon receipt of your official IB scores, course/unit equivalencies will be determined according to the SMCCCD IB Credit equivalency guide, and post coursework and units to your SMCCCD transcripts. Upon notification, meet with a counselor to determine if you wish to accept, decline, or appeal the application of the International Baccalaureate credit to your transcript.
The following chart outlines the application of credit for the International Baccalaureate (IB) toward each SMCCCD college’s coursework, associate degree general education requirements, California State University General Education-Breadth (CSU GE) Certification, and Intersegmental General Education Transfer Curriculum (IGETC) Certification.
If your SMCCCD college does not offer a course similar in content to an IB exam, the college will award credit in the general education area shown in the SMCCCD IB Equivalency Guide below. If an IB exam does not align with any general education area, the College may award elective credit.
Please note:
- Grades and Grade Points will not be assigned to IB Credit.
- The catalog year of the International Baccalaureate Credit Policy at the time in which the exam was taken, will be applied when determining credit earned.
- An acceptable IB score for IGETC equates to either 3-semester or 4-quarter units for certification purposes.
- Students who have earned credit from an IB exam should not take a comparable college course because transfer credit will not be granted for both.
- If you have any questions regarding Math and English placement or International Baccalaureate (IB) credit please contact your counselor.
- If you plan to transfer to another institution, please be aware that every college/university has its own policies about Credit for Prior Learning. What was accepted at SMCCCD may not be accepted at another institution. Please consult your intended transfer institution.
All units listed are semester units.
SMCCCD IB Credit Equivalency Guide
|
IB Examination HL |
SMCCCD Course Equivalent |
SMCCCD Associate Degree GE Area (3-semester units with a minimum score of 5, unless otherwise indicated) |
CSU Credit Units (A minimum score of 5, unless otherwise indicated) (Units not applied at SMCCCD) |
CSU GE Breadth Area (3-semester units with a minimum score of 5, unless otherwise indicated) |
IGETC Area (3-semester units with a minimum score of 5) |
UC Credit Units (Units not applied at SMCCCD) |
|
Biology |
N/A |
Skyline & Cañada: B2 and B3 (4 units) CSM: E5A (4 units) |
6 |
B2 |
5B |
5.3 |
|
Chemistry |
CHEM 192 (score: 5,6) CHEM 210 (score: 7) |
Skyline & Cañada: B1 and B3 CSM: E5A AA/AS Units: CHEM 210 (5 units), CHEM 192 (4 units) |
6 |
B1 |
5A |
5.3 |
|
Economics |
N/A |
Skyline & Cañada: D CSM: E5B |
6 |
D |
4 |
5.3 |
|
Geography |
GEOG 100 |
Skyline & Cañada: D CSM: E5B |
6 |
D |
4 |
5.3 |
|
History (any Region) |
N/A |
Skyline & Cañada: C2 or D CSM: E5B or E5C |
6 |
C2 or D |
3B or 4 |
5.3 |
|
Language A Literature (Any Language) |
N/A |
Skyline & Cañada: C2 (Minimum Score of 4) CSM: E5C (Minimum Score of 4) |
6 (Minimum Score of 4) |
C2 (Minimum Score of 4) |
3B (1) |
5.3 |
|
Language A Language and Literature (Any Language) |
N/A |
Skyline & Cañada: C2 (Minimum Score of 4) CSM: E5C (Minimum Score of 4) |
6 (Minimum Score of 4) |
C2 (Minimum Score of 4) |
3B (1) |
5.3 |
|
Language B (any language) |
N/A |
N/A |
6 (Minimum Score 4) |
N/A |
6A |
5.3 |
|
Mathematics |
MATH 251 |
Skyline & Cañada: A3 (Minimum Score of 4) Meets Math Competency Requirement (5 units) CSM: C1 and E2C (Minimum Score of 4) (5 units) |
6 (Minimum score 4) |
B4 (Minimum Score of 4) |
2 |
5.3 |
|
Physics |
PHYS 210, PHYS 220 |
Skyline & Cañada: B1 (4 units) CSM: E5A (4 units) |
6 |
B1 |
5A |
5.3 |
|
Psychology |
PSYC 100 |
Skyline & Cañada: D CSM: E5C |
3 |
D |
4 |
5.3 |
|
Theatre |
N/A |
Skyline & Cañada: C1 (Minimum Score of 4) CSM: E5C (Minimum Score of 4) |
6 (Minimum score 4) |
C1 (Minimum Score of 4) |
3A |
5.3 |
(1) Students earn IGETC area 3B and 6A if they pass IB Language A Literature or Language A Language and Literature with any language except English.
