Please share Your IELTS Experience-Badly needed

[Guest mike08]

Hi folks,

 

I'm doing a research for my Doctorate of Education at La Trobe University, Melbourne, Australia.It's about the problems people are experiencing when taking IELTS test.

 

I badly needed your help and you can only help me by sharing your experience,comments and complaints about IELTS test.

 

Hope everyone who will read this will have a heart to share his experience.

It would be a great help.Thank you.

 

Regards,

mike

[kyler]

Walked into the test without preparing and luckily made over 7 in each category. I was amazed I scored as low as 7.5 in the "listening" part considering I am a high school teacher

[bryansc]

Hi folks,

 

I'm doing a research for my Doctorate of Education at La Trobe University, Melbourne, Australia.It's about the problems people are experiencing when taking IELTS test.

 

I badly needed your help and you can only help me by sharing your experience,comments and complaints about IELTS test.

 

Hope everyone who will read this will have a heart to share his experience.

It would be a great help.Thank you.

 

Regards,

mike

 

Hi Mike. My name is Catherine, and I did pass the IELTS first time (was totally astonished that I did)!!! It was an awful experience. I think they make the reading passages so difficult and irrelevant on purpose!!!! There were 3 reading passages and no one could read and answer all the questions in 1 hour!!! The fact that your whole life in Australia rests on this exam is horrible......... If you read the other blogs about the IELTS you will see that people feel it is a money making scam and nothing else. If you want me to answer any other questions please feel free to ask.

[Guest cantwaittogo]

Hi Mike.

I did my Ielts test last month - the reading was absolutley horrendous - I got 7.5 , 8 and 9 for the 3 other sections and only a 6 for the reading as i did not finish.... and i have to resit the test as i needed a 7 in all four sections. I think its pathetic. My first language is English - I can't speak any other language!!!!! I agree it is a farce. If the reading was 2 passages it would be ok -I think its too much to try and take in and summarize in 1 hour. I have now researched very thoroughly on the net and am practicing my little butt off to do this again next month. There is also such a long waiting list that I had to wait 2 months before I could rebook (ridiculous).

Good luck - hope yours goes better than mine did !!

xx

[gareth and lisa]

I have to agree with previous posts, im a nurse breezed through 3 years of university academic training, have an O'level in English (a long time ago agreed) but found the reading very difficult. I went to Aston Uni all 3 times, felt like a number just hearded from one room to another for a whole day and paying way too much £120 + expences geting there. I Failed the first two attempts with a 6 & 6.5 on the reading, i had practiced bought books but something just didnt click with this section. The time limit is stupid and where do they get these samples from?? i could have fallen asleep after reading the first paragraph!!. for the third attempt i enrolled on a one months course (yet another £35 on top of everything else!!) but passed the reading only to fail on the writing. Which has now been overturned today yiippeee from a 6.5 to a 7.5, took 9 weeks of waiting and another £60 but should be refunded. Overall i find the test pointless and degrading to people born and bred from this country and if i hadnt had the remark i would have said stuff Australia i will take my nursing skills to a country who appreciates them. Sorry for the rant but this test has caused many sleepness nights and expence. Overall my experience of this test was bad, from cancelled tests, huge expence involved, difficulty in reading due to time and somethimes the writing question did not make sense either!!

Lisa

[Guest cantwaittogo]

Hi all,

I am re-sitting my IELTS test in Leeds on Thursday 15th July and was wondering if any one else on this site would be there on that day.

I got 8, 8 and 9 for other 3 sections apart from the dreaded reading - needed a 7 for my Nursing skills assessment and sadly only got a 6 !! (I could not be more english speaking!!!!):arghh:

Any tips or advice would be very handy please.

 

Thanks so much

Greatly appreciated.

Tina

[theandersons]

I took the test in London, and was surprised to only score 7.5 on the listening.

To be honest I was a bit nervous about the test but found it not too bad after all, although the listening test found me daydreaming a little.............so pay attention !!

 

I am in the UK and English is my first language, so a bit ridiculous being tested by individuals who's first language was clearly not English!

[Guest morty]

The ielts was probably one of the worst experiences of my life. Thankfully i passed first time with better marks than i expected. The whole day was so nerve racking even the speaking test. I am born and bred English with a University qualification and i cant understand how this isnt enough to prove my competency at English, plus i had 3 interviews for my job offer, so my employers were happy with my level of English.

