IELTS Exam: Dates, Eligibility, Registration

If you are wondering what is IELTS and how is it useful for your career, you have come to the right place. The International English Language Testing System or IELTS is an established test for examining English language proficiency. The test is structured to assess the linguistic skills of a candidate who is not a native English speaker.

This test is given by those who wish to study, migrate or work in some of the countries. In this blog, we will discuss IELTS, its importance, its syllabus, and helpful tips and tricks for carrying out your preparations for this exam.

Exam Name	IELTS
Full-Form	International English Language Testing System
Official Website	https://www.ielts.org/
Purpose	Studying abroad, working, and migrating to English-speaking countries like Australia, New Zealand, and the UK
Also Accepted by	Canada and UK
Conducted by	IDP Education Limited
Mode of Exam	Computer and Paper
IELTS Fee	INR 17,000
Score Range	0-9
Score Validity	2 Years

What is IELTS?  

The IELTS is managed by IELTS, IDP (formerly British Council), and Cambridge Assessment English in India.  This exam is of two kinds depending on the purpose of the test. The IELTS Academic is the test for those planning to study abroad. If you want to migrate or shift to another country for work, the exam you have to take is the General Training version. Irrespective of whichever form of exam you appear for, the eligibility criteria remain the same. 

It is compulsory to take the IELTS exam if you want admission to the academic and training programs in Canada, New Zealand, the UK, and Australia. The score of this exam is accepted by more than 3000 US Universities and other such institutes around the world. Apart from the academics part, numerous MNCs and organizations require your IELTS score, especially if one of the branches of the country is located in an English-speaking country.

IELTS is considered the only English Language Test that is secure enough to be officially approved for UK Visa applicants by UK Visas and Immigration. The immigration authorities of Australia, Canada, and New Zealand accept its score making it the best substitute for TOEFL.

IELTS Exam Dates 2024 India: Month-Wise Calendar

IELTS is conducted several times a year and at multiple locations. Here are some of the prominent dates in 2023:

Month	IELTS Exam Date 2024
March	7 march  9 March  16 March  23 March
April	6 April 13 April  18 April  27 April
May	4 May  9 May  18 May  25 May
June	1 June  13 June  22 June
July	6 July  11 July  20 July  27 July
August	3 Aug  8 Aug  8 Aug  24 Aug
September	7 Sept 14 Sept  19 Sept  28 Sept
October	5 Oct  10 Oct  19 Oct  26 Oct
November	2 Nov 7 Nov 16 Nov  23 Nov  30 Nov
December	5 Dec 7 Dec  14 Dec  21 Dec

Types of IELTS

There are two types of IELTS exams. Both the IELTS have the same exam pattern for listening and speaking sections. However, the emphasis on the writing and reading sections is different. These exams are separately known as:

IELTS Academic Test

The IELTS Academic Test is taken by candidates who are aiming to pursue higher education or professional registration from an English-speaking country abroad.

IELTS General Test

The IELTS General Test is taken by those who are planning to migrate to English-speaking countries like Canada, Australia, and the UK.

IELTS General vs IELTS Academic

Now that you know the types of IELTS Tests, let us delve further and learn more about them in detail. Refer to the table below to go through the differences between IELTS General and IELTS Academic to understand them better.

IELTS General	IELTS Academic
This exam includes general writing and general reading.	This exam includes academic writing and academic reading.
This exam is for individuals wanting to migrate, train, work or in case of secondary education.	This exam is for students wishing to pursue their higher education.
This exam is mostly attempted by those who want their visas for an English-speaking country.	This exam is mostly attempted by students wanting admission to foreign universities.

Eligibility Criteria for IELTS

Although this test does not have strict rules like other examinations like GRE or GMAT, it has certain rules that need to be adhered to. Some of the basic IELTS eligibility conditions are: 

• You should possess a non-expired and valid passport.
• A minimum of 16 years of age is compulsory.
• If you are planning to migrate or study in Canada, Australia, the USA or New Zealand. 

IELTS Registration 2024

The IELTS registration process is quite simple and can be done in both online and offline modes.

• To register for IELTS, you need to visit the official website and click on the “book a test” option.
• Then, you will be required to select a country and nearest location after which you can choose your preferred type as well as the date you want to take the exam.
• Once you follow the major steps needed to register for the exam, you can fill out the application form with the required details, upload the documents and also pay the registration fee of 17,00 INR.
• If you are unable to submit your IELTS application online, then you can simply download the registration form from the official website of the exam.
• You can fill out the application at the office in person and submit your payment fee of INR 17,000 INR through a credit card, debit card, demand draft, or ICICI bank/Allahabad bank deposit slip.

