Listening (30 minutes)

You will listen to four recorded texts, monologues and conversations by a range of native speakers,
and write their answers to a series of questions. These include questions which test the ability to
understand main ideas and detailed factual information, ability to understand the opinions and
attitudes of speakers, ability to understand the purpose of what is said and ability to follow the
development of ideas. A variety of voices and native-speaker accents is used and you will
hear each section only once.

*The Listening component is the same for both Academic and General Training versions.

Section 1
A conversation between two people set in an everyday social context, e.g. a conversation in an
accommodation agency.

Section 2
A monologue set in an everyday social context, e.g. a speech about local facilities.

Section 3
A conversation between a maximum of four people set in an educational or training context, e.g. a
university tutor and a student discussing an assignment.

Section 4
A monologue on an academic subject, e.g. a university lecture.

Listening sample test questions

http://www.ieltsessentials.com/prepare/free_ielts_practice_tests/listening_practice_test_1.aspx

IELTS Listening practice tests

The Listening test is 30 minutes long (plus 10 minutes transfer time) and covers four
separate recordings.

The Listening test is the same for both Academic and General Training tests.

There are four sections:

Section 1 is a conversation between two people set in an everyday context (eg. a conversation in
an accommodation agency).

Section 2 is a monologue set in an everyday social context (eg. a speech about local families).

Section 3 is a conversation between up to four people set in an educational or training context (eg.
a university tutor and student discussing an assignment).

Section 4 is a monologue on an academic subject (eg. a university lecture).

Listening sample tasks

The following IELTS Listening Sample Tasks are to be used with the answer sheet and MP3 audio
files/transcripts. Each answer sheet indicates which recording to listen to, or if a transcript is
provided.

Section 1
 Listening Sample Task - Form Completion (PDF, 59KB)
 IELTS Listening Recording 1 (MP3, 1.2MB)
 Listening Answer Sheet (PDF, 233KB)

Section2 (Sample A)
 IELTS Listening Recording Section 2 (Sample A) (MP3, 402KB)
 Listening Sample Task - Multiple Choice (PDF, 25KB)
 Listening Answer Sheet (PDF, 233KB)

Section 2 (Sample B)
 IELTS Listening Recording Section 2 (Sample B) (MP3, 402KB)
 Listening Sample B Questions (PDF, 25KB)
 Listening Sample B Answer Sheet (PDF, 233KB)

Section 3 (Sample A)
 IELTS Listening Recording (Sample A) (MP3, 574KB)
 Listening Sample Task - Short Answer (PDF, 17KB)
 Listening Answer Sheet (PDF, 233KB)

Section 3 (Sample B)
 IELTS Listening Recording (Sample B) (MP3, 549KB)
 Listening Sample B Questions (PDF. 21KB)
 Listening Sample B Answer Sheet (PDF, 233KB)

Section 4
 IELTS Listening Recording 4 (MP3, 549KB)
 Listening Sample Task - Sentence Completion (PDF. 21KB)
 Listening Answer Sheet (PDF, 233KB)

More IELTS practice tests

IELTS Academic practice tests

 Speaking practice
 Reading practice test
 Writing practice test

IELTS General Training practice tests

 Speaking practice
 Reading practice test
  Writing practice test

Reading (60 minutes)

The Reading component consists of 40 questions. A variety of question types is used in order to
test a wide range of reading skills. These include reading for gist, reading for main ideas, reading
for detail, skimming, understanding logical argument, recognising writers’ opinions, attitudes and
purpose.

Reading - Academic
The Academic version includes three long texts which range from the descriptive and factual to the
discursive and analytical. The texts are authentic and are taken from books, journals, magazines
and newspapers. These have been selected for a non-specialist audience but are recognisably
appropriate for anyone entering undergraduate or postgraduate courses or those seeking
professional registration.

Reading - General Training

The General Training version requires you to read extracts from books, magazines, newspapers,
notices, advertisements, company handbooks and guidelines. These are materials you are likely to
encounter on a daily basis in an English speaking environment.

Reading sample test questions

IELTS Academic Reading practice tests

http://www.ieltsessentials.com/prepare/free_ielts_practice_tests/academic_reading_test_1.aspx

The Academic Reading test is 60 minutes long.

There are 3 sections. The total text length is 2,150-2,750 words.

 Each section contains one long text.

 Texts are authentic and are taken from books, journals, magazines and newspapers. They
have been written for a non-specialist audience and are on academic topics of general
interest.
 Texts are appropriate, and accessible, to test-takers entering undergraduate or
postgraduate courses, or seeking professional registration.
 Texts range from descriptive and factual to the discursive and analytical.
 Texts may contain non-verbal materials, such as diagrams, graphs or illustrations.
 If texts contain technical terms, a simple glossary is provided.

Question types
A variety of questions is used, chosen from the following types: multiple choice, identifying
information, identifying writer’s views/claims, matching information, matching headings, matching
features, matching sentence endings, sentence completion, summary completion, note completion,
table completion, flow-chart completion, diagram label completion, short-answer questions.

Marking
Each correct answer receives 1 mark. Scores out of 40 are converted to the IELTS 9-band scale.
Scores are reported in whole and half bands.

