5 Things You Need To Know Before Writing IELTS Exam

IELTS (International English Language Testing System) is a proficiency test for people who wish to study or work in countries where English is the major language for communication.

You might be wondering why you need to write the IELTS examination as an international student or immigrant, well this is because your host country wants to be sure that you can communicate and speak their language properly as this indicates you would be able to adapt quickly to your new environment.

Before paying to write your examination, here are 5 things you need to know about the IELTS Exam

There Are Two Types Of IELTS Examination

Depending on whether you are an immigrant or international student you might be required to write either the :

• Academic version which is for people seeking admission into universities in English speaking countries
• General version which is for people seeking to emigrate to English speaking countries (UK, Canada, Australia e.t.c) and for those applying to training programs or jobs in that country

Four Areas Where You Would Be Examined On

There are four major aspects where you would be graded on after writing your exam they include:

• Listening: It has 4 sections with 10 questions each and you would be required to listen to a recording for each section and answer questions based on what you have heard
• Reading: It contains 3 sections, a total of 3 articles would be read to answer both multiple-choice questions and short answer questions. sources of these articles could be books, Journals, Magazines, Newspapers e.t.c
• Writing: This section requires that you write 2 articles, for the first task, you must write at least 150 words in 20 minutes and the second task involves writing at least 250 words in 40 minutes. Eash writing task and topic depends on the type of IELTS you would write.
• Speaking:  It is usually a face-face interview where you as the test- taker would sit with the examiner to answer various questions. the different sections in this module include the introduction part where you talk about yourself, a long turn section where you would be given a topic from a flashcard to prepare and talk about and the discussion section which involves an in-depth discussion with the examiner on topics covered during the long-turn section

How To Register For The IELTS Examination

To register, find a test centre nearest to you using the search engine on the official IELTS website. Once you find a centre, you can decide if you would love to take the paper or computer-based version of the test.

In filling your application form, you need your passport number as it is an important aspect of your application and there are many websites where you can take practise tests to help you prepare for the exam.

How The IELTS Is Scored

The range of scores attainable is between 0-9, for each section, you would receive a score for each module and an overall score based on the average of your four-module scores.

Duration And Validity Of The Exam

The duration of the exam is 2hours 45 minutes. listening, reading and writing would be carried out in one sitting while speaking may be carried out either on the same day or seven days after.

All test takers take the same Listening and speaking tests while reading and writing depend on the type of IELTS exam chosen.

Conclusion

It is important that before writing your exam, you set time apart to prepare effectively for your exams so you can have the desired scores needed for either your university admission or immigration purpose.