IELTS

The International English Language Testing System (IELTS) is the name known to almost everyone in India who plans to study or immigrate to the highly-sought-after countries viz. Canada, the US, Australia, the UK, New Zealand and other Commonwealth countries.

With the present test-taker base of above 1.3 lakhs in India, the IELTS has become the hot favorite of many students, nurses, doctors and professionals. This has happened despite the equal applicability of Test of English as Foreign Language (TOEFL) in many countries.

All credit goes to the three organizations that jointly own IELTS world-wide -- the renowned Cambridge ESOL (English Speakers of Other Languages), University of Cambridge; the UK-based British Council and their Australian partner, IDP (International Development Programme).

The test, being the only option for immigration to some countries, offers a lucrative educational business opportunity in the North-Western India.

This is because almost 40 per cent of all the Indian test-takers are from this region especially from Gujarat and Punjab. It is the only reason why many IELTS preparation and training centers are mushrooming in these parts of the country. However, test-takers face innumerable problems getting through all the four modules of the test.

One the test. This will not only help you know the minutest details of the test but also expose you to the optimum ways to improve your Listening, Reading, Writing and Speaking skills.

Test Structure:

The test is of two types: Academic IELTS and General Training IELTS.

The former is generally recommended to study-abroad aspirants, nurses and teachers and the latter is specifically for acquiring immigration and work visas.

The tests consist of four sections viz Listening Comprehension, Reading Comprehension, Writing Skills and Speaking Skills. Listening comprehension takes 35-40 minutes; reading comprehension is for an hour; writing skills require the test-taker to complete two writing tasks in one hour and speaking skills is a one-to-one interview that takes no more than 15 minutes.

The test happens mostly on Saturdays and Thursdays. It is mainly taken in two parts, the first one being the 'written test' comprising listening, reading and writing sections. The speaking section forms the second important part of IELTS called the 'Spoken test'. It happens either some days before or after the 'Written test'.