About IB
Understanding an IB Education
Imagine a worldwide community of schools, educators and students with a shared mission to empower young people with the values, knowledge and skills to create a better and more peaceful world. This is the International Baccalaureate (IB). IB programmes aim to provide an education that enables students to make sense of the complexities of the world around them, as well as equipping them with the skills and dispositions needed for taking responsible action for the future. They provide an education that crosses disciplinary, cultural, national and geographical boundaries, and that champions critical engagement, stimulating ideas and meaningful relationships.
Understanding PWHS’s IB Programme
Plymouth Whitemarsh High School CP aims to develop well-rounded, empathetic, lifelong learners, who are passionate about exploring global and local community issues.
We are committed to supporting students’ personal growth by helping them to discover their unique career-related study and providing authentic experiences to develop and apply personal and professional skills, such as leadership, collaboration, and self-reflection.
The IB Career-related Programme (CP) at PWHS offers academic study and practical hands-on experience through an integrated curriculum, consisting of core IB study, taken alongside one of three career-related pathways; Business, Design Technology or Art. The CP prepares students for transition to higher education in a specific career pathway.
Application Process
- Review the philosophy and requirements of the PWHS International Baccalaureate (IB) Career-related Programme (CP) and make sure you understand its expectations. Read the programme’s documentation thoroughly. Discuss the program with your teachers, school counselor, and parents. You are welcome to schedule an appointment with Mrs. Duffy (rduffy@colonialsd.org) for further discussion.
- Complete and submit the complete application (via this website) between
June 1 and June 13, 2025 at 11:59PM.
The application includes four separate and required components that are all outlined in Application Materials:- An electronic registration in a Google Form
- Declaration of Understanding
- Personal Statements: Short Written Responses
- Recommendation Checklists in a Google Form. You will also be provided with an application checklist to confirm that you have successfully completed all components of the application; your application is not officially submitted until all components are complete.
- Once all applications are submitted and the deadline passes, students may be invited to an interview to share their interest and readiness to participate in the programme.
- Students will be notified of acceptance into the programme shortly after via school email.
- All accepted students will be invited to informational sessions to learn more about the programme.
Application Materials
All of the following application materials will be accessed and submitted on this website!
Remember, your application is not submitted until all components are complete.
- Electronic Registration (general information):Please complete the Google Form that will collect the following information: your name, your address, your cell number, your parents’ or guardians’ names, email addresses, and phone numbers and the names of the adults who have already agreed to submit recommendations on your behalf (see below), and email addresses. You should have all of this information available when you complete the Google Form.
- Declaration of Understanding (signatures): The following documents require you and your parents signature verifying that you understand the information pertaining to each component. Signatures will be electronic.
- CP Expectations and Requirements: Please complete the form that confirms that you’ve read through the PWHS’ International Baccalaureate Career-related Programme Description Guide and understand the expectations and the requirements of the programme.
- Academic Code of Integrity: Please read this carefully, sign it, and have a parent sign it.
- Permission to Release Data: The American office of the International Baccalaureate requires participating schools to provide demographic information of its students. This signature authorizes the release of the requested data.
- Permission to Inclusive Assessment Measures: This information and permission are necessary in order to request testing accommodations for students with special learning and assessment needs. Note that just because testing accommodations are requested, does not mean they will be approved. The IB has sole authority in this matter.
- Obligation to Complete IB Assessments: IB students are expected to complete all formal IB assessments. Students who fail to do so will reimburse the district for the examination fees paid on their behalf, their grade point averages will be recalculated without the IB weighted factor, and the IB designation will be removed from the transcript . The signatures on this policy acknowledge understanding of this requirement.
- Copyright License Request and Image/Voice Consent Form (optional):Often the IB and Colonial School District will feature students and their work in their publications, both printed or digitally. Signature of this document confirms your parent's permission that the IB and Colonial can use the student’s work and/or image in such publications.
- Personal Statement/Short Written Responses: Take time to answer these two questions in written form. Each response should be roughly one paragraph in length.
- Why you would like to be a PW IBCP student? Be sure to address the ways this programme will benefit you and what you will contribute to the programme.
- IB students take initiative to overcome obstacles. After exploring the programme as a whole, what component, area, course or expectation do you feel will be a challenge for you, and how do you plan to overcome that challenge?
- Recommendation Checklist: You are required to have 2 adults complete a recommendation checklist via a Google Form, one from a teacher and one from any other adult with whom you have worked (a coach, boss, co-worker, club advisor, school counselor, etc., but not a relative). You must indicate the contact information for your recommenders on the Electronic Registration Google Form (Part 1) and you must provide them the Google Form link. It is your responsibility to follow-up with your recommenders to ensure that they have completed the checklist by the application due date.
Applicant Checklist: Use the checklist to ensure that you are submitting a complete application. This is for your reference only. You will not need to submit this as part of your application.