IELTS Test for Australian Immigration – Will our Migration Expert pass it?
Your English Test score will more often than not determine whether you qualify to apply for a certain visa or not. This is why during our consultation, we often discuss the English Test requirements and what your visa options based on your English Test score. There are multiple tests you can take if you wish to migrate to Australia but the IELTS test for Australian Immigration seems to be the one that the majority of people is most familiar with.
So in order to understand our clients better and to see for ourselves what it is that they need to know to pass the IELTS test for Australian Immigration, our migration expert decided to take it himself. Read our interview with him about what he thinks about the IELTS test as an evidence of your English language skills:
1.Why did you take the test?
Firstly, I took the test to understand the level of skill that may be required. I had always wanted to assess my English through IELTS as I’ve been in this industry for so long and have seen so many clients comment on the world’s most famous and probably the most widely accepted exam. This would allow me to better understand the clients situation and guide them in the correct path if they needed guidance.
Secondly, it was also one of the ways that you can meet the English requirements to become a Registered Migration Agent (RMA). To become an RMA, an IELTS score of overall 7 (with a minimum of 6.5 in each) was required for me, which is technically ‘Competent English’ but can also mean I required Proficient English. Proficient English is where I am required to achieve a 7 in each (which would allow me to get 7 overall to meet the requirements to become an RMA)
2. What do you think was good about the test?
I enjoyed the listening part of the exam, it was all very well organised, the service was good, and all the little things. As I have studied in Australia for more than 9 years of my life in Primary and Secondary School, and another 4+ years at university level, I understand the importance of English. In my opinion, the IELTS exam is not something that truly tests someone’s English language ability.
3.What did you think was bad about the test?
In my honest opinion, the test is very old fashioned. Why? Because you sit down in a room for close to 3 hours doing the Writing, Reading and Listening Tasks (in that order). And afterwards you talk to someone in your Speaking part of the exam.
- Writing – It is not particularly difficult although there is time pressure. You write about the topic or question that they have asked ensuring that your spelling, grammar, punctuation and structure is in the proper manner. Although I am worried about the way they may be marking this.
- Reading – Reading starts off easy but becomes quite difficult. It’s more comprehension testing rather than your reading and understanding ability itself, although I know that they are interrelated. But the difficulty with choosing the matching passage to a statement or the correct word to a statement/passage does not clearly tell anyone my English reading and understanding ability when it comes to everyday communication, even if it is for business purposes.
- Listening – The listening part was quite easy as you listen and fill in the blanks initially. But it gets harder as you have to quickly read, interpret the person talking, and find the suitable sentence or appropriate word for the blanks. I would say this is one of the easier parts of the exam if you do not have trouble understanding different accents.
- Speaking – They ask some random questions in the 1 on 1 interview while everything is being recorded. Then they ask you to speak about something for 1-2 minutes which I found quite difficult. Being fluent in English meant I was talking quite quickly about the topic and managed to cover most things in under a minute so I started to deviate from the actual question. It is an awkward conversation and I believe your accent can have a great influence in the results.
4.Do you think the test is a good representation of a persons’ English language skills?
Personally, I do not think this is a good representation. It’s a very old method and the same person may get slightly different results depending on the marker or even the country they take the test in.
5. What do you think of this test compared to other English tests?
I have not sat other English exams but I do know what they involve and what they are like since clients often tell me. I believe PTE is a good exam which does not take a lot of time and is marked in a very fair manner as it is an electronically marked. The results are also released in roughly 24 hours as compared to the IELTS exam which