Modules
Everything on this site that applies to the Academic module, in the order to work through it. No signup, no payment.
This free Academic IELTS course brings together every page on this site that applies to the Academic module. Take this module if you are applying to a university, or for professional registration in a field such as medicine, nursing or engineering.
Listening and speaking are identical in both modules. What is specific to Academic is the reading passages and Task 1, where you describe a chart, graph, table, map or process rather than writing a letter.
What is different
Two papers differ from General Training. The other two do not.
Three long passages from journals, books and newspapers, written for a non-specialist reader. Denser vocabulary and more sustained argument than General Training.
At least 150 words describing a chart, graph, table, map or process. You report what the data shows; you do not explain why or give an opinion.
An essay of at least 250 words, identical in format to General Training and worth twice the marks of Task 1.
Four sections, played once. Identical to General Training.
Three parts with an examiner. Identical to General Training.
University applicants and candidates for professional registration. Undergraduate courses commonly ask for 6.0 to 6.5 overall, postgraduate for 6.5 to 7.5, and medical registration often 7.0 in every skill.
Method
Six steps, in this order.
Institutions set their own requirements, and many ask for a minimum in each skill as well as an overall band. Find the exact figure before you plan anything.
The passages are long, so technique decides whether you finish. Skimming and scanning first, then the individual question types.
Describing trends, the prepositions, percentages and the overview. It has its own vocabulary and it is entirely learnable.
Worth twice as much as Task 1, and the paper where most candidates lose their writing band.
Identical to General Training, so nothing here is module-specific. Work on them throughout.
Under time, in one sitting, after the technique work rather than before it.
Practice
Five questions about what the Academic module asks for.
Reading: three long journal-style passages, all at similar difficulty.
Writing Task 1: describe a chart, graph, table, map or process in at least 150 words.
Everything else is the same as General Training.
1What does Academic Task 1 ask you to do?
Describe data. A chart, graph, table, map or process. The letter is General Training only, and the essay is Task 2.
2Should you explain why the data changed?
No. The chart shows what happened, not why. Speculating about causes is outside the task and earns nothing.
3How many passages are in the Academic reading test?
Three. All long, all at similar difficulty, forty questions in sixty minutes with no extra transfer time.
4Thirty correct answers out of forty. Which module gives the higher band?
Academic. Roughly Band 7 in Academic and Band 6 in General Training, because the General Training texts are easier.
5Is the speaking test different in the Academic module?
Identical. Listening and speaking are the same in both modules. Only reading and writing differ.
Universities and professional registration bodies require Academic. Migration programmes almost always require General Training. Ask the organisation before booking.
The complete IELTS course on IELTStestONLINE has video lessons on every question type, many more exercises like this one, and your own support tutor you can ask when an answer does not make sense. Take a look at the complete course
Knowing the format is straightforward. Whether your Task 1 report selects the right features is a judgement.
IELTStestONLINE keeps every score you get in one place, gives you an estimated band as you work, and assesses your writing and speaking against the four criteria so you can see where you stand before test day. See what full membership includes
University applicants, and candidates for professional registration in fields such as medicine, nursing and engineering.
Only reading and writing. Academic reading uses long journal-style passages, and Task 1 describes data rather than being a letter. Listening and speaking are identical.
Commonly 6.0 to 6.5 overall for undergraduate courses and 6.5 to 7.5 for postgraduate. Many also set a minimum in each individual skill.
The reading and writing material is more demanding, but you need fewer correct answers for the same reading band. Both use the same nine-band scale.
Yes. Every guide, explanation and practice exercise is open, with no account and no payment.
Full membership
Everything here is open. What it cannot do is tell you what band your Task 1 report or your speaking would actually receive.
IELTStestONLINE assesses your writing and speaking against the four IELTS criteria, instantly and as often as you like, using a system built by a former IELTS examiner and examiner trainer. It keeps every score in one place with an estimated band, and it carries no advertising.
See what membership includes