First things first… What is IELTS? It is the International English Language Testing System (IELTS), a high-stakes English test which measures the language proficiency of people who want to study, work or migrate to any country where English is used as a language of communication. It uses a nine-band scale to clearly identify levels of proficiency, from non-user (band score 1) through to expert (band score 9).
IELTS is available in two modules:
- Academic
for people applying for higher education or professional registration. - General Training
for those migrating to Australia, Canada or the UK, etc. or those applying for secondary education, training programmes and work experience in an English-speaking environment.
Both types provide a valid and accurate assessment of the four language skills: listening, reading, writing and speaking. Listening and Speaking are the same for both tests, but the subject matter of the Reading and Writing sections differs depending on which test a student takes.
The total test time is 2 hours and 45 minutes.