Know How IELTS Exam Differ from Other Tests by Indore Expert

When you plan to study abroad, the first exam that you need to appear for is an English proficiency test. There are a lot of English proficiency tests out there. For example, IELTS exam, TOEFL, PTE, C1 advance, TOEIC, etc. The scores from these tests help you get admission to a foreign institute. Following are the views of the study experts from IELTS coaching in Indore on the various proficiency tests.

What is IELTS exam?

It is an International English Language Testing System. Hence, this is a test to assess a person's language skills. All four basic skills, listening, reading, writing and speaking, are tested in this exam. The IELTS exam lasts for around 2 hours and 45 minutes. The scoring is done in the form of bands with scores from 0 to 9. However, most colleges expect a band score of 6 or above for admissions. The IELTS scores are valid for a period of 2 years. Countries that accept IELTS include Canada, New Zealand, the USA, Australia, and more. There are two different types of IELTS available:

• IELTS Academic test
• IELTS General Training test

Why Do You Need to Take an IELTS Exam?

The very first reason that you need an IELTS score is to get admission to a foreign institute. If you plan on getting higher education from any institute abroad, you need your IELTS score. Since most of the top universities ask for an IELTS score with the application form. Therefore, the students who are about to study abroad choose the Academic test type. The second reason for you to appear for an IELTS exam is migration to a country where the spoken language is English. If you want to work or live abroad, then you should obviously go for the general training test.

In addition, this test allows you to pursue an undergraduate degree. Thirdly, you need an IELTS score for a visa application as well.

How is IELTS Better than Other Tests?

Although, there are a lot of English proficiency tests available for the students. However, IELTS is the most popular and preferred one. Most of the top institutes ask for an IELTS score during the application process. Along with that, some of the best authorities have developed this exam. For example, the British Council, IDP, etc. Moreover, IELTS is considered to be a test both for academics and professionals alike. Let's know the views of experts from IELTS coaching in Indore as to why most of the top colleges prefer IELTS over other tests.

IELTS vs TOEFL

TOEFL, or Test of English as a Foreign Language, is one of the other tests. It differs from the IELTS exam as follows:

• TOEFL takes almost 4 hours as compared to the 2 hours 45 minutes of IELTS.
• TOEFL has only multiple choice questions. On the other hand, IELTS has essay and short answer questions.
• The scoring for TOEFL is done by humans or machines. Although, in the case of IELTS, it is completely dependent on humans.
• The speaking section in TOEFL is of 20 minutes. Along with 6 sections. The IELTS has 11-15 minutes of 3 speaking tasks.
• Listening section in TOEFL has 4-6 recordings, and IELTS has only 4 recordings.
• In TOEFL, students need to answer a question related to a reading text and lecture in 320-350 words. The writing section in IELTS consists of 2 tasks of 150 and 250 words each.
• In the reading section, the two exams differ in the type of questions asked. TOEFL has MCQs only. However, IELTS has 3 to 4 different types of questions.

IELTS vs PTE

Another language test is the PTE or Pearson Test of English. The difference lies in:

PTE is a computer-based exam, whereas IELTS can also be given on paper.

• PTE focuses more on speaking-writing sections. Also these are combined sections. In IELTS all the four sections are given equal importance.
• The time for PTE is 2 hours 15 minutes, which is almost the same as IELTS.
• The listening task in PTE lasts for 45-57 minutes, and in IELTS, it is for 30 minutes.

IELTS vs C1 advance

• A test offered by Cambridge English is C1 Advance or CAE. It is different from IELTS:
• Compared to 2 year validity of IELTS, it is valid for a lifetime.
• CAE also has a grammar section with the four basic language sections.
• The CAE exam takes 4 hours to complete, whereas IELTS takes 2 hours and 15 minutes.

Conclusion

So, these are some ways in which IELTS is better than other language tests. But depending on the college, you might need to take the other tests as well. All these exams require you to prepare well. Students can choose IELTS online coaching, such as Gradding, to help them prepare for the exam. They provide mock practice tests and any other guidance you require.