International Baccalaureate - Eastside High School

The International Baccalaureate (IB) Program, a demanding college preparatory curriculum, focuses on the classical liberal arts and sciences. Founded in the 1960s as a common university entrance credential to serve a consortium of international schools, the program is available today in over 5,400 schools around the world.

Eastside’s program, one of the first in Florida, graduated its first class of 21 IB Diploma students in 1987, and has now turned out over 3,200 Diploma holders. In the year 2000, Eastside gave more IB examinations than any other school in North America. Almost 500 students come from all over Alachua County to Eastside for the IB magnet program. Eastside’s program is large and successful; it has served as a model for other schools in Florida and throughout the US.

Students who come to Eastside’s IB Program begin with a Pre-IB curriculum in grades nine and ten. The formal IB Program serves juniors and seniors. A typical IB student at Eastside completes four credits in Language A (English), four credits in Language B (French or Spanish), four or five credits in Individuals and Societies (social studies), four credits in Mathematics, and four or five credits in Experimental Sciences. In the IB Sixth Subject (elective) students explore Studio Art, Music, Theater Arts, Psychology, or additional sciences. Many students choose to take more than one Sixth Subject. All IB students take a course in Theory of Knowledge, complete independent research that results in an Extended Essay, and document Creative/Active/Service (CAS) experiences outside the classroom.