IB Economics SL & HLTopic 5 — Exam Skills and AssessmentPaper 2Exam technique~8 min read
What Paper 2 Asks For
Paper 2 gives you a text, some data and a set of questions built on top of them. The economics is the same economics you already know. What changes is that every answer has to be tied back to the material in front of you — and the single biggest reason students lose marks here is running out of time before the part that matters most.
📚 What you need to know
Two questions are printed. You choose one and answer all of its subparts.
Each question is split into seven subparts, (a) to (g), worth 40 marks altogether.
Subparts (a) to (f) are short: definitions, calculations, diagrams and short explanations.
Part (g) is worth 15 marks on its own — more than a third of the question.
You have 1 hour 45 minutes.
Since May 2024, SL and HL sit the same Paper 2, so nothing HL-only is tested here.
Theory that never touches the stimulus caps your marks, no matter how correct it is.
How the marks are split
Look at where the marks actually are. The six short subparts together are worth 25 marks, and the final subpart alone is worth 15. That one answer is bigger than any other single thing you write in the whole paper.
The short subparts feel safe and satisfying, which is exactly why students overspend on them.
Subparts (a) to (f): short and exact
These are quick questions with a clear right answer. They usually ask you to define a term, pull a figure out of a table, do a small calculation, sketch a diagram, or explain something in two or three sentences.
Point at the source. If the answer comes from Table 1 or paragraph 3, say so.
Use the exact economic term, not a loose everyday word.
Stop when the marks are gone. A 2-mark answer does not get better because it is six lines long.
Show workings on anything numerical, even when it looks obvious.
Treat (a) to (f) like a warm-up, not a performance. Get them right, get them done, and protect the clock. The examiner cannot give you extra credit for a beautifully long answer to a 2-mark question.
Part (g): the 15-mark answer
Part (g) asks you to evaluate something using the stimulus. This is where the paper is really decided. It is not a Paper 1 essay with a few numbers sprinkled on top — the data has to drive the argument.
Think of it as answering two questions at once: what does economic theory say? and what does this particular text and data say? A top-band answer keeps the two moving together, sentence by sentence.
The part (g) test
theory + the stimulus + a judgement = top band
The rule that catches people out: explaining the theory correctly but never using the text or the figures caps your marks. Accurate economics is not enough on its own in Paper 2.
Spending the 105 minutes
One hour forty-five sounds generous until you notice how much reading there is. Give yourself a proper read of the stimulus at the start — you will answer (a) to (f) faster if you already know what is in the text.
Overspending on calculations and diagrams early on is the classic way to arrive at part (g) with fifteen minutes left.
Worked examples
WORKED EXAMPLE
Matching each subpart to the right piece of the stimulus
The stimulus is a text about a government subsidy for electric buses, plus a table of passenger numbers and a chart of city air pollution. Where does each subpart get its material from?
(a) Define the term subsidy [2]
From your own knowledge — but use the bus context in the wording.
(b) Using the table, calculate the percentage change in passengers [2]Table only. Quote the two figures you used.
(c) Draw a diagram to show the effect of the subsidy [4]
Your own diagram, labelled with the market from the text.
(g) Evaluate the subsidy [15]Text + table + chart, all three. Pollution figures support the benefit side, cost figures support the drawback side.
Every subpart has a sourceBefore writing, jot the source next to each subpart number. It takes 30 seconds.
WORKED EXAMPLE
You have 25 minutes left and part (g) is untouched. What now?
You are on subpart (f), the clock says 80 minutes gone, and part (g) is still blank. Do you finish (f) properly or move on?
Step 1: compare what is at stake
Finishing (f) perfectly might win 1 or 2 marks. Part (g) is worth 15.
Step 2: move immediately
Leave (f) as it is. Spend 3 minutes planning (g): one point for, one point against, two figures from the data, one judgement.
Step 3: write in short paragraphs
Each paragraph: make the point → explain with theory → quote a figure → say what it means.
A rushed (g) still beats a perfect (f)Half of a 15-mark answer is worth more than all of a 2-mark one.
💡 Exam tip
Read the whole stimulus first, including chart titles and table units. The units are often the trap.
Answer the subparts in order. They are built to lead into each other, and (g) usually rewards what you worked out earlier.
Quote figures, do not just gesture at them. “Unemployment rose from 6.2% to 8.1%” beats “unemployment rose”.
Only draw a diagram in (g) if it adds something. A decorative diagram costs time and earns nothing.
Choose your question on the stimulus, not the topic. A familiar topic with confusing data is worse than a less familiar one with clear data.
Watch the clock at 55 minutes. That is your checkpoint for finishing the short subparts.
⚠ Common mix-up
Writing a Paper 1 essay in part (g). Generic theory with no data is the most common way to end up in the middle bands.
Using data as decoration. Listing figures without saying what they show is not analysis.
Overwriting the short subparts and then running out of time for the one worth 15 marks.
Ignoring the units. Percentages, index numbers, millions and billions get mixed up constantly.
Skipping the judgement at the end of (g) because time ran out.
Assuming HL content is needed. Since May 2024 the paper is the same for SL and HL, so it only tests common content.
Up next: What Paper 3 Asks For — the HL-only paper, where the maths stops being a side dish and becomes the main course.
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