International English Language Testing System (IELTS) provides a reliable measure of a candidate’s ability across the four skills of listening, reading, writing, and speaking.
Figures reveal that IELTS has cemented its position as the world’s most popular high-stakes English language test with a record 1.5 million tests taken around the world in 2010.
Representing over 15 consecutive years of global growth, the number of tests taken has increased year-on-year annually since 1995.
North America followed by the Philippines and Hong Kong experienced the largest growth over the year, whilst China, Australia, and India continue to retain their positions as the largest markets for IELTS.
IELTS provides a reliable measure of a candidate’s ability across the four skills of listening, reading, writing, and speaking.
Candidates cited the number one reason for taking the test in 2010 was in pursuit of entry into an academic institution, followed by migration purposes.
IELTS continues to help change people’s lives as they look for opportunities around the world – whether that be in education, migration, or employment. That’s why IELTS is a high-stakes test and also why it’s so critical that the test continues to be a robust and rigorous measure of English language proficiency. IELTS is internationally available, internationally accessible, internationally recognized, and internationally focused.
The IELTS test has four parts – listening, reading, writing, and speaking. Candidates must do all four parts to receive an IELTS result. The total test time is 2 hours and 45 minutes.
IELTS is available in two formats – Academic and General Training.
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.