IELTS

Academic Reading and General Training Reading have similar task types but differ in the reading material and test format. While Academic tests contain three long texts taken from books, journals, magazines, and newspaper ranging from descriptive and factual to discursive and analytical, GT tests are taken from materials you may encounter on a daily basis in an English-speaking environment such as company handbook, instructions, advertisements etc. General Training format contains three sections. Section 1 may contain two to three short texts or several shorter texts. Section 2 comprises of two texts. Section 3 has one long text. Academic format contains three reading passages. There are 40 questions for each reading test and 11 task types. Though they may not all appear in one individual test, test-takers should still prepare for: multiple choice; identifying information; identifying writer’s views/claims; matching information; matching headings; matching features; matching sentence endings; sentence completion; summary, note, table, flow-chart completion; diagram label completion and short-answer questions. To help you further prepare for the Reading test, check out our Tips and Tricks for IELTS Reading test.

There will be four recordings and 40 questions to be answered on an answer-sheet. Each recording will have 10 questions dedicated and the layout of the answer-sheet will display it in the order the recording is played. The duration of the audio is 30 minutes; test-takers are allowed 10 minutes to transfer answers onto the sheet. Each question is worth 1 mark. Recording 1 – a conversation between two people set in an everyday social context Recording 2 – a monologue set in an everyday social context Recording 3 – a group conversation of up to four people in an education or training context Recording 4 – a monologue on an academic subject There are 6 different tasks to complete in the Listening test. Although not all may show up in one individual test, test-takers should still prepare for the following: multiple choice; matching; plan, map, diagram labelling; form, note, table, flow-chart, summary completion; sentence completion (fill in the blank) and short-answer questions. To help you further prepare for the Listening test, check out our Tips and Tricks for IELTS Listening test.

Speaking tests are often scheduled separately than the other three tests. Every test is recorded. There are three parts to assess your spoken English. Part 1 – (4 to 5 minutes) general questions about yourself and familiar daily topics Part 2 – (1 minute preparation with pencil and paper provided, and up to 2 minutes speaking) a cue card with a particular topic, including but not limited to: music, hobbies, news, family, events, etc. Prepare for follow-up questions based on your answer Part 3 – (4 to 5 minutes) further questions about part 2 to explore more abstract ideas and issues

Both General Training and Academic Writing tests will have two tasks. Test-takers are recommended to spend 20 minutes to write at least 150 words on Task 1, and 40 minutes to write at least 250 words on Task 2. Task 2 contributes twice as much as Task 1 on the Writing Band score, so make sure to allocate the time and effort accordingly for each task. General Training (GT) The style of writing for GT tests can be more personal and less formal compared to Academic writing. Task 1: Write a formal/semi-formal/informal letter to request information or explain the situation in a given scenario. The scenario are common everyday situations such as writing to a friend about an event; to a college about accommodation; to an employer about a current problem and so on. Test-takers should decide on the writing style depending on the audience they are writing to. Task 2: write an essay in response to a point of view, argument, or problem. The question will provide a way to discuss this, which may involve providing general facts, outlining or presenting a solution, justifying an opinion or evaluating ideas and evidence. The writing tone should be semi-formal and relevant. Academic Task 1: Describe visual information such as graphs, charts, tables, diagrams. The writing tone should be neutral or semi-formal as it is in an academic style. Write in full sentences to describe what is shown and use information that is presented. Decide on what is relevant in the data; minor details may be left out. Task 2: Write an essay in response to a point of view, argument, or problem. The writing tone should be formal, precise, and complete. Follow the instructions and discuss what is relevant to the topic. Test- takers may be penalized for off-topic information, e.g. if the question asks about a specific aspect of school such as higher education, test-takers should focus on that and not discuss about school in general. To help you further prepare for the Writing test, check out our Tips and Tricks for IELTS Writing test.