These students are taking a minimum of 3 HL and 3 SL courses covering each subject area of the IB Hexagon: Langauge A - English, Language B, History and Socieites, Experimental Sciences, Mathematics, Arts or Electives.  They must also complete 150 hours of creativity, action, and serivce hours (CAS).  They must also complete an Extended Essay.  It is an essay of a maximum of 4,000 words, written on a freely-chosen topic, and provides the students with an opportunity to conduct independent research on a topic that interests them. The student writing an EE works together with a supervisor who advises and guides them in the writing process. In total, students are expected to spend about 40 hours on writing the EE, but some students use a shorter amount of time, and others a longer amount. The Extended Essay is externally assessed (graded) by the International Baccalaureate Organization.