Take IELTS (Academic or General Training)
Choose the module, book paper or computer delivery, prepare for four skills scored on the 9-band scale, and use One Skill Retake instead of a full resit if one section falls short.
IELTS is the English test most universities, professional bodies and migration systems accept, run jointly by the British Council, IDP and Cambridge. The test itself is under three hours; the preparation that pays off is narrowly targeted at the four scoring criteria and the specific task formats, not general English.
Pick the right module
Book the test
Learn the four papers
Prepare in 4–8 weeks
Test day
Results and next steps
Questions
- What is the format?
- Listening 30 minutes (40 questions), Reading 60 minutes (40 questions), Writing 60 minutes (2 tasks), Speaking 11–14 minutes with an examiner. Listening, Reading and Writing are on one day; Speaking may be up to a week apart.
- How is it scored?
- Each skill gets a band from 0 to 9 in half-band steps; the overall band is their average, rounded to the nearest half band. There is no pass or fail — each institution sets its own minimum.
- How long are results valid?
- Two years from the test date for most universities and immigration authorities.
Sources
The numbers above come from these pages. If a fee or date here disagrees with the source, the source wins.
See also
Take the GRE General Test
GRE Verbal, Quantitative and Analytical Writing scores, valid five years
8–12 weeks of preparation · $220 in India and most countries · 6 stepsTake the digital SAT
A total SAT score of 400–1600 (Reading & Writing 200–800 + Math 200–800), sent to colleges via College Board
10–12 weeks of preparation · US$68 in the US · 6 steps