What is IELTS?

IELTS is the International English Language Testing System. IELTS tests knowledge of reading, listening, speaking, and writing in English. The questions on the test are generally of a more practical or general nature than those found on the TOEFL, which focuses more on academic language. IELTS is accepted widely among the world’s universities as proof of English proficiency, and it continues to be adopted by more institutions every year.

Unlike the TOEFL, this test is hand written with the exception of the speaking section.

Test Overview

IELTS has four components, which are reading, listening, writing, and speaking.

• In the reading section, test takers are tasked with reading several passages and answering questions on those passages.
• The listening section involves listening to a recording of native English speakers and answering questions based on what they say. As the IELTS is a British test, the majority of the speakers will speak with various types of British accents, although other accents may also appear.
• The writing section presents the test taker with two questions, and each question is to be answered by writing an essay.
• In the speaking section, the test taker will be asked questions by a native English speaker in person. The test taker must respond to the questions in a certain amount of time, and some questions may allow the test taker a short time to prepare prior to answering.

Types of IELTS test

There are two types of IELTS test: academic and general. The reading and writing sections will focus on either academic subjects or general use, accordingly. The speaking and listening sections do not change.

Scoring

The IELTS is scored with a band system, with 0 being the lowest and 9 being the highest. The test taker will receive a band score for each individual section as well as an overall band score.