Take an IELTS General Training test

IELTS General Training – prove you have practical, everyday English language skills.

IELTS General Training measures English language proficiency in a practical, everyday context. The tasks reflect both workplace and social situations.

Download our free guide to the IELTS General Training test

Take this test if you would like to:

  • train or study at below degree level
  • work or undertake work related training in an English-speaking country
  • emigrate to an English-speaking country
  • get a better job in your own country.

Fees, duration and format of IELTS General Training

Fee for the IELTS General Training test: Duration:
 €260 2 hours and 45 minutes for Listening, Reading and Writing, plus 11–14 minutes for the Speaking section

Test format: 

The IELTS test has four sections: Listening, Reading, Writing and Speaking. You can take the test at an official British Council IELTS testing point or, if you choose IELTS Online, at home or any private location with a stable internet connection.

  • If you take IELTS at a testing point on a computer or on paper, you have a choice of Speaking test dates and venues. Some IELTS Speaking tests will be delivered via video calls at the official testing point. This means greater flexibility in delivering IELTS Speaking tests, along with increased availability.
  • With IELTS Online, you can take your test from home or any private location with a stable internet connection. You will write the answers to the Listening, Reading, and Writing sections on your own computer. The Speaking test will be conducted online via video call.

You will take the video-call Speaking test with the same high standard of identity verification. The test will be exactly the same as the in-person Speaking test in terms of content, scoring, timing, question format and security arrangements. 

Delivered by an IELTS Speaking Examiner, the Video-call Speaking test will maintain the face-to-face features of the in-person Speaking test. Find out more in this video.

IELTS Listening, Reading, Writing and Speaking sections explained

IELTS General Training test Part 1: Listening Tasks

Duration: 30 minutes plus 10 minutes to transfer your responses to the answer sheet

Format:  Four audio recordings in varying accents. You will write your answers using:

  • multiple choice
  • matching points
  • diagram labelling 
  • sentence completion

You will listen to four recordings of native English speakers and then write your answers to a series of questions.

  • Recording 1 – a conversation between two people set in an everyday social context.
  • Recording 2 – a monologue set in an everyday social context, e.g. a speech about local facilities.
  • Recording 3 – a conversation between up to four people set in an educational or training context, e.g. a university tutor and a student discussing an assignment.
  • Recording 4 - a monologue on an academic subject, e.g. a university lecture.

Assessors will be looking for evidence of your ability to understand the main ideas and detailed factual information, the opinions and attitudes of speakers, the purpose of an utterance and evidence of your ability to follow the development of ideas.

IELTS General Training test Part 2: Reading Tasks

Duration: 60 minutes

Format:

Three reading passages with tasks:

  • Section 1 – two short or three short factual texts
  • Section 2  – two short work-related, factual texts
  • Section 3 – one longer text on a topic of general interest

The Reading section consists of 40 questions, designed to test a wide range of reading skills. These include reading for main ideas, reading for detail, skimming, understanding logical argument and recognising writers' opinions, attitudes and purpose.

This includes 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.

IELTS General Training test Part 3: Writing Tasks

Duration: 60 minutes

Format:

  • Letter writing task (minimum 150 words)
  • Short essay writing task (minimum 250 words)

Topics are of general interest. There are two tasks:

  • Task 1 – you will be presented with a situation and 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 fairly personal in style.

IELTS General Training test Part 4: Speaking Tasks

Duration: 10 – 15 minutes

Format:

  • Face-to-face interview
  • Short questions and speaking at length about a familiar topic

Please note: Depending on the test centre location, you may be required to sit the Speaking section of your test on a different day.

The Speaking section assesses your use of spoken English. Every test is recorded.

  • Part 1 – the Examiner will ask you general questions about yourself and a range of familiar topics, such as 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 will then ask one or two questions on the same topic.
  • Part 3 – you will be asked further questions about the topic in Part 2. This will give you the opportunity to discuss more abstract ideas and issues. This part of the test lasts between four and five minutes.

Your success starts with IELTS

If your goal is to study below degree level or emigrate to an English-speaking country, then IELTS General Training is the right test for you.

Get free access to IELTS Ready Premium when you book with us. We are dedicated to supporting your success in the test.

Find a test date and book

Before booking your test, confirm the specific test requirements with the organisations you are applying to.
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