Academic and General Training, taught to the marking criteria rather than to a question bank. Diagnostic first, then a plan built backwards from the band your offer actually requires.
IELTS is the default English test for the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and Ireland. Four papers, one band score, and a marking scheme that rewards consistency far more than brilliance in one skill.
| Section | Questions | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Listening | 40 | About 30 minutes |
| Reading | 40 | 60 minutes, includes transfer time |
| Writing | 2 tasks | 60 minutes |
| Speaking | 3 parts | 11 to 14 minutes, face to face with an examiner |
Total test time is 2 hours 45 minutes. Listening and Reading are marked out of 40 each.
There are two versions of IELTS and they are not interchangeable. Academic is the one universities require. General Training is for migration, work and some below degree study. Both give you a band score from 0 to 9, both take the same total time, and both are accepted for UK SELT purposes in their respective UKVI forms. What differs is two of the four papers.
| Paper | IELTS Academic | IELTS General Training |
|---|---|---|
| Listening | Identical. Same 40 questions, same recordings | |
| Speaking | Identical. Same three part interview with an examiner | |
| Reading | Three long academic texts from journals, books and reports, of the kind you would meet on a degree | Notices, advertisements, handbooks and one longer general interest text |
| Writing Task 1 | Describe a graph, table, chart, map or process in 150 words | Write a letter, formal or informal, in 150 words |
| Writing Task 2 | Academic essay, 250 words | Essay on a general topic, 250 words, slightly less formal in register |
| Who it is for | Undergraduate and postgraduate admission, and professional registration | Migration to the UK, Australia, Canada and New Zealand, work, and training below degree level |
The Reading papers are marked on different scales. Because the General Training texts are easier, it takes more correct answers to reach the same band, so General Training is not the softer option it looks like.
Sitting the wrong version is the most expensive mistake in IELTS. A General Training result will not be accepted for a university offer, and the test fee is not refunded because you picked the wrong one. We confirm which version your offer or visa route actually names during the diagnostic, before you book anything.
You get a band from 0 to 9 for each paper, and the overall band is the average of the four, rounded to the nearest half band. The rounding rule matters more than most candidates realise: an average ending in .25 rounds up to the next half band, and one ending in .75 rounds up to the next whole band. A 6.875 becomes a 7.0. That single half mark in Writing is often the difference.
IELTS publishes its own guidance to universities on what each band means:
| Band | Linguistically demanding courses | Less demanding courses |
|---|---|---|
| 7.5 to 9.0 | Acceptable | Acceptable |
| 7.0 | Probably acceptable | Acceptable |
| 6.5 | English study needed | Probably acceptable |
| 6.0 | English study needed | English study needed |
| 5.5 | English study needed | English study needed |
Source: the official IELTS guidance on setting entry scores. Individual universities set their own thresholds, and many also set a per-paper minimum.
Writing is the bottleneck. Across our cohorts it is almost always the lowest of the four papers, and it is the one most likely to carry a per-paper minimum from the university. We weight teaching time accordingly rather than splitting it evenly across four skills.
These two come up in almost every consultation we run, and both cost students money when they get them wrong.
The British Council does not deliver the IELTS test in India. All IELTS testing in India is managed by IDP. The British Council offers preparation in India, not the test sitting. If a coaching centre implies otherwise, check.
IELTS Online is not accepted for immigration or professional registration. It is Academic only, age 18 and over, and results come in six to eight days. For a student visa or a professional body, you need a test centre sitting. We see candidates book IELTS Online for a visa application every intake, and the test fee is not refundable for that mistake.
IELTS has moved towards computer delivered testing, with timelines varying by market, so check what your test centre offers when you book. The skills assessed and the way scores are interpreted stay the same. We teach on computer by default and have done for some time.
If one paper lets you down you can retake that paper alone, rather than the whole test. The conditions are specific: you must have taken IELTS on computer, at a centre that offers the service, and you must book and complete the retake within 60 days of the original sitting. One retake per full test. IELTS itself advises checking that your receiving institution accepts it before you book, because acceptance is not universal.
A complete timed test under real conditions before we teach anything. It tells us your starting band per paper, not an average, and which of the four is actually holding you back.
Every Writing Task 1 and Task 2 you submit comes back marked against the four official criteria with the band for each. Not a grade, a diagnosis.
Recorded three-part practice with a teacher playing the examiner. You hear yourself back, which is uncomfortable and by far the fastest way to fix fluency and pronunciation.
Five things are in every test preparation programme we run, whatever the exam and whatever the level you start at.
Every programme includes dedicated one to one sessions with your own teacher for the questions that came up after class. Booked when you need them, not parked until the next group session.
The recording reaches you the same day, every time. Miss a class for a school exam, a work trip or a bad week and you have not missed the lesson. It is also the fastest revision tool you will have in the last fortnight.
Not a question bank. Complete timed papers sat under exam conditions, marked the way the board marks them, with a per section breakdown so you know which paper is costing you the score and not just that your total is short.
Before you start, we set the target and the timeline. Midway, we reset it against your mock results. Before you book the exam, we confirm you are sitting the right version on the right date. Teaching without this is just hours.
If a group cohort is not right for you, the whole programme can run one to one. Your own teacher, your own pace, sessions timed around school or work, and a plan built only around your weakest paper.
Our English faculty is made up of teachers trained through Cambridge English and British Council teacher development programmes.
It matters for one reason. A teacher who knows how the official band descriptors are actually applied can tell you why a piece of writing scored 6 and not 7, and precisely what to change. A teacher without that training can only tell you it read well.
Picking the wrong exam costs a year. TAICF, our own assessment framework, reads your academic record, your target countries and your deadlines, then tells you which test your shortlist actually accepts and what order to sit things in.
How TAICF worksIt depends on where you are starting. Below 6.0, a full band usually takes eight to twelve weeks of structured work. From 7.0 upward, half a band can take just as long, because the marking criteria get stricter and the gains come from precision rather than volume. Anyone promising you a two-band jump in a month is selling something.
Two years is the standard recommendation, though accepting organisations may extend it at their discretion. Plan your sitting so the result still covers you at the point of registration, not just at the point of application.
It depends entirely on where you are applying and for what. IELTS is the safest default for the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and Ireland. PTE has the fastest results and is strong for Australia and New Zealand. TOEFL is preferred in the United States. If you are applying across several countries, we check every offer on your shortlist before you book anything, because the wrong test means paying twice.
IDP India lists IELTS Academic and General Training at INR 19,000, IELTS for UKVI at INR 19,250, and One Skill Retake at INR 12,650. The British Council in the UAE lists computer-delivered Academic and General at AED 1,590 and IELTS for UKVI at AED 1,680. Fees change without notice, so confirm on the official booking page before you pay.
Yes, through One Skill Retake, if you sat the test on computer at a participating centre and you book within 60 days. You get one retake per full test. Check first that your university or immigration authority accepts a One Skill Retake result, because not all of them do.
Book a free consultation at Gurugram or Dubai Silicon Oasis. We run a full-length diagnostic first, then build the plan backwards from your target score and your application deadline.
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