 

The writing test i dont think gave you enough time to write 2 short reports on subjects you have no knowledge of. The reading section was really difficult, i can read the passages perfectly, but the questions were misleading and i spent far too long trying to work out what was being asked of me. Listening for me was ok, no issues with that test. The speaking test was ok, but i felt a little bit degraded having to prove my level of spoken english if its my first and only language.

 

All in all its a massive money making scheme (which i wish i had thought of !!), which i know has its benefits and it is unfortunate that people who were born and schooled in Britain and speak the language are made to do this test, for what i see we are made to do so, so they are not seen to discriminate against others.

 

I am just thankful now, that is over and i passed and i don't have to worry about re-sitting and going through all the stress again.

 

Goodluck to everyone who is due to sit the test for the first time or due to re-sit. :spinny::spinny:

[Guest mike08]

Whenever, you get high scores with one low one, I strongly urge you to appeal your results in IELTS. I know that you have to pay more money, but refunded if IELTS increase your score. It takes up to 6 weeks, but with your score I think it will be increased.

When you fill out the form, write on the side why you believe that they posted an incorrect result. There is no room provided for complaints but I tell people to do it. Otherwise, how would they know what your beef is about?

I always thought that the Australian Department of Immigration and Citizenship accepted as proof that you had functional English, if you showed that your primary and secondary education was completed in English. I better re-read the rules and get back to this Forum.

[woodymcfc]

Why is it that 90% of people are failing on the Reading part only. My oh has sat and not got the required mark on 3 occasions, she will be trying again on the 17th July in Manchester. Do the ielts hierarchy not realise that maybe someting is missing if that many native English speaking people are failing this part? Or would it be fair that the Australian organisations accept an overall mark of 7 as acceptable? That would have saved us about 8 months and over £400 !!!!!

[Guest Guest41869]

I passed the ielts exam first time last month with an overall score of 8.5. Having read other peoples' comments on how awful it was i was a nervous wreck before it and was so convienced i would fail it i had booked and paid for a second test! I didn't find it difficult at all in fact having been on maternity leave for the past 5 months it was quite enjoyable to use my brain. It also helped that i was given the topic of television to answer questions on in the talking section ( the lady had to stop me i went on so much!). I am by no means the brains of Britain and really struggle with spelling. I wonder if nerves and anxiety effect the outcome for some people and if all the hype and negative comments by some are leading to people going into the exam in a really negative and anxious frame of mind, it certainly did with me.

[Guest AustrAnglian]

Rusty exam technique was my biggest problem. This was my first exam since the 90's and it was harder going than I anticipated - as a native speaker it's easy to be complacent beforehand, but once in the hot-seat I found I had to concentrate properly on both the content and especially the timing of each section.

 

Luckily I did enough to get through first time. With hindsight I would have bought the practice papers and put a bit more time in beforehand. I did the general test so just hoping I don't have to go back and redo the academic when they announce the new rules on July 1.

 

Good luck to everyone about to sit their test - it'll be worth it in the end.

[woodymcfc]

I passed the ielts exam first time last month with an overall score of 8.5. Having read other peoples' comments on how awful it was i was a nervous wreck before it and was so convienced i would fail it i had booked and paid for a second test! I didn't find it difficult at all in fact having been on maternity leave for the past 5 months it was quite enjoyable to use my brain. It also helped that i was given the topic of television to answer questions on in the talking section ( the lady had to stop me i went on so much!). I am by no means the brains of Britain and really struggle with spelling. I wonder if nerves and anxiety effect the outcome for some people and if all the hype and negative comments by some are leading to people going into the exam in a really negative and anxious frame of mind, it certainly did with me.

 

 

 

I must mention, although you all may be aware, that there is 2 standards to the IELTS. Thats the general and the academic, the academic being much more difficult. The Academic is the one that Nurses must take for registration..................

[Guest Guest41869]

I must mention, although you all may be aware, that there is 2 standards to the IELTS. Thats the general and the academic, the academic being much more difficult. The Academic is the one that Nurses must take for registration..................

