Creativity, activity, service

Creativity, Activity, Service (CAS) (formerly Creativity, Action, Service) is a mandatory core component of the IB Diploma Programme. It aims to provide a "counterbalance" to the academic rigour of the educational programme. Before the 2010 examination there was a 150-hour requirement, with an approximately equal distribution of creativity, activity, and service. This requirement was removed mainly for two reasons: to ensure that students engage in meaningful activities and to decrease the amount of CAS fraud (i.e. claiming hours which have not been completed). Students are now expected to have two CAS activities for each CAS category and students need to prove that they are participating in CAS activities on a weekly basis (though not necessarily all CAS categories each week). Moreover, students must have one CAS project which spans at least a month. Finally, one must prove that the CAS activities have resulted in the seven projected outcomes of CAS (one CAS activity can have multiple outcomes).[citation needed]