English Language Test - IELTS And How does it works

In Canada, being able to communicate and work in one or both of the official languages helps immigrants both socially and in the job market. Proof of language proficiency is a selection factor for some Canadian immigration categories, and in Canada, it is a key requirement for employment. Recent and prospective immigrants to Canada need information about what level of language proficiency is needed to successfully integrate into the Canadian workplace.

IELTS is one of the world’s most popular high-stakes English language tests, with over 3 million tests taken in the past year. And it’s the English test of choice for educational organizations, professional associations and employers across Canada. In fact, all universities and colleges in Canada accept IELTS, as well as all professional associations that have set minimum language requirements for professional registration.

Immigration to Canada is the process by which people migrate to Canada to reside in the country. A majority of these individuals become Canadian citizens. In order to be eligible for Canadian Permanent Residency application under the Federal Skilled Worker class, you must attain at least 67 points. You can get up to 28 points for your language skills. You must prove your language skills by taking a language test approved by Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC).

So here goes - Everybody has their own skill set. Some are good in speaking while some are good in writing. Some can read and analyze very well while others have good listening and memorizing skills.

• Firstly, play on the areas that can give you maximum score viz: Listening and Reading. Both these modules if done correctly, can assure you as much as 9 bands. Speaking and Writing score depends on the examiner views but L & R are totally objective and no one can deny you 9 bands if you have done all 40 questions right.

• Secondly, DON’T take any module lightly. Reading is usually considered as an easy module since it involves reading few paragraphs and answering questions but lately, Reading module has turned out to be among the most difficult one. People were finding it difficult to score even 7–7.5 bands in this module. So practice on all modules. Don’t take any module lightly.

• Thirdly, pretty obvious and yet most important is your practical experience. Practical means speaking on some off topics for a min or two without waiting for next line, writing a 150–200 words essay on any social or political affair topic with good control of the sentences and seamless flow. Improve yourself as a person and think like an examiner. What examiners are actually looking from you in that particular question and try to answer accordingly.

Do as many Demo test as possible. I can’t stress it enough. Take the demo exams in the real exam like situation. Sit in one module and time yourself. Don’t get up for anything until either you finish that module or the time expires.

There are tons of free IELTS material online. One google search will bring you top 10 websites.

Lastly, there are certain aspects that defines your band in each module. IELTS is pretty sophisticated exam and everything your write or say, trust me, everything you write & say will be responsible for your final score. Every module has certain obligations to score certain bands. The thing examiner looking for 7 bands, 8 bands and 8.5 bands are different and challenging as you go up.

The full detail of how bands are calculated are on the back of the result sheets and can be found online on their website as well. Go through the info and find it yourself what you need to have in your Speaking/Writing module to score 7–8 bands or more. For L & R, score depends mainly on the correct answers count so it is fairly easy to understand.

Good luck!!