The entire IB Extended Essay (EE) process seems so terribly daunting, and the idea of having to meet with a complete stranger once every few months to go over the biggest essay you’ve probably ever written in your IB years, sounds even more stressful. I survived the IB EE and did well in the end, but that doesn’t mean I don’t wish someone explained to me a little bit more about the process and how to make the most out of the meetings with my IB Extended Essay advisor.
At first, I was so scared of letting my IB EE advisor down and embarrassing myself that I ended up just keeping my head down and doing my IB essay, without actually asking for his advice along the way. This resulted in a full EE first draft that, simply put, wasn’t any good! After hearing my IB advisor’s feedback on my objectively terrible first draft, I was crushed. And not only was I crushed, but I was even more embarrassed that I didn’t feel confident enough to just be honest with him before and ask him all the questions I had.
From that point on, I began to trust him; I listened to his advice, and came to our meetings regularly with questions ready. Instead of avoiding him at all costs, I would actually seek him out when I needed help.
All this to preface that I have some important tips you should keep in mind to actually make the most out of your IB Extended Essay advisor meetings:
- Gather all your dates. If you already know when your first meeting will be, when your first draft is due and all other relevant deadlines, put them into your calendar immediately. Then, break those end deadlines down into smaller tasks. Your advisor will be impressed if you are aware of your timeline and have set clear goals for yourself.
- Understand that everyone’s IB EE experience will be vastly different. Some schools are much stricter than others such as having very rigid first draft deadlines and your IB advisor may be very formal. Meanwhile other schools are more relaxed and prefer to have much more discussion between advisor and advisee. Your IB EE advisor has the freedom to provide guidance in their own unique ways, so be ready to adapt and learn a lot.
- Do not focus on what your friends’ IB advisors say or do. If your friend is doing an IB DP English EE, while you are doing an IB DP Biology EE, do not compare their advice. Similarly, if someone’s IB advisor is more relaxed and less strict about deadlines than yours, do not try to get your advisor to accommodate others’ deadlines (there is no such thing as a one-size-fits-all structure!).
- Respect your IB advisor’s time. It does neither you nor your IB advisor any favours if you show up to a meeting unprepared. Realistically they can tell if you are faking your way through a meeting and making things up on the spot. If you genuinely are unprepared, respectfully reschedule (with at least a day’s notice).
- Be open with your IB EE advisor. If you are worried about a specific part of your IB essay or part of the IB EE process, tell them that from the get go. They are your advisor, allow them to advise you. Besides, once you share your problem with someone else, it’s never as bad as it is in your head.
- You are not going to embarrass yourself by asking questions, they are used to it! It is your first time writing a long research paper, so your advisor won’t expect you to be perfect at it. If anything, having questions and areas of concern ready to discuss with your advisor means your meetings will be richer, more fruitful, and inspiring. To add, you’re more likely to learn a lot from your advisor this way.
- Your school may only allocate a certain number of ‘official’ meetings you are supposed to have with your IB advisor, but if you need more, that is perfectly fine! Speak to your advisor about your progress, and if you feel you need some more meetings, check with them and their schedule and you can certainly have some extra time to consult them.
- Do not pester your advisor to read another draft after they have read your first draft. It is not fair to ask them to do something they are not allowed to do according to the IBO, so don’t put them in that position. Once again, respecting your advisor is key. They are helping you with this huge project, so don’t make their job harder than it needs to be.
- After your first draft, ask your advisor about specific segments of your IB essay. Since your advisor can’t read another full draft again, you can definitely show them or ask them about specific segments. You will get a lot out of this and it will make you feel less stressed about submitting your final essay, especially if a lot of changes were made between your first and final draft (like mine was).
And those were all my tips! I truly believe that cultivating a good advisor-advisee relationship is key to succeeding at your IB Extended Essay, and I’m certain you will get there too if you follow these tips.