International Baccalaureate Research Skills Program

While IBRSP is delivered primarily in biological and environmental sciences contexts, the skills you'll develop are transferrable across disciplines and will be immediately relevant to the IB Extended Essay. IBRSP is only available for Year 11 IB students. 

What to expect

• Live and breathe academia: understand how and why professional researchers engage in scholarship and learn about exciting research taking place at UQ.
• Gain research skills in academic literacy, written communication and statistical analyses of data (data summary, Student’s t-test, Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), Pearson’s correlation coefficient, Spearman’s rank test, chi-squared test, etc. performed using Microsoft Excel).
• Study with UQ researchers who are passionate about their subject – from leading scientists to teaching specialists, and current students at the start of their research careers, all eager to share their knowledge and enthusiasm with you.
• Find your tribe among other IB students across the state and discover how much fun it is to be around people who love research!

Day 1

• Ice-breaker
• Guest researcher activity 1
• Nuances of varied forms of scientific literature
• Development of research questions
• Guest researcher activity 2
• Data analysis part 1 (summative and comparative approaches)

Day 2

• Synthesizing persuasive and evidence-based argument (written communication)
• Guest researcher activity 3
• Data analysis part 2 (correlational approaches)
• Pep-talk and university advice

Cost and requirements

• The cost of IBRSP is $132 (GST inclusive), including a limited edition IBRSP t-shirt and stickers.
• IBRSP is a non-residential, non-catered academic program. It's held at UQ's St Lucia campus from 9:30am to 3:30pm. Visit UQ Accommodation for options if you and your parents are coming from outside the Brisbane region.
• You'll need to bring your own laptop to perform statistical analyses in Microsoft Excel (2013 or higher). Smart devices (especially iPads) are not compatible with the requirements of the data analysis workshops.

Eligibility

• You must be in Year 11 IB studies.
• Interstate and international applicants are welcome.

How to apply

• Complete and submit the online application form by Sunday 9 February 2025.
• You'll be asked about your motivation for applying for IBRSP.
• There are limited places available.
• We will send out offers by Tuesday 11 February 2025. If you receive an offer, you must accept by Friday 21 March 2025.

For more information

Email Dr Gurion Ang at gurion.ang@uq.edu.au.