The IELTS Academic test is going to be your opponent if you’re a student aspiring to pursue your undergraduate or postgraduate degree or even your PhD in a foreign country.
In some cases, professionals seeking international job opportunities may also need to face the IELTS Academic test.
You must already know by now that there are several types of IELTS exams to choose from. This version of the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) exam will evaluate your ability to use and comprehend academic language and is acknowledged by colleges and universities around the globe as validation of your English language proficiency.
Today, we’re going to take a look at the Academic version of the IELTS test and tell you everything you need to know about it. Understanding how this test differs from the other IELTS exams is the first step to defeating this formidable enemy.
Pillars of a Language- The Four Modules
The IELTS Academic test is made up of four modules. Two of them test your productive skills and the other two test your receptive skills.
Receptive Skills
The Reading and Listening modules involve receiving information, which is why they are classed as receptive skills. These tests require some form of language input.
Receptive skills are also commonly known as passive communication skills.
Productive Skills
The Writing and Speaking modules assess your ability to produce paragraphs, sentences and sometimes words or phrases. In other words, they involve some form of language output. That’s why they’re termed productive skills.
Alternatively, they’re called active communication skills.
The Listening Module
The IELTS test kicks off with the Listening section. It’s approximately 40 minutes long and will assess your ability to comprehend spoken English.
Before the test begins, you’ll be given a question paper and an answer sheet. The question paper contains a total of 40 questions that are divided into 4 sections; each section consists of 10 questions.
Every question is worth 1 point. That means if you get 36 answers correct, you’ll get 36 points. Your final score will be given as a band score in either whole or half bands between 1 and 9, for example, 6.5 or 8.0.
Also, it’s good to know that giving wrong answers won’t result in negative markings.
The answer sheet, on the other hand, only has spaces for you to write the answers. It’s the answer sheet that’s going to be checked so be careful while filling it as you’ll lose marks for spelling and grammar mistakes.
Along with the question paper and the answer sheet, you’ll also be given a pair of headsets. Every student will be listening to the same audio at the same time. You’ll have to listen to the recording and answer the questions in the question paper.
The recording is generally 30 minutes long and is going to be played just once. It won’t be repeated or paused.
Oh, also note that you’ll have to use a pencil for this section of the test.
The parts of the question paper are structured as follows:
| Type | Number of speakers | Example | |
| Part 1 | Conversation (every day, social situations) | 2 | Two friends planning a holiday trip. |
| Part 2 | Monologue (everyday social situations) | 1 | A speech about an art gallery. |
| Part 3 | Conversation (educational and training situations) | 2-5 | Two university students talking to their professor about an assignment. |
| Part 4 | Monologue (educational and training situations) | 1 | A university student presenting their research paper. |
Throughout the four parts, you’ll be listening to recordings (that will contain the answers) of English speakers talking at varying speeds in different accents such as Australian, British, North American, and New Zealand.
You’ll be given time to read the questions and at the end of each part, you’ll also be given time to review your answers.
After the recording stops, you’ll have 10 minutes to transfer the answers from the question paper to the answer sheet.
If you sit for the computer-delivered IELTS test, you won’t need to transfer the answers. So, you’ll be given 2 minutes to review your responses.
The Reading Module
Once the Listening section of the test is over, you’ll sit for the Reading test next.
This section of the exam is 60 minutes long. You’ll have to read three long texts and answer 40 questions.
The passages usually get progressively more difficult, meaning the first passage will contain relatively easier questions while the last passage will most likely have harder ones.
Like the Listening test, you’ll also be given a question paper and an answer sheet for this section. However, in this section, you’ll have to transfer the answers to the answer sheet during the test within the hour. You won’t be given any extra time for it.
The passages are usually taken from different sources such as:
- Journals
- Magazines
- Newspapers
- Academic books
- Online resources
The texts could be argumentative, descriptive, or narrative. They may also have elaborate and logical arguments.
The passages can also have some form of illustration or graph.
You may also come across a few technical terms; in such cases, you can expect to find an easy definition in the text.
While the topics for each of the passages are of general interest to candidates studying at undergraduate or postgraduate levels, you won’t require in-depth knowledge to be able to answer the questions.
The questions will evaluate your comprehension skills and your ability to recognize main ideas and find specific information.
You’ll get a point for each question you answer correctly. Again, your score won’t be deducted for giving an incorrect answer. Similar to the Listening test, you will be given a score from 1 to 9 in half or whole bands. And you’ll have to use a pencil to fill in the answer sheet.
The Writing Module
With writing, you’ll have reached the last leg of the journey.
For the final part of the test, you will be given two writing tasks and you’ll need to finish both of them.
Task 1: Report Writing
For Task 1, you’ll have to write a report. The question will contain some form of visual information. These can include:
- Tables
- Charts
- Graphs
- Diagrams
Your job is to explain, summarise, or describe the information in your own words. You’ll be asked to finish this task in 20 minutes and write at least 150 words.
One-third of your total writing score will come from Task 1.
Task 2: Essay Writing
For Task 2, you’ll have to write an essay. You’ll be presented with different perspectives, arguments, or problems, in response to which you must craft your answer.
You’ll have to provide reasons for your argument along with some examples or evidence before reaching a conclusion.
You’ll be advised to finish your essay in about 40 minutes and write a minimum of 250 words.
Task 2 will make up for the remaining two-thirds of your total writing score.
Both tasks require you to write your responses in proper sentences and should not include bullet points, numbered lists, or any kind of notes. You’ll lose points for grammatical and spelling mistakes.
You can give this section of the test either with a pencil or a pen.
The Speaking Module
The Speaking section of the IELTS test is generally held on a different day from the other three sections if you’ve registered for a paper-based IELTS exam and on the same day if you’ve registered for a computer-delivered IELTS exam.
This part of the test is going to assess your ability to communicate in English verbally. It will contain an interview with an expert Speaking examiner that can either be face-to-face or over a video call.
The Speaking test is divided into three parts. Each part is designed to examine your speaking skill in certain ways and hence follows a particular pattern of tasks.
Part 1: Introduction and Interview (4-5 Minutes)
The test will start with questions about yourself. The examiner will ask you around eight to fifteen questions about topics such as your hobbies, studies, or family.
Part 2: Task Card (3-4 Minutes)
For the next section, you will be required to give a short speech. The examiner will present you with a Task Card (also called a Cue Card) that will contain a topic you’ll have to talk about.
You’ll have 60 seconds to prepare and then you’ll have to give a speech that’s about 1-2 minutes long.
Part 3: Discussion (4-5 Minutes)
The final part of the test is again a conversation. This time, however, the questions are going to be based on the topic you have been given for the previous section.
The examiner will ask for your opinion on most of the questions and you must give detailed and lengthy answers for each. The number of questions you will be asked ranges from 4 to 7.
The total exam could last anywhere between 11 and 14 minutes and the entire session is going to be recorded.
Ace the Test
Hopefully, now you’ve got a comprehensive idea about the four sections of the IELTS Academic test. Now all that’s left for you to do is prepare for the test and get enough practice to achieve the band score you desire.
If you’re armed with the right resources, you can confidently face all four modules and ace your IELTS Academic test.
Remember that with a good IELTS Academic score, you can unlock your full potential and study at the university of your dreams.
Best of luck on your IELTS journey!
