Prepping for IELTs
While students looking to study in America would look out for study tips on SATs, students considering university in the UK and some other countries would require you to take the IELTs exam as a qualification of your English ability. Obviously, we would like to try to do our best here, as with all exams that we take. The majority of universities in the UK requires an average of 6.5/9 or above. So, what exactly happens in an IELTs exam?
There are 4 categories, pretty similar to DSE – reading, writing, speaking and listening. The format, variety and question types are less complex compared to DSE, though. So let us go through preparation methods for each category.
Listening
The three written papers are all done in one sitting, and depending on the arrangements of the exam venue and administration, you may get to do the speaking section on the same day or the following day. The entire listening section takes up about 30 minutes with 40 questions to answer. The whole tape will only be played once. The majority of questions are multiple choice ones, and in the rest, they would ask for numbers, or short answers limited to around three words. The pace of the tape is slower compared to DSE, and the inference ability required in answering questions is not as intense as DSE either. So, if you are confident enough with the DSE listening paper, you might feel fine just to read through a past paper to get a general idea of the layout and the actual look of the questions. If you do not feel safe, listening to a couple of tapes! The IELTs website offers free samples, so it is easy to find out what they are like.
Reading
Reading is the second section of the exam, with three to four articles of increasing difficulty. You have 60 minutes to answer 40 questions. There are varying questions types, such as matching identifying content from paragraphs, yes/no questions, multiple choice questions, and short answers. There are a few things to note. For example, in short answers, they often have a limit of no more than three to five words in a blank for more standardised marking. So, make sure that you do not go over the word limit! We recommend trying out a few past papers so that you would have a general idea on the level of difficulty, as well as what they typically want you to identify from the articles.
Writing
Writing would be the last section of your written papers. You will have 60 minutes to write one short and one long article. The short article asks for at least 150 words while the long one asks for at least 250. A major ability they test for is the ability to write effectively. So, while you have to meet the word count, we would recommend you not to go beyond 200 words or 300 words for the short and long articles respectively. The first article is usually a graph interpretation and description, such as bar charts or line graphs. Keep it short and simple with a key summary and main feature highlights. The second article is usually a one-sided opinion essay. The content they look out for is quite different from your usual DSE argumentative essays, such as the depth of arguments and the flow in the structure. Therefore, it is highly recommended that you read through a few past papers and figure out the standard structure that IELTs prefers.
Speaking
Finally, you have reached the last leg of the exam. There are 3 parts in this interview. First, the examiner will ask you questions on general topics for 4-5 minutes, then you will be given a task card to speak on for 1-2 minutes after a 1-minute preparation. There will be a couple of questions before you move on to the final part of a more abstract discussion with the examiner. On the same theme as with the task card, the examiner will guide you on related questions, much like an extended ‘extended response’ in DSE oral exam. You might find it helpful to practice this with a friend who could listen to your responses. This way, you could get a taste of the follow-up questions and assess whether your responses worked.
Hopefully, with these few tips, you would understand a little more about how IELTs works and ace the test!
