Which exam to take: IELTS Academic or IELTS General Training

So, you are planning to take the IELTS exam but are not sure which one to take, IELTS Academic or IELTS General Training. Well, you are not the only one, there are many candidates who face the same question. No worries! In this blog post, we’ll walk you through every detail of each of these exams so that you are able to make the right decision. You’ll also learn how IELTS Academic is different from IELTS General Training Exam. Let’s first understand the purpose or the goal of each of these categories.

PURPOSE:

IELTS Academic

IELTS Academic measures English language proficiency needed for an academic, higher learning environment. Broadly speaking, the Academic format is for those who want to:

• Study or train in a university that teaches English at the undergraduate or postgraduate level, or institutions of higher and further education.

But that’s not all, a wide range of jobs also require this version of the exam. So, you might need to sit the Academic IELTS if you want to

• Work for a professional organization in an English-speaking country.

For instance, professions such as medical, nursing, accounting, and engineering require an Academic test result for registration purposes in many countries. Therefore, if you are applying for a work visa in one of the above categories, you must check with your institution before registering for the test. Alright! So, this was about academics, now let’s see who all needs to go for General Training.

IELTS General Training

IELTS General Training measures English language proficiency in a practical, everyday context. The tasks and texts you get in the exam reflect both workplace and social situations. The General Training version of the test is typically for those who want to

• Migrate to English-speaking countries like Australia, the UK, Canada, and New Zealand.
• who want to do secondary education,
• or get work experience and undertake training programs in a country where English is the language of communication.

So, your choice of the exam clearly depends on the purpose of going abroad. You must plan carefully before you register for the IELTS exam. Let’s move on to understanding the similarities and differences in the exam format and scoring.

FORMAT:

Both GENERAL & ACADEMIC exams test your English language abilities in four areas:

1. Listening
2. Speaking
3. Reading
4. Writing

Let’s go over the format of each one of them separately. 

Listening Test Format

There is only one listening test for all IELTS candidates. That means Academic and General Training candidates will take the same listening test with the same scoring.

• The IELTS listening test lasts for a total of 30 mins.
• There are four parts to the IELTS listening test:

1. First is a conversation between 2 people in a social context
2. Second is a speech or talk with one person again in a social context
3. The third is a conversation between up to four people in an educational or training context
4. And fourth is a talk by one person on an academic subject

• You have to answer questions based on what you have heard.
• And you will receive one mark for each correct answer.

Speaking Test Format

In terms of the Speaking Test, there is only one test for all IELTS candidates. That means Academic and General candidates will take the same speaking test with the same scoring.

• The test is conducted face to face with an examiner in a room.
• It lasts for 11 to 14 mins (not more and not less.)
• The examiner controls the time and length of your answers.
• The test has three parts.
• Part 1 consists of 8-10 questions and lasts for 4 to 5 minutes.
• Part 2 is a talk for 1-2 mins with rounding off the question for 1 minute.
• Part 3 is a discussion that lasts for 4 to 5 minutes.

Alright! So, the Speaking and Listening sections are the same for both the versions of IELTS – no difference in the format, types of questions, and scoring. However, the other two sections, Reading and Writing, are different. Let’s see how.

Writing Test Format

The Writing Test consists of two writing tasks, Task 1 and Task 2. You get 60 minutes to complete both tasks. You have to write at least 150 words for task 1 and 250 words for task 2. The main difference is in Task 1.

• Academic writing task 1 is a report on a chart, which could be – a bar chart, line graph, pie chart, table, map, diagram, or process.
• General Training writing task 1 is a letter only. The letter could be formal, semi-formal, or informal in style.
• Academic writing task 2 is a formal essay. The common types of essays are Opinion, Discussion, Advantage/Disadvantage, Direct Questions, and Solutions.
• General Training Writing Task 2 is the same as Academic i.e. essay writing. The essay is written in the same way and the scoring is the same. The only difference is that GT essay questions are often easier and topics are simpler.

Also, the writing test marking criteria is also identical for both versions.

Reading Test Format

The IELTS General Training Reading test is different from academic reading in a number of ways but mainly due to the language and difficulty level of the texts. Academic and General Reading tests, both last for 60 minutes and include 40 questions in total. You’ll receive 1 mark for each correct answer. 

General Reading consists of three sections:

• Section 1 is based on one, two, or three texts, and could be for example an advertisement for a job or educational course.
• Section 2 comprises more than one text that often relates to the workplace.
• And the final section, Section 3 is usually one long text.
• These texts are taken from books, magazines, newspapers, notices, advertisements, company handbooks, and guidelines. These are materials you are likely to encounter on a daily basis in an English-speaking environment.

Academic Reading consists of,

• Three long and complex passages on academic topics such as science, history, and sociology.
• These are taken from books, professional and academic journals, magazines, and newspapers.

Besides the format, the other remarkable difference is in the scoring of the IELTS reading section. There is a difference between one band. For example, suppose you get 30 out of 40 answers correct in IELTS Reading.

 In general training reading, that’s an IELTS Band of 6. But 30 out of 40 gets you a 7 in academic reading. To conclude, with the same number of correct answers, you get a higher band in IELTS academic reading as compared to IELTS general training reading. 

We hope this information will help you make the right decision. Before concluding I would say understand your requirements, choose the version accordingly and start preparing right away!

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