What is IELTS?

IELTS, the International English Language Testing System, is designed to assess the language ability of candidates who need to study or work where English is the language of communication.

IELTS is jointly managed by the University of Cambridge ESOL Examinations (Cambridge ESOL), British Council and IDP: IELTS Australia. IELTS conforms to the highest international standards of language assessment.

There are two versions of the IELTS: the Academic Version and the General Training Version:

The Academic Version is for students who want to enroll in universities and other institutions of higher education and for professionals such as medical doctors and nurses who want to study or practise in an English-speaking country.

The General Training Version is intended for those planning to undertake non-academic training or to gain work experience, or for immigration purposes.

Here we mainly discuss about the Academic Version of IELTS and its Structure.

IELTS STRUCURE 

The candidates must complete four Modules - Listening, Reading, Writing and Speaking - in order to obtain a band score, which is shown on the IELTS Test Report Form (TRF). All candidates will take the same Listening and Speaking Modules, but the Reading and Writing Modules differ depending on whether the candidate is taking the Academic or General Training Test.

DURATION


The total test duration is around 2hours and 45mins for Listening,Reading and Writing Modules.

LISTENING:40 minutes, 30 minutes for which a recording is played centrally and additional 10 minutes for transferring answers onto the OMR answer sheet.

READING:60 minutes

WRITING:60 minutes

SPEAKING:11-15 minutes

(NOTE:The first three modules - Listening, Reading and Writing -is completed on one day, and in fact are taken with no break in between. The Speaking Module may be taken, at the discretion of the test centre, in the period seven days before or after the other Modules).

Band Scale

There is no pass or fail in IELTS. Candidates are graded on their performance, using scores from 1 to 9 for each part of the test – Listening, Reading, Writing and Speaking. The results from the four parts then produce an Overall Band Score.

Band 9: Expert user: has fully operational command of the language: appropriate, accurate and fluent with complete understanding.

Band 8: Very good user: has fully operational command of the language with only occasional unsystematic inaccuracies and inappropriacies. Misunderstandings may occur in unfamiliar situations. Handles complex detailed argumentation well.

Band 7: Good user: has operational command of the language, though with occasional inaccuracies, inappropriacies and misunderstandings in some situations. Generally handles complex language well and understands detailed reasoning.

Band 6: Competent user: has generally effective command of the language despite some inaccuracies, inappropriacies and misunderstandings. Can use and understand fairly complex language, particularly in familiar situations.

Band 5: Modest user: has partial command of the language, coping with overall meaning in most situations, though is likely to make many mistakes. Should be able to handle basic communication in own field.

Band 4: Limited user: basic competence is limited to familiar situations. Has frequent problems in understanding and expression. Is not able to use complex language.

Band 3: Extremely limited user: conveys and understands only general meaning in very familiar situations. Frequent breakdowns in communication occur.

Band 2: Intermittent user: no real communication is possible except for the most basic information using isolated words or short formulae in familiar situations and to meet immediate needs. Has great difficulty understanding spoken and written English.

Band 1: Non-user: essentially has no ability to use the language beyond possibly a few isolated words.

Band 0: Did not attempt the test: No assessable information provided.


overall band score is calculated by taking the mean score of the four test components (Listening, Reading, Writing and Speaking). The score for each component is equally weighted. Your overall band score is rounded up to the nearest whole or half band.

For Example:

If Candidate scored 7.0 for Listening, 6.0 for Reading, 5.5 for Writing and 6.5 for Speaking, you will be awarded an Overall Band Score of 6.5. Total score of 25 ÷ 4 = 6.25 which is a band score of 6.5.

If Candidate scored 7.5 for Listening, 6.5 for Reading, 6 for Writing and 5.5 for Speaking, you would be awarded an Overall Band Score of 25.5 Total score of 25.5 ÷ 4 = 6.375 which is a band score of 6.5.

Listening and Reading scores

IELTS Listening and Reading sections each contain 40 questions. Each correct question is given one mark, therefore the maximum score you can achieve for each component is 40. Band scores ranging from Band 1 to Band 9 are awarded to candidates on the basis of their raw scores.
The Figure below are indicative of the number of marks required to achieve a particular band score.

Writing and Speaking scores:

The Scores for Writing and Speaking components of the test, examiners use detailed assessment criteria which describe written and spoken performance at each of the 9 IELTS bands.

Writing: Examiners give a band score for each of four criterion areas: Task Achievement (for Task 1), Task Response (for Task 2), Coherence and Cohesion, Lexical Resource and Grammatical Range and Accuracy. The four criteria are equally weighted.

Speaking: Examiners award a band score for each of four criterion areas: Fluency and Coherence, Lexical Resource, Grammatical Range and Accuracy and Pronunciation. The four criteria are equally weighted.


The detailed explanation of each section is specified separately in pages,which gives you a elaborate information of each section structure and helps you to score a Good Band.