IELTS is designed to assess the language ability of candidates who need to study or work where English is used as the language of communication. Tests are administered at accredited Test Centers throughout the world - there are currently more than 300 Centers, in over 120 countries.

Academic and General Traning Candidates
Candidates must select either the Academic or General Training Reading and Writing Modules depending on the stated requirement of their sponsor or receiving institution. The Academic Reading and Writing Modules assess whether a candidate is ready to study or train in the medium of English at an Undergraduate or Postgraduate level. The emphasis of General Training is on basic survival skills in a broad social and educational context. It is suitable for candidates who are going to English speaking countries to complete their Secondary Education, to undertake work experience or training programs not at degree level, or for immigration purposes.

Test Format  
All candidates are tested in listening, reading, writing and speaking. All candidates take the same Listening and Speaking Modules. There is a choice of Reading and Writing Modules. The first three modules- Listening, Reading and Writing must be completed in one day. The Speaking may be taken, at the discretion of the test center, on the same day or up to two days later. Candidates in some test centers are required to take additional pretest sections of up to 20 minutes. Performance on these pretests does not affect a candidate's results in any way but pre-testing is an essential part of IELTS question paper production.

IELTS Band Score:
This exam tests your ability to use English. Score in each of the subtests and an overall (average) score is recorded as levels of ability, called Bands. Highest : 9 bands for each of the four language macro skills - Listening, Reading, Writing and Speaking. The above information is listed on the Test Report Form. The nine bands of language ability are described in general terms as follows: