IELTS

IELTS or ‘International English Language Testing System’, is an international standardised test of English language proficiency. It is jointly managed by University of Cambridge ESOL Examinations, the British Council and IDP Education Pty Ltd, and was established in 1989.

There are two versions of the IELTS: the Academic Version and the General Training Version:

• The Academic Version is intended for those who want to enroll in universities and other institutions of higher education and for professionals such as medical doctors and nurses who want to study or practice in an English-speaking country.
• The General Training Version is intended for those planning to undertake non-academic training or to gain work experience, or for immigration purposes.

IELTS is accepted by most Australian, British, Canadian, Irish, New Zealand and South African academic institutions, over 2,000 academic institutions in the United States, and various professional organisations. It is also a requirement for immigration to Australia and Canada. In 2007, IELTS tested over a million candidates in a single 12-month period for the first time ever, making it the world’s most popular English language test for higher education and immigration.

An IELTS result or Test Report Form (TRF – see below) is valid for two years.

IELTS characteristics

The IELTS incorporates the following features:

• A variety of accents and writing styles presented in text materials in order to minimise linguistic bias.
• IELTS tests the ability to listen, read, write and speak in English.
• Band scores used for each language sub-skill. The Band Scale ranges from 0 (“Did not attempt the test”) to 9 (“Expert User”).
• The speaking module – a key component of IELTS. This is conducted in the form of a one-to-one interview with an examiner. The examiner assesses the candidate as he or she is speaking, but the speaking session is also recorded for monitoring as well as re-marking in case of an appeal against the banding given.
• IELTS is developed with input from item writers from around the world.

All candidates must complete four Modules – Listening, Reading, Writing and Speaking – to obtain a band score, which is shown on the IELTS Test Report Form (TRF). The total test duration is around 2 hours and 45 minutes for Listening, Reading and Writing modules.

The first three modules – Listening, Reading and Writing (always in that order) – are completed in one day, and in fact are taken with no break in between. The Speaking Module may be taken, at the discretion of the test centre, in the period seven days before or after the other Modules.

• IELTS listening test lasts for about 30 minutes. It consists of four sections, played on cassette tape, in order of increasing difficulty. Each section might be a dialogue or a monologue. The test is played once only, and the questions for each section must be answered while listening, although time is given for students to check their answers.
• IELTS Reading test lasts for 60 minutes. Students are given an Academic Reading test, or a General Training Reading test. Both tests consist of three sections, and in both tests the sections are in order of increasing difficulty.
• IELTS Writing test also lasts for 60 minutes. Again, students take either an Academic test, or a General Training test. Students must perform two writing tasks, which require different styles of writing. There is no choice of question topics.
• IELTS Speaking test consists of a one-to-one interview with a specially trained examiner. The examiner will lead the candidate through the three parts of the test: An introduction and interview, an individual long turn where the candidate speaks for one or two minutes on a particular topic, and a two-way discussion thematically linked to the individual long turn. This interview will last for approximately 11-14 minutes.

BAND SCALE

IELTS is scored on a nine-band scale, with each band corresponding to a specified competence in English.

• 9 Expert User
• 8 Very Good User
• 7 Good User
• 6 Competent User
• 5 Modest user
• 4 Limited User
• 3 Extremely Limited User
• 2 Intermittent User
• 1 Non User
• 0 Did not attempt the test

Locations and test dates

The test is taken every year in 500 locations across 121 countries, There are up to 48 test dates available per year. Each test centre offers tests up to four times a month depending on local demand. There used to be a minimum time limit of 90 days before which a person was not allowed to retake the test. However this restriction got canceled and currently there is no limit for applicants to retake the test…