 

 

I did sit the academic one as i am a nurse, sorry if i can't agree with everyone who posts, i just didn't find it as difficult as i had been led to believe

[gareth and lisa]

I did sit the academic one as i am a nurse, sorry if i can't agree with everyone who posts, i just didn't find it as difficult as i had been led to believe

 

Well all i can say is well done, but i do think your in the minority. Out of 10 people i have met (agreed very small sample size) on ielts, non passed first time, 2 on second time, me on third and all the others are still waiting to pass one friend took her 5th attempt the other week and failed again, all English born and bred. People need to be aware of what the test is and as you say that was your opinion and others are stating theirs.

[Guest cosmicsis]

Hi there, I did my IELTS in Feb this year and had studied prior to it (hated every minute). Passed luckily and i mean pure luck on the day. I would have rather have given birth again than sit the exam (and i usually love doing them as i find them a challenge). I find it strange that although i had my skills assessed as a nurse (before July 09) that they had accepted me in order to get a visa to emigrate but to register as a nurse (although i have lived and worked and trained as a nurse in the UK) that i had to do it. I know that requirements changes after July 09. I was really cross thinking about how much it had cost and the prospect of having to pay for the whole thing again if i didn't get the grade in all areas.

I agree with others that i feel it is another money making scam, although i appreciate why they are asking for it. My only request would be if someone failed to make the grade on one section, that they could just resit and pay for that section, rather than the whole thing at £110 a go. Thanks, Claire

[Guest Guest41869]

Well all i can say is well done, but i do think your in the minority. Out of 10 people i have met (agreed very small sample size) on ielts, non passed first time, 2 on second time, me on third and all the others are still waiting to pass one friend took her 5th attempt the other week and failed again, all English born and bred. People need to be aware of what the test is and as you say that was your opinion and others are stating theirs.

 

I don't think being born and bred in England has anything to do with it, as you suggest if it did the pass rate for those who are would be 100%. It is an exam which requires a certain approach practicaly and mentally, no more, no less. Not getting 7 in all areas is no reflection on how clever you are. If you score 6 it is not a fail it just means you have not got the score asked for. I was just hoping to re balance the argument for those who have not sat it and are worried as i was. I found too much negativity, blaming the exam, conspiratory theories ect which led to me having many sleepless nights. I wish people would stoping blaming other factors for them not scoring 7 and take on board the practical advice others are trying to offer and stop attacking people who have passed it for offering an opioion when it is asked for, it's a hoop, either jump through it or give up, it's up to you. I shall now brace myself for the insults which are bound to come my way!!

[Guest cosmicsis]

I did say that i agreed with why they are doing it - so if you get a 6 it is not a fail? You failed to get the grade is what i meant which means unfairly that the whole test has to be done again!. I was just asked an opinion and gave it. No blaming, just suggested that rather than paying the full amount again to sit the whole exam that the person could just resit the part they didn't make the grade on. I know people who have said they got 8's and 9's on here but failed a certain section and when they resat it, they may have a lower grade on the ones they passed on the first time - so is this fair? iI appreciate that if you are lucky enough to be able to apply and be registered and work in oz then this is the hoop that you have to jump through - all i was suggesting if changes are to be made would be a fairer way of resitting the sections people didn't make the grade on and it is this that frustrates people i believe? Views anyone?

[Shaz36]

Hi,

I sat the general test, and passed first time with a 9 overall. It certainly wasnt easy, but with enough studying and preparation, it wasnt unduly difficult either. I also studied the academic past papers, and would have been equally ok with sitting that one, and actually preferred that one!

 

I think the biggest hurdle is getting over the nervousness, as we all realise that so much depends on us passing this, that we get anxious and this impairs our performance. I would recommend doing loads of test papers and being really familiar with the format of the exam. Practice lots of scenarios for the spoken part, and prepare some draft essays for the written part to get you into the swing of things. You never know, the topic may come up. I also found the reading part tricky, but once you do plenty of practice ones, you soon realise the angle they take with the questions.

 

Good luck to anyone still to sit it.

 

Shaz

[Guest cosmicsis]

Hi, I agree Shaz, my anxiety was that i was aware that if i didn't make the grade then i would have to wait several months before another exam date was available and the fact that it would mean another £110. I too found it a real help to do revision first and would definately recommend it and free on line listening tests too. Perhaps if people were less anxious knowing that they could resit the session they failed to make the grade on (on that day), it would produce less anxiety and thus more people may pass first time? But then the councils would make less money from it so why would they do that?

