The International English Language Testing System is a test that measures one’s proficiency in English when the speaker’s native language is different.
There are two distinctions here- IELTS General and IELTS Academic.
IELTS General is opted by those who wish to move to an English speaking country in order to work or to settle whereas IELTS Academic is taken by those who wish to pursue a degree from an academic institution that’s in a foreign land.
In this blog, we will elucidate five basic things that all IELTS takers need to be aware of.
TEST FORMAT
The IELTS test consists of the following four sections- Reading, Writing, Listening and Speaking.
Reading, Writing and Listening take about 3 hours to complete whereas the Speaking test takes another hour.
The Speaking section may either take place on the same day or after a week.
REQUIREMENT AT UNIVERSITIES
Most universities around the world require students to clear IELTS in order to be accepted.
The band score requirement varies from country to country but an overall score of 7 or more is necessary to qualify.
Some of the top academic institutions such as University of Chicago, McGill University, Monash University and the rest require IELTS.
TRANSPARENCY
IELTS is considered to be one of the most transparent tests that a non-native speaker of English will take.
The test has been developed in consultation with International experts , The British Council and the IDP and is unbiased in its assessment of candidates.
A criteria that has been designed by these language experts is followed while checking answer scripts so that there are no errors in assessment.
COUNTRIES THAT ACCEPT IELTS SCORE
All English speaking countries accept IELTS scores as the stepping stone towards a university degree.
It is required both at the undergraduate as well as the postgraduate levels.
Some of these countries are listed below:
- USA
- UK
- Canada
- New Zealand
- Australia
- France
- Ireland
PRACTICE WILL HELP YOU ACE IT
IELTS can be cracked with ample practice. All four sections of the test require a vast amount of brushing up so that the candidate feels confident in attempting the actual tests.
Solve as many sample papers as you can to crack this test with the perfect band score.
All these pointers may seem very rudimentary but need to be known by every individual who wishes to appear for the IELTS. Being aware of these will help them remain focussed and composed.
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