The International English Language Testing System, commonly known as IELTS, is an English Language proficiency test. The non-native students who aspire to study in countries where English is the medium of instruction are required to take this test. Universities in Australia, Canada, New Zealand and United Kingdom accept IELTS. It has become a mandatory test for study in Australia.
- The IELTS test is divided in to four sections as follows,
- Listening Test
- Reading Test
- Writing Test
- Speaking Test
The Listening Test is for about 40 minutes – 30 minutes listening to a tape and answering questions on what you hear, and 10 minutes to fill in the Answer Sheet.
The Reading test is for about 1 hour and the task is to read passages of text and answer the questions accordingly. There are few other types of assignments which would be covered later on in other posts on this space.
The Writing test is also for about 1 hour and consists 2 sub-divisions: 20 minutes to write a letter/ report and 40 minutes to write an essay.
The Speaking test is for about 15 minutes and is divided into 3 parts: a Personal Interview, a Cue Card talk and a Discussion.
There is usually a break before the Speaking test, and all the other parts continue one after another. Sometimes, the Speaking test is shifted to another day.
Formalities of the IELTS test
There are some formalities one needs to go through before taking the IELTS test that include,
1. EXELLA EDUCATION GROUP provides you information regarding IELTS exam and helps you with all the test formalities from listing out dates to the pricing.
2.Downloading and printing the application form, filling the details, enclosing the photographs, an identification copy and fee, and sending to the local IELTS Centre.
3.We make sure they received it and allocated a seat on the chosen date.
Scoring Scale of IELTS
The scoring is in between 0 (minimum) and 9 (maximum) with a 0.5 band increment. Usually, four scores are reported on the IELTS.
Reading score: Reported on a 0-9 band scale, with 0.5 band increment.
Listening score: Reported on a 0-9 band scale, with 0.5 band increment.
Writing score: Reported on a 0-9 band scale, with 0.5 band increment.
Speaking score: Reported on a 0-9 band scale, with 0.5 band increment.
Tips for IELTS Academic Reading Section
The academic section of IELTS is comparatively tougher than the general section and the academic score is accepted in universities and colleges where you wish to pursue further education or a career in academics. In the academic section, the ability to comprehend, analyse and understand the flow of articles is tested.
There are usually 3 sections with different articles that test your knowledge on various reading skills. The given passages consist of 500 to 700 words.
Think Academic – An academician has to be capable of understanding and analysing complex information.
If you look at the test through an examiner lens you will see why the tests are framed a certain way and the logic behind each question, to be able to achieve
A decent score, expect to do the following:
Find out the writer’s opinion
Identify the main argument
Diagram or table completion and summarization
Identify key ideas and details supporting it