IELTS Academic Reading sample tasks

 Answer sheet (PDF, 130KB)
 Identifying information (PDF, 35KB)
 Identifying writer's views (PDF, 56KB)
 Matching features (PDF, 22KB)
 Matching headings (PDF, 26KB)
 Multiple choice questions (PDF, 21KB)
 Table completion (PDF, 59KB)
 Diagram label completion (PDF, 61KB)

More IELTS practice tests

IELTS Academic practice tests

 Speaking practice
 Listening practice test
 Writing practice test

IELTS General Training practice tests

 Speaking practice
 Listening practice test
 Writing practice test

Writing (60 minutes)

Writing - Academic
The Writing component of the Academic version includes two tasks. Topics are of general interest
to, and suitable for anyone entering undergraduate or postgraduate studies or seeking professional
registration.

Task 1
You will be presented with a graph, table, chart or diagram and will be asked to describe,
summarise or explain the information in your own words. You may be asked to explain data, the
stages of a process, how something works or describe an object or event.

Task 2
You will be asked to write an essay in response to a point of view, argument or problem.
Responses to both tasks must be written in a formal style.

General Training
The Writing component of the General Training version includes two tasks which are based on
topics of general interest.

Task 1
You will be presented with a situation and will be asked to write a letter requesting information or
explaining the situation. The letter may be personal, semi-formal or formal in style.

Task 2
You will be asked to write an essay in response to a point of view, argument or problem. The essay
can be slightly more personal in style than the Academic Writing Task 2 essay.

Writing sample test questions

http://www.ieltsessentials.com/prepare/free_ielts_practice_tests/academic_writing_practice.aspx

IELTS Academic Writing practice tests

The Academic Writing test is 60 minutes long.

There are two tasks. Candidates are required to write at least 150 words for Task 1 and at least
250 words for Task 2. Both responses should be written in a formal style.

IELTS Academic Task 1

You will be asked to describe some visual information (graph/table/chart/diagram), and to present
the description in your own words. You may be asked to describe and explain data, describe the
stages of a process, how something works, or write about an object or event. You need to write 150
words in about 20 minutes.

IELTS Academic Task 2

You will be presented with a point of view, argument or problem. You need to write 250 words in
about 40 minutes.

Below are samples of Task 1 and Task 2.

(Note that the Academic Writing test is different to the General Training Writing test).

Academic Writing sample tasks

 Academic Writing Sample Task 1 (PDF, 34KB)
 Academic Writing Sample Task 2 (PDF, 11KB)
 IELTS Writing Answer sheet - Task 1 (PDF, 700KB)
 IELTS Writing Answer sheet - Task 2 (PDF, 400KB)
 IELTS Academic Writing Sample Script (PDF, 1.4MB)

More IELTS practice tests

IELTS Academic practice tests

 Listening practice
 Speaking practice
 Reading practice test

IELTS General Training practice tests

 Listening practice
 Speaking practice
 Reading practice test
  Writing practice test

Speaking (11 to 14 minutes)

The Speaking component assesses your use of spoken English, and takes between 11 and 14
minutes to complete. Every test is recorded. *The Speaking component is the same for both
Academic and General Training versions.

Part 1
You will be asked to answer general questions about yourself and a range of familiar topics, such
as your home, family, work, studies and interests. This part lasts between four and five minutes.

Part 2
You will be given a card which asks you to talk about a particular topic. You will have one minute to
prepare before speaking for up to two minutes. The examiner then asks you one or two questions
on the same topic to finish this part of the test.

Part 3
You will be asked further questions connected to the topic in Part 2. These questions give you an
opportunity to discuss more abstract issues and ideas. This part lasts between four and five
minutes.

The Speaking component is delivered in such a way that does not allow you to rehearse set
responses beforehand.

IELTS Speaking practice tests

http://www.ieltsessentials.com/prepare/free_ielts_practice_tests/speaking_practice_test.aspx

In the Speaking test, you have a discussion with a certified Examiner. It is interactive and as close to
a real-life situation as a test can get.

The test is 11 to 14 minutes long with three parts.

 In Part 1, you answer questions about yourself, your family, your work and your interests.
 In Part 2, you speak about a topic. You will be given a task card which asks you to speak
about a particular topic and includes points that you can cover in your talk. You will be given 1
minute to prepare your talk. You will then speak for 1-2 minutes.
 In Part 3, you have a longer discussion on the topic. The examiner will ask you further
questions connected to the topic in Part 2.

The Speaking test is the same for both Academic and General Training tests.

Speaking sample tasks

 Speaking Sample Task Part 1 - Prompt (PDF, 21KB)
 Speaking Sample Task Part 1 - Recording (MP3, 631KB)
 Speaking Sample Task Part 1 - Transcript (PDF, 12KB)
 Speaking Sample Task Part 2 - Prompt (PDF, 20KB)
 Speaking Sample Task Part 2 - Recording (MP3, 762KB)
  Speaking Sample Task Part 2 - Transcript (PDF, 11KB)
 Speaking Sample Task Part 3 - Prompt (PDF, 18KB)
 Speaking Sample Task Part 3 - Recording (MP3, 1.2MB)
 Speaking Sample Task Part 3 - Transcript (PDF, 13KB)

More IELTS practice tests

IELTS Academic practice tests

 Listening practice
 Reading practice test
 Writing practice test

IELTS General Training practice tests

 Listening practice
 Reading practice test
 Writing practice test