When asked if IELTS is difficult for the test takers, they responded that it is a moderate level for them. But the straightforward answer to this question is that it depends on every individual. Thus, you need to assess your command of the English language. Therefore, go through the section-wise IELTS exam difficulty level in this blog.
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Before finding out that is IELTS easy, let us understand about this exam. The IELTS exam is an English proficiency test conducted for candidates who desire to study or work abroad in English-speaking countries. Moreover, this test assesses the candidate's listening, writing, reading, and speaking skills. Furthermore, this exam is one of the most known exams for admission to the world's top universities in more than 140 countries. Also, there are 2 types of IELTS exam:
Both these tests are available to students online and offline. Furthermore, the exam dates for this exam are available almost all year round. Also, the IELTS exam pattern is not too tough to understand.
The biggest question here is: Is IELTS easy or hard? Read below for more clarity on this question.
Let us go straight to how hard is IELTS. It is said that the academic test is more difficult than the general one. So, students should have more mastery and command of the English language if they are looking for a study visa.
Furthermore, you need to assess yourself to know how difficult you find this exam. All the sections of this exam can be difficult in their own way. So, individually taking the IELTS practice test of each section can help you ace the test. Now, read below to know the difficulty level of each section individually.
The IELTS reading section consists of 40 questions that vary in both IELTS exam types. Moreover, the level of difficulty in the reading section is high for maximum candidates. It includes a huge amount of text to read in a limited time. Thus, this section raises the issue of IELTS difficulty level single-handedly.
There are two tasks in the IELTS writing section. In task 1, candidates need to describe a diagram or a graph for the academic test. In the general test, you have to write a letter. Moreover, in part 2, candidates are required to write an essay on the given topic in both test types. So, people find this section difficult because they have to give a good example within a limit of words and fully address the question in under 60 minutes. Furthermore, grammar and advanced vocabulary make this section more complex.
Most of the time, the IELTS exam difficulty level is assessed because of the issues people face in the listening section of this exam. Here, there are 40 questions and 4 types of recordings from the different speakers. The catch is that it is a fluent voice, and you can not listen to it more than 1 time. Moreover, it has different accents, which makes it more difficult to understand. So, you have to listen, remember, and then put the information in the response. Therefore, it requires a lot of concentration.
The speaking section of the IELTS exam includes 3 tasks and is held as a face-to-face interview with the examiner. Here, the first part is a personal introduction, the second part is a speech on a given topic, and the third part is a discussion with the examiner about the same topic. Moreover, the majority of people find this section more comfortable compared to other sections of the exam. However, it becomes difficult sometimes for the students to stay on the topic.
So, these were the reasons that raised the question of whether is IELTS tough. So, now you know the area where the majority of people struggle. So now, let us understand the average score that people got in each section of the IELTS exam in 2024.
Here, you will get to know how difficult is IELTS based on each section. So, the table below mentions the average IELTS band score of the candidates in each section.
| Exam Section | Average Score |
|---|---|
| Listening | 8 |
| Reading | 7.5 |
| Writing | 7 |
| Speaking | 7.5 |
So, here you can figure out which section is the best scoring and the least scoring in 2024 on average. Now, read the section below to learn how to tackle and score high in each section.
In this section, you will read about the ways to tackle the difficulties in each section of the IELTS exam that will improve your IELTS result for sure.
The major mistake that people make in this section is repeating the same thing again and again in different words. Also, it is a trend that people give a conclusion to their response in under 50 seconds and then repeat everything to cover the 2 minutes. So, it is better to make notes of what you have to say. Keep a normal pace use examples to cover the time and make the response more interactive.
You need to manage time for your responses as the recording will be very fast, and you will not have time to comprehend the question. So, all you need is concentration and focus on the recording. Furthermore, you can start listening to the podcast and listen to the songs to get familiar with the accent and fluency in the language.
You have to answer 40 questions in an hour for this exam section. So, to improve your reading skills, start reading magazines, books, or any other source, be it academic or general. Also, start reading the dictionary and try to enhance your vocabulary to understand the words in the text prompt you receive.
In this section, you have to write an essay on both types of IELTS exams. So, to improve your essay skills, outline the ideas you are going to write in the essay. Moreover, search for sample essays and practice more to improve your writing skills. Also, exceeding the word limit is a huge mistake. So, stick to the word limit and make the response readable.
Now, hopefully, you are clear with the IELTS exam syllabus and ways to tackle the difficulties faced in each section of the IELTS exam. So, the answer to the question of is IELTS exam difficult? Yes, but you can make it easy for sure. Thus, IELTS exam is not easy if you ignore the regular practice. Furthermore, some generic tips will help you score a good IELTS band score.
These are some of the tips that will help you score the desired score on the IELTS exam.
These are some of the tips that will help you score well in the IELTS exam. Work on these tips and then ask yourself, "Is IELTS hard?" It only requires practice and effort to score well in the exams.
To conclude, it can now be answered that is IELTS difficult? It majorly depends upon the individual and the amount of effort they put into the exam preparation. Moreover, you now also know the difficulties faced in each section. So you can work on them and boost your score on the IELTS exam. Still, if you face any issues, you can opt for our IELTS online coaching and offline coaching, where the academic efforts will help you in every task, and you will score well. Thus, start preparing now and make your dream of studying abroad a reality.
IELTS can be challenging for Indian students as they are non-native English speakers. One key difficulty lies in overcoming the influence of their mother tongue while adapting to the nuances of the English language
Yes, you can study for the IELTS exam on your own. The self-study resources are very useful to the students. Also, the British Council offers multiple free apps to help you study at your own pace.
The writing section of the IELTS exam is considered very difficult. The reason is that it requires a good command of the English language and writing ability. Also, you need to organize your thoughts and create clear ideas in a given time limit.
There is no such limit on the number of attempts to take the IELTS exam. You can take this exam as many times as you want. But keep in mind that every attempt requires a fee. So, it is beneficial if you strengthen your preparation and score desired marks in the first attempt.
The ideal time to take the IELTS exam is just before the topics are updated, typically in August, April, and December. The examination board usually introduces new speaking section topics in January, May, and September.
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