Difference Between IELTS General Training and Academic
All test takers take the same Listening and Speaking tests but different Reading and Writing tests. The distinction between IELTS Academic and IELTS General Training lies in the subject matter of the Reading and Writing components.
Listening, Reading and Writing must be completed on the same day, with no breaks in between them. The order in which these tests are taken may vary.
The Speaking test will either be after a break on the same day as the other three tests, or up to a week before or after the other tests. This will depend on your test centre.
The difference between two Reading tests is that you may have to read 3 longer and more complicated passages in Academic versus 4-5 smaller and easier texts in General Training.
The difference between Academic and General Writing test is that in the Academic you receive a graph and the task is to describe it in 150 words. In the General Training you receive a description of a real-life situation and the task is to write a letter about that situation.
Some Tips TO Help You Score Well In IELTS:
Given below are a few IELTS Preparation Tips that you must follow in order to maximize your learning and performance potential.
1. DO THE GROUNDWORK
Do your research before embarking on the test journey. Search for information available on the internet, and look through your circles to find previous ILETS takers. Know about the prelim aspects. IELTS test-takers are given scores, on a scale from 1 to 9, for each part of the test. These scores are then averaged out to form the final IELTS score out of 9 – with 9 for ‘expert user’ and 1 for ‘non-user’ of English language. Check in advance with universities that accept IELTS score.
Also, check the ILETS Score Required for each university. Prestigious universities (like Ivy League) require a score of 7.0 and above. Some lesser known universities may accept scores ranging between 5.0 and 7.0
There are currently two versions of the exam: IELTS Academic (for academic settings) and IELTS General Training (for work-related settings). Check which one do you need to take.
2. PLAN AHEAD
Allow for sufficient time for your mind to grasp the trivialities of English if you are a non-native speaker. Break down your preparation period into weeks and set a goal for every week. Reward yourself for meeting the goal. If you are short on time, adopt a 40:20 study plan, wherein you’d study for 40 minutes per hour and take a break for 20 minutes. Assess yourself and see if you’d require professional coaching for ILETS preparation.
Also, plan your test day well in advance. Ensure you have slept long and well enough to concentrate on the challenge ahead. Reach the center before time. Acquaint yourself with the location beforehand.
3. IELTS Listening Preparation Tips
It’s always a good idea to listen well. Listen to group discussions, lectures, debates, monologues, conversations, interviews, speeches, opinions and so on to develop a good listening base. Try to get the gist of your audio resource in the first go itself. Practice note-making while listening to the source. Notes may not be elaborate, but the sole focus should be on getting the ‘main idea’ onto the paper.
Read the questions before the recording starts playing in the test, so you selectively attend to specific extracts from the recording. Thorough listening will also help you form a sound base for the speaking section. Familiarize yourself with country-specific pronunciations and phonetic systems.
4. IELTS Reading Preparation Tips
One of the most prominent IELTS Preparation tips is – Read a lot! Reading helps open your mind to novel ideas and concepts. The more, the merrier!
Books, newspapers, magazines, web logs, research papers and even advertisements, find anything that’s readable and start reading it. Jot down the unfamiliar words and immediately look them up. Note the writing styles. In the end, write down a short paraphrase of the passage/source, and evaluate yourself on how well it captures the essence of the given source. Since IELTS is a more practical examination than TOEFL, try not to confine yourself to only academic resources. Read about diverse topics: business, education, entertainment, food, games, government, politics, science (and its many subgroups), sports and technology, and many more. You may be presented with data in the form of graphs/charts and tables, so spend some time interpreting these daily.
(There are differences in the Reading and Writing section of the Academic version and General Training version which can be checked here)
5. IELTS Writing Preparation Tips
Write your way into the university of your choice! This section is extremely important, as you are scored on the basis of coherence of your arguments, and also grammar and vocabulary.
Often students use a similar set of terms for a wide variety of phenomena, the most common examples being ‘beautiful’, ‘important’, ‘sad’, ‘boring’. ‘complete’ and so on. Try to avoid repetition of words. Befriend thesaurus and dictionary. Look up synonyms for the commonly used words. Don’t shy away from incorporating so-called ‘heavy’ words if you feel they fit in a sentence. Write at least semi-formally. Double check spellings and grammar usage. Do not write in bullet points. Follow the Golden Rule of writing: Clear. Crisp. Concise.
6. IELTS Speaking Preparation Tips
The best way of practicing Speaking skills would be to, of course, speak English as much as possible. Tape yourself speaking and self-evaluate the aspects of spoken language like fluency, word usage, pauses and voice breaks, sentence fillers like ‘um’ or ‘err’, the decibel at which you’re speaking et cetera. Emphasize on significant words. If you do not have a natural accent, do NOT attempt to fake one. Fake accents are a big no-no.
Read aloud. Try imbibing the good attributes of famous orators. Listen to news bulletins and radio in the English language and focus closely on speaking styles. Over time, minimize time taken to generate responses. In IELTS, there is little or no time to prepare your response during the test, so practice spontaneity and quick-wit.
Create opportunities for speaking in English as much as it possible. Request your peers and family to interact with you in English. If you maintain a personal diary, it may be helpful to switch to audio mode for some time, so you grow habitual in spoken English.
More IELTS Preparation Tips Online:
1. Persevere. Stay motivated and inspired. Tell yourself you can crack the test and get a 9 score in IELTS. When you believe in yourself, you will push yourself further to work hard.
2. If you don’t get a very good score initially, don’t lose heart. Success doesn’t get to you, you get to it.
3. Read instructions. A lot of students are caught off-guard in the very mid of the test because they didn’t read the instructions carefully. You do not want to be them.
4. Prepare for the test day in advance. If you have any queries, get them sorted during your preparation. You may not get the time afterwards.
5. Follow a good diet plan and exercise routine to keep yourself stress-free.
These were the IELTS Preparation Tips that help you prepare better for your IELTS examination. We wish you all the best for your IELTS Online Preparation!
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