[Guest morty]

Hi, I agree Shaz, my anxiety was that i was aware that if i didn't make the grade then i would have to wait several months before another exam date was available and the fact that it would mean another £110. I too found it a real help to do revision first and would definately recommend it and free on line listening tests too. Perhaps if people were less anxious knowing that they could resit the session they failed to make the grade on (on that day), it would produce less anxiety and thus more people may pass first time? But then the councils would make less money from it so why would they do that?

 

Hi

 

i totally agree with everything you said :yes:, especially about resitting just the section that you didnt score high enough on. Another thing is the lack of test dates and availability, i had to wait two months for my test date and had i failed i would of had to wait another 6 - 8 weeks to get onto another test date.

 

To be honest i hated reading the negative comments as i scared me however, it REALLY helped !!! Had i not of read them I would have probably gone in a bit cocky and thought it would be easy, instead it motivated me to revise and practice. It must of done the trick as i passed, with marks much better than i expected.

[Guest mike08]

I agree with many of these comments. By the way, I am aware of people who have sat for IELTS more than 16 or 18 times in trying to gain their minimum requirements. Each of these candidates had one or two masters.

What is being missed in this Forum is that the IELTS test is a commercial product being sold as a test of one’s English proficiency. Is there any independent research backing that claim?

Soon after Seek Ltd purchased 50% of IDP Australia, the Department of Immigration and Citizenship was convinced to change the acceptable rate for English proficiency from an average of 7, to getting a minimum of 7 in each of the four bands.

Instead of 20% of candidates obtaining an average of 7, only 4% can obtain a minimum of 7 in the four bands in one sitting.

Does anyone seriously believe that all these 96% of candidates do not have a proficiency in English?

The whole process becomes even more ridiculous when one reads the following:

A recent publication from Skills Australia, “Australian Workplace Futures” points out that

“....the 2006 Adult Literacy and Life Skills Survey indicates that 40 per cent of employed Australians and 60 per cent of unemployed Australians have a level of literacy below the accepted standard needed to work in the emerging knowledge-based economy.”

One would think that many of the candidates would gain higher scores than most Australians as they usually hold a number of degrees including one or two masters.

Is this fair, or worse, is it racism?

[Graemsay]

I found the IELTS test pretty easy, and passed first time with 9s in every band except writing, where I got an 8.5.

 

One problem that I had (and I emailed the IELTS organisation about) is that some of the sample questions would have a very tenuous logic to them. For example, you might get a passage along the lines of:

 

South American countries have dominated football for the last fifty years.

 

Then the question might be:

 

Are North American countries soccer specialists? (True, false, not given.)

 

Strictly speaking, it's not given. If I tried to pull that sort of logic off in an essay then I'd be rightly marked down. But the IELTS sample paper had a question like that where the answer was false.

 

I suspect that a lot of the comments about IELTS not being fair are down to two factors:

 

1. People don't get the marks that they expect. Especially when they're native speakers.
   
2. Exams aren't necessarily a good way of assessing ability accurately. A few years back I heard that A-levels could easily be a grade out in either direction for a candidate.
   

 

[gareth and lisa]

I found the IELTS test pretty easy, and passed first time with 9s in every band except writing, where I got an 8.5.

 

One problem that I had (and I emailed the IELTS organisation about) is that some of the sample questions would have a very tenuous logic to them. For example, you might get a passage along the lines of:

 

South American countries have dominated football for the last fifty years.

 

Then the question might be:

 

Are North American countries soccer specialists? (True, false, not given.)

 

Strictly speaking, it's not given. If I tried to pull that sort of logic off in an essay then I'd be rightly marked down. But the IELTS sample paper had a question like that where the answer was false.

 

 

I suspect that a lot of the comments about IELTS not being fair are down to two factors:

1. People don't get the marks that they expect. Especially when they're native speakers.

2. Exams aren't necessarily a good way of assessing ability accurately. A few years back I heard that A-levels could easily be a grade out in either direction for a candidate.

 

Were you Academic or general????

[Graemsay]

I did the general paper.

 

I actually asked if I could switch to the academic test because I found the reading section easier as the language tended to be more precise in the sample questions, though the vocabulary used was more difficult. The centre wouldn't let me, as it would have been a last minute change.