IA Day 21 —
Final IA Audit & Submission
Run the final compliance, evidence, referencing and authenticity checks before the design project becomes the submitted version.
By the end of class, you should be able to…
Check compliance
Confirm page, word, layout and annotation limits.
Run an A–E self-check
Verify that your own report contains visible evidence for every criterion.
Check referencing
Put source references on the relevant page as footnotes.
Confirm authenticity
Submit only your own final work after the required checks.
Maximum 35 A4 pages · Maximum 3,500 words
Annotations are excluded from the word count when they remain within the annotation rule. Assessors do not award marks for material beyond the stated page/word limits.
A4 pages
Words
Annotation words
Portrait
Except detailed dimension drawings in Criterion D.
| Criterion | Marks | Approx. pages | Recommended words |
|---|---|---|---|
| A · Empathize | 9 | 9 | 900 |
| B · Defining the project | 6 | 4 | 1,200 |
| C · Ideation and modelling | 6 | 8 | 900 |
| D · Designing a solution | 6 | 10 | 300 |
| E · Presenting a solution | 6 | 4 | 200 |
| Total | 33 | 35 | 3,500 |
Reference sourced information
Research, data, ideas, images or information taken from others must be acknowledged appropriately.
Use page footnotes
The guide expects sources to be referenced on the page as footnotes; footnote references do not count toward the word count.
No extra references page required
The guide states that no additional references page is required for the design project.
Front cover
Not required and not considered by examiners.
Contents page
Not required and not considered.
Appendices
Not required; examiners will not read information placed there.
Your design project must be your own work.
A teacher may give broad, holistic feedback on a draft, but should not edit the draft or directly provide solutions. Your research, modelling and submitted evidence must remain your own; manufacture for the IA cannot be outsourced. Confirm that the submitted report is authentic and is your final version; once officially submitted, it cannot be retracted.
Persona, storyboard/task, existing-product evidence and user-centred research are clear.
Problem statement + research-justified essential/desirable specifications.
Three best feasible ideas + evaluation through testing/user feedback.
Physical fidelity model, multiple cycles, all-spec testing + formal drawings.
Intended solution + key features + comparison with original product/problems.
Footnotes, page count, word count, annotation and layout rules checked.
The mini-lesson is short. The evidence-making is the lesson.
35 pages max, 3,500 words max, annotation/layout rules.
Every criterion strand has visible assessable evidence.
All sourced information is appropriately footnoted on the page.
Use the school’s required submission process and keep your own copy.
Before you leave…
Paper 1 — Retrieval Lab
Keep the evidence chain moving: user → research → decision → test.
Organize today’s evidence while it is fresh. Make sure each design decision can be traced to research, testing or intended-user evidence.