IELTS Experience

International English Language Testing System (http://ielts.org/) is an exam required for admission in U.K., Germany, Canada and Australia. Some US universities also accept IELTS score. I also gave my IELTS exam recently. The scoring is pretty simple. You get a band score out of 9. Nine means you are expert user. IELTS is paper based test and is administered by British Council and IDP.


I gave my exam from the IDP center (www.ieltsidpindia.com). Personally I felts that IELTS is simpler than TOEFL. I prepared for IELTS for only 1 week. Exam takes around 3 hours.


Exam Format


1. Listening
2. Reading
3. Writing
4. Speaking (On a different day)


Listening is easy and the recording is played for 30 min.  You get time to read the questions and hence you know what to listen in the recording. Also, the answers can be written on a paper and then additional time of 10 min is given to transfer the answers to the answer sheet. Listening is quite simple but concentration is needed. If you get stuck at one answer, then skip.  Utilize the time given for reading the questions judiciously. Note down what the answer requires and search for the answer when the recording plays. 10 mins are enough for transferring the answers, so don’t waste time to transfer answers during the 30 min period. Be careful about the tense, plural/singular, etc while answering. Also use a/the wherever required i.e. answer whatever is spoken.  Recording will not be played again, so write when you listen.


Reading is similar to TOEFL reading. 3 passages and 60 min are given. Practice for accuracy. Different question types are there and so practice sample examples for mastering them. Take your time and answer. As it is a paper based test, you can move back and forward. Also, you can underline the passage and so it is helpful in reading. Summarizing and paraphrasing are important questions and you should practice them more. 


Writing has 2 tasks. One independent where we have to write on topic and other task is to summarize a chart/graph or some given statistics. You should practice the latter one as they are a bit tricky. Also minimum words are required in each task. The former has minimum 250 words and latter has minimum 150 words. So keep the word limit in mind while writing. Total 1 hour is provided, so you can balance accordingly. One thing to note is that we have to write it on a paper. So your writing should be legible. Also, use a pencil so that you can erase when you find a typo mistake. Practice this section for getting a good score.


Speaking is done with an interviewer on a separate day. It is a 15 min task. The interviewer will ask you questions and will give you a topic to speak on. To crack this section, you should speak confidently. You should have a good vocab. Accent doesn’t matter but the pronunciation does. So, speak clearly without fumbling and repeating the same ideas/lines. The topics are easy so you don’t need a huge IQ. Common general knowledge will suffice. Keep a good body language. Speak while looking at the person in front of you. Don’t talk unless asked. Practice in front of mirror or with your friends to get a good score.


My IELTS was exactly a week after my TOEFL and so, I didn’t prepare rigorously for IELTS as I had prepared well for TOEFL. I just gave 5 practice tests and did speaking practice with my sister. 


The above is my experience for IELTS and hope it helps you. All the best !!