Theory of Knowledge
IB TOK essay prescribed titles: choosing and unpacking one
Written and cross-checked by IB Diploma graduates: Alexander (41), Alejandro (40), Martina (40), Victoria (38), Martin (35), Maria (34)
· Checked against official IB guidance · Editorial policy
How the titles work
The IB publishes six prescribed titles for each examination session, about six months before the deadline. You answer one, worded exactly as given, with its number on your essay. You cannot write your own title or edit one. Get your session's six titles from your TOK teacher — or see the May 2027 prescribed titles (1–6). This guide is about what to do with them, because the method does not change from session to session.
Choosing the right title
Before you commit, spend a day on the two or three titles that appeal to you and, for each, try to write down:
- • a one-sentence thesis — your actual position on the title
- • two areas of knowledge that respond to it differently
- • two specific real examples per area of knowledge, plus a counter-example
Choose the title where that page fills up fastest. The most interesting-sounding title is often the one where every AOK gives the same answer — which leaves you nothing to argue.
Unpacking a title, step by step
01 Identify the key terms
Circle every word that could be read more than one way — 'knowledge', 'certainty', 'evidence', 'the arts', 'a discipline'. Your definitions of these are the spine of the essay, and examiners reward a title that is genuinely interrogated rather than assumed.
02 Restate the title as a question
Most prescribed titles are already a claim or a question. Rewrite it in your own words to make sure you understand what is actually being asked. If you can't, you have found the term you need to define.
03 Take a position (your thesis)
A TOK essay argues. Decide what you think the answer is, in one sentence, before you pick examples. 'It depends' is only acceptable if you then say precisely what it depends on.
04 Choose two areas of knowledge
Pick two AOKs where the title behaves differently — that contrast is where the marks are. The natural sciences and history, or the arts and mathematics, usually give more to compare than two similar AOKs.
05 Develop knowledge questions
For each AOK, write the second-order question the title raises about how knowledge is produced or justified there. The essay's body paragraphs answer these, not the title directly.
06 Find real examples, then counter-examples
Each main point needs a specific, real example — a named study, event, work, or theorem — and then a case that pushes back. An essay with only supporting examples caps in the middle bands.
What the assessment instrument rewards
- • A clear, sustained argument that keeps returning to the exact title
- • Two areas of knowledge genuinely compared, not covered in turn
- • Specific, real examples used to do analytical work — not narrated
- • Explicit counter-arguments that are then answered
- • Awareness of your own perspective and its limits
Sources & verification
Primary-source references used to verify key assessment facts on this page. Last source check: September 22, 2026.
The IB issues six prescribed titles for each examination session. Always copy the exact wording and title number from the authoritative session materials supplied by your school or coordinator.
- IB — Theory of knowledgeOfficial overview confirming TOK is assessed through an exhibition and a 1,600-word essay.
- IB — TOK example essays and prescribed-title processOfficial page confirming students choose one title from six issued by the IB and that titles change each examination session.
- IB — TOK examiner instructions 2026Primary examiner instructions for the essay task and current assessment process.
Have a TOK essay draft on one of the six titles?
iBacalao scores it on the TOK assessment instrument, per title number, and shows what is keeping it out of the top band — 3 lifetime checks free.
Open the TOK grader →Common questions
Where do I get the TOK essay prescribed titles?
The IB releases six prescribed titles for each examination session, roughly six months before the submission deadline. Your TOK teacher distributes them through your school; they are not something you choose or write yourself. You must answer one of the six exactly as worded.
How many prescribed titles are there, and can I change the wording?
Six per session. You may not modify the title — reword it in your analysis, but the title on your essay must be one of the six, copied exactly, with its number.
Which prescribed title should I choose?
Not the one that sounds most interesting — the one where you can already think of two areas of knowledge that respond to it differently, and at least two specific real examples per side. Spend a day drafting a thesis for two or three titles before committing.
How long is the TOK essay and how is it marked?
Maximum 1,600 words, marked out of 10 against a single global assessment instrument, then converted to a letter. It is externally assessed and, with the Extended Essay, contributes up to 3 Diploma points.
What is the most common way TOK essays lose marks?
Describing examples instead of using them to answer a knowledge question, and never engaging with a counter-position. A strong essay keeps returning to the title and to the tension between its two areas of knowledge.
Stop reading about it
Upload your draft and get criterion-by-criterion feedback in minutes.