IELTS Exam Pattern 2024

The IELTS exam pattern is divided into the following four sections: 

• Reading
• Writing
• Speaking 
• Listening

These sections are required to be taken on the same day. There is no break allowed between them. However, the speaking section can be completed a week before or after the day you appear for the other 3 sections. This test lasts for 2 hours and 45 minutes. 

Section	No. of questions	Duration	Details
Writing	2	60 minutes	There are 2 writing tasks that need to be completed in the allotted time.
Listening	40	30 minutes (excluding 10 minutes of transfer time)	There are 4 sections, each with 10 questions. You are asked to listen to the recordings and then answer the questions.
Speaking	3 parts	11 to 14 minutes	There is a round of oral interview conducted for this section.
Reading	40	60 minutes	There are 3 passages in total and you are asked to answer all questions.

IELTS Syllabus 2024

The IELTS syllabus is based on the different sections of the exam. Here we have detailed the syllabus of the exam classified into key sections.

Listening

There are 4 sections with 10 questions in the section of IELTS Listening. It aims to evaluate your ability to comprehend the core ideas and detailed factual information, the opinions and approach of the speakers, the objective of an utterance and how well you can follow the progression of ideas. Each question is of one mark and there are different types of questions like multiple-choice, sentence completion, form/note/table/flowchart/summary completion, matching or plan/map diagram labelling. There are four types of recordings that are played which are as follows:

Recording 1: A conversation between two people [in an everyday social context]

Recording 2: A speech by a person/monologue.

Recording 3: A discussion in an academic context between a maximum of 4 people.

Recording 4: A monologue that is based on an academic subject. 

Note: Remember that every question in the listening can only be heard once. That’s why you need to take this test in a peaceful environment.

Reading

The Reading includes 3 sections and you are required to read the passage and answer the questions, which may include multiple-choice questions, summary writing, information matching, short answers and sentence completion. All the passages in this section consist of a maximum of 13-14 questions. The reading part of this module consists of a total of 40 questions. However, the reading passages and questions of the Academic and General exams are different and are given in detail below.

The reading section of the Academic has 3 reading passages. The matter of the subject may vary from factual and descriptive to analytical and discursive. All the texts are selected from journals, magazines, newspapers and books and are exclusively selected for an audience that does not belong to any specialist group. For those of you looking for professional registration or trying to enter a university course abroad, this is the best choice for you. Every question is of one mark each with types of tasks ranging from

• Multiple-choice
• Identifying Information
• Identifying Writer’s Views/Claims
• Matching Information
• Matching Headings
• Matching Features
• Matching Sentence Endings
• Sentence Completion
• Summary, Note, Table, Flow-chart Completion
• Diagram Label Completion
• Short-answer Questions

IELTS General Training: Reading (40 Questions in 60 Minutes)

The General Training Reading consists of three sections. Applicants need to read excerpts taken from magazines, notices, handbooks of companies and guidelines, books, newspapers, and advertisements. The excerpt materials are taken from daily written materials of an English-speaking country. The three sections contain the following types of questions:

Section 1: Social Survival

Section 2: Work Survival

Section 3: General Reading

Types of Questions:

• Multiple choice
• Identifying information
• Identifying the writer’s views/claims
• Matching information
• Matching headings
• Matching features
• Matching sentence endings
• Sentence completion
• Summary completion
• Note completion
• Table completion
• Flow-chart completion
• Diagram label completion
• Short-answer questions

IELTS Writing

The writing section for Academic and General is quite similar in its structure but differs in terms of content. Both the Academic and General Test’s writing sections have 2 tasks that is two questions with a total duration of 60 minutes. Take a look at the types of tasks these two have:

IELTS Academic Writing:

Task 1: Comprises a graph, table, chart, or diagram, the test-taker needs to describe the visual information in their own words.

Word Limit: 150 Words
Duration: 20 Minutes

Task 2: The test-taker needs to write an essay in response to an argument, a point of view, or a problem.

Word Limit: 250 Words
Duration: 40 Minutes

IELTS General Writing

Task 1: The test-taker needs to respond to a situation, for instance, they might be asked to write a letter requesting information or elaborating on a situation.

Word Limit: 150 Words
Duration (Advised): 20 Minutes

Task 2: The test-taker needs to write an essay in response to an argument, a point of view, or a problem.

Word Limit: 250 Words
Duration (Advised): 40 Minutes

IELTS Speaking 

The IELTS speaking topic is a three-part process. This is an oral interview that is recorded in order to further evaluate the applicant. It will finally lead to a face-to-face interview with an examiner. It takes about 11-14 minutes to complete and evaluates the candidate’s spoken English skills.

Part 1: General Questions

The examiner introduces him/herself and then asks the test-taker various general questions about themselves and a variety of questions on similar topics such as family, home, studies, work, and other interests. This lasts for about 4-5 minutes.

Part 2: Topic

A card will be given to you regarding a specific topic. The duration of this part is 3-4 minutes including the preparation time of a minute which gave before speaking.

Part 3: Discussion

An abstract or general discussion takes place on the topic given in part 2 and this part lasts for 4-5 minutes.

IELTS Band Scale

The table given below is how the IELTS scores are usually calculated.

Band Score	Skill Level	Details
9	Expert	Fully operational command of the English language. The test-taker can use it in an appropriate, accurate and fluent manner thus showing complete understanding.
8	Very Good	Fully operational command over the English with only infrequent and occasional unsystematic mistakes and inaccuracies and inappropriate use. This might be because misunderstandings in peculiar and unfamiliar circumstances. But the test-taker is very good at tackling complex and detailed argumentation.
7	Good	Operational command over the English language with infrequent inaccuracies, inappropriate use and misunderstandings in a few situations. The test-taker is good at handling complex language and understand detailed reasoning.
6	Competent	Effective command over the English language though there are some inaccuracies, inappropriate use and misunderstandings.  The test-taker can use and comprehend fairly complex language, especially in familiar situations.
5	Modest	Partial command of the English language. The test-taker generally copes well with overall meaning in most situations, but they are likely to make some mistakes. The test-taker should be able to tackle basic communication in their own field.
4	Limited	The basic competence of the test-taker is limited to familiar incidents.  They are like to face problems in understanding and expression but they are unable to use complex language.
3	Extremely Limited	Understanding of only general meanings in highly familiar situations. But there are more frequent breakdowns in communication.
2	Intermittent User	Represents difficulty in understanding spoken as well as written English.
1	Non-user	Shows no ability to use the language except only a few isolated words.
0	Test not attempted	Questions not answered.

IELTS Indicator 

The IELTS Indicator is the safest and fastest way to demonstrate your English language skills from the comfort of your home. It is an online test launched by the British Council last year during the havoc of COVID-19 to help students apply for educational institutes across the world. Here are some important aspects of the IELTS Indicator to keep in mind-

• It is held once every week online 
• IELTS Indicator can be administrated online 
• It covers the four main skills like the IELTS General- Speaking, Writing, Listening, and Reading
• It is a timed test that matches the structure of an in-person test. 
• It is a live, online test with an allocated start time and duration 
• Listening, Reading and Writing parts of the test need to be completed in one sitting, while the Speaking test takes place a few days before or after the other sections.         

There are many universities in the UK, Canada, and the USA that accept the IELTS indicator, however, it is not a substitute for in-person IELTS tests that are mandatory for migration. It is important to check with the university before applying for the test whether they accept the scores of the IELTS Indicator or not.

How to Crack IELTS in One Month?

If you are aiming to crack your IELTS exam in a month, the most important thing is, to begin by devising a study plan and preparation strategy to work on each section of the exam. Make a study schedule to cover the syllabus of the exam for the first one and a half months and then spend the rest of the preparation period working on your strong and weak points as well as practising as many sample tests as possible.

Here’s a detailed preparation strategy on how to crack IELTS in 1 Month.

IELTS Study Plan For Weeks 1 – 2

• Kickstart your IELTS journey by dedicating the first two weeks to mastering the exam format. Gain a thorough understanding of scoring criteria, question types, time management, and difficulty level to navigate the test with confidence. 
• Tackle numerous practice tests to identify your strengths and weaknesses, then focus your efforts on targeted improvement. 
• Practice with time limits to build your speed and accuracy under pressure, empowering you to handle difficult questions within the designated time frame. 
• Fortify your core concepts by consulting respected IELTS prep books featuring the latest information, aligned with the current curriculum, and packed with practice tests and valuable resources.

IELTS Study Plan For Weeks 3 – 4

Here’s how you should spend your third and fourth weeks of IELTS preparation:

• Read More Books to strengthen your language foundation for the IELTS. Incorporating the habit of daily reading and listening to English content into your preparation routine.
• Immersing yourself in diverse written materials, like articles and novels, exposes you to a rich vocabulary and refines your understanding of grammar usage in context. 
• This not only expands your word pool but also enhances your ability to manipulate language effectively. Similarly, actively engaging with spoken English through podcasts, movies, and television shows offers invaluable benefits. 
• IELTS courses will provide you with a myriad of practice materials, including sets and sample papers, allowing you to tailor your learning journey and effectively hone your skills for the exam. 
• Such immersive programmes leverage the expertise of professional IELTS trainers who craft individualised study plans and provide ongoing guidance.

IELTS Preparation Tips: Best Tips and Tricks to Ace Your IELTS

Scoring a band 9 score in IELTS may seem like a herculean task to overcome; however, it is not impossible. Yes, it is true. With prior preparation and practice, acing the IELTS is achievable. That being said, propel your IELTS preparation journey with these tips and tricks. These insider tricks will not only help you better prepare for the exam but will also give you the confidence to tackle the challenges that may come your way. 

• Solving several sample questions and mock tests will help you get a good idea about the exam and its nuances which includes the order and duration of sections, the types of questions encountered, and the specific content domains addressed. Apart from that, you will also be able to develop effective strategies for tackling multiple-choice, open-ended, and integrated tasks. Practising mock tests regularly will eventually expose you to the range of difficulty levels encountered in the actual exam, enabling you to adjust your pace and focus accordingly.
• Investing in high-quality resources is crucial for maximising your IELTS preparation. Whilst purchasing the preparation resources, test takers must ensure that they mirror the most recent iteration of the IELTS, aligning with the current question types, structure, and content domains. Apart from that, you must always seek prep materials that are authored or published by recognised players of the domain. In other words, the books or resources that you purchase should contain reliable content and effective strategies. Not only that , test takers must prioritise resources that offer a substantial pool of simulated tests, replicating the exam format and difficulty level. 
• Set time limits for your preparations. Practising under time constraints will help you develop your ability to analyse information, come up with better answers, and perform tasks efficiently within the designated time frame. This improves both your speed and accuracy, maximising your score potential. Doing so will even train your mind to maintain concentration and sustained effort throughout the exam, mimicking the real-world experience. This fosters greater focus and mental resilience, enabling you to perform consistently throughout the entire test. Apart from that , regularly practising under timed conditions allows you to realistically gauge your strengths and weaknesses in each section. 
• To refine your language skills for the IELTS, consider actively engaging with a variety of English content. Immersing yourself in materials like novels, films, and documentaries can significantly strengthen your foundation in both vocabulary and grammar. This, in turn, equips you to handle the nuances of the exam. Through exposure to diverse vocabulary in context, you naturally expand your repertoire of words and expressions. This enriches your communication and equips you to tackle the vocabulary-related challenges of the IELTS. 
• Observing how language is used naturally in various mediums can subconsciously reinforce proper grammar. This exposure allows you to internalise grammatical structures and nuances, leading to more accurate and sophisticated use in your writing and speaking. Immersing yourself in different genres and formats refines your ability to navigate the various ways language is used to convey meaning and create specific effects. This enhances your comprehension skills and equips you to handle the diverse text types and question formats encountered in the IELTS.
• Practice is the key to success in IELTS. There’s no magic formula, just consistent effort. To pave your path to success, start by building a strategic study schedule with dedicated slots for each section. Stick to this plan as much as possible, consistently solving practice tests and honing your skills across all areas. By building this solid foundation, you’ll be ready to tackle even the most challenging IELTS questions with confidence.

Best Books For IELTS Preparation in 2024

Here are some of the best books to help achieve a Band 9 score in IELTS. Have a look. 

Individuals preparing to do grad abroad for the IELTS Exam can refer to the following table to go through the list of the best IELTS  preparation books. 

Name of the Book	Author/Publisher	Price	Purchase Link
The Official Cambridge Guide To Ielts Student’s Book With Answers	Pauline Cullen	INR 594	Click Here To Buy
R*barron’s Ielts Practice Exams	Lin Lougheed	INR 448	Click Here To Buy
IELTS Graphs from the past exam	Kiranpreet Kaur Makkar	INR 287	Click Here To Buy
Cambridge IELTS Academic 16 Student’s Book [paperback] Cambridge	Career Zone	INR 130	Click Here To Buy
Word Power Made Easy Including Latest Word List	Norman Lewis	INR 149	Click Here To Buy
IELTS WRITING ACADEMIC 2023	Karamveer Singh	INR 299	Click Here To Buy
Cambridge IELTS 18 academic with authentic papers	Cambridge Press	INR 234	Click Here To Buy

So that was all about the IELTS Exam. Hope the blog has answered your queries regarding the topic.

Related Blogs
IELTS Syllabus 2023 & Section-Wise Exam Pattern	IELTS Marking Scheme | IELTS Scoring System & Grading	IELTS Sample Tests: PDF (Download), Exam Pattern
IELTS Preparation Tips: General Tips and Section Wise …	IELTS Exam 2023 Dates, Registration, Result, Preparation	IELTS Eligibility: IELTS Exam Age Limit & Qualification

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