{"id":985,"date":"2022-04-02T09:36:21","date_gmt":"2022-04-02T09:36:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/scribblingsofamedic.com\/?p=985"},"modified":"2022-04-02T09:36:21","modified_gmt":"2022-04-02T09:36:21","slug":"essential-language-skills-the-ielts-examination","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/scribblingsofamedic.com\/index.php\/2022\/04\/02\/essential-language-skills-the-ielts-examination\/","title":{"rendered":"ESSENTIAL LANGUAGE SKILLS \u2013 THE IELTS EXAMINATION"},"content":{"rendered":"

As a requirement for studying abroad, it was essential that I sit for an english proficiency examination. There are many to choose from including the IELTs and TOEFL. In order to enter medical school I sat for the IELTS \u2013 the International English Language Testing System. It is not as scary as it sounds if you have had most of your education in the english language, but it can be tricky even for the brightest. The examination in Sri Lanka is conducted by the British Council Sri Lanka atleast twice a month in many locations islandwide (click on the link<\/a> for more information).<\/p>\n

How do you register for the exam?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Using the link above you can register for the examination and pay for it online. It\u2019s pretty straight forward, just ensure you have your passport with you.\u00a0The exam currently (as of september 2018) costs approximately Rs. 24,100.\u00a0There are two types of IELTs exams \u2013 General and Academic. The General exam is often done by those who require it for migration or employment purposes whilst the Academic exam is done by those requiring it for studies.<\/p>\n

What does the exam consist of?<\/strong><\/p>\n

The academic and general exam consists of 4 components: reading, writing, listening and speaking. Each component is scored out of a band of 9. I have only ever done the academic exam (in 2007 before my biomedical sciences degree, 2010 before my medical degree and 2018 for my GMC registration). The reading, writing and listening components all happen at one setting \u00a0\u2013 normally at the BMICH. The speaking component happens at the British Council Test Venue on a different date (or you can email them earlier and ask if you can have it on the same date.<\/p>\n

Once you get to the venue where the paper is being held remember to get there early \u2013 you need to go through metal detectors and stand in a queue to get registered. You can\u2019t take much inside the test hall except for a see-through pencil case with the essential stationary and a see-through water bottle. They\u2019re pretty strict on this so read the instructions they send to you by email early and don\u2019t forget your ID!<\/p>\n

At the speaking venue you just basically sit until your number is called and then you are sent to a room with an examiner who will question you about different topics.<\/p>\n

Exam content<\/strong><\/p>\n

I have only revised and sat for the Academic version of the IELTS examination and so I will describe this version of the exam below. The General IELTS examination is an easier examination to sit for so if you can get through the academic version, you\u2019ll definitely ace the general exam. You can use either pen or pencil to answer the questions (I used pencil because erasing mistakes is always a benefit!).<\/p>\n

Listening<\/em><\/p>\n

This is the first part of the examination which is a 30 minutes and tests how well you understand spoken english. You put on headphones and listen to a conversation or a lecture for a couple of minutes. Then you can answer the questions on the paper. There will be a number of different accents you will hear \u2013 namely British and Australian. There are 4 topics for the listening exam and you have time allocated to answer the questions. There are different question types to be answered in the paper and so this requires correct spelling and legible handwriting. The best way to prepare for this if you\u2019re not familiar with spoken english is to listen to english being spoken well \u2013 via the TV or radio. \u00a0Once you receive the revision book from the British Council after you have registered they have a CD which has a number of conversations for you to listen to with revision questions attached. This is the easiest part of the examination to score so listen carefully!<\/p>\n

Some of the topics during my most recent IELTs listening examination was:<\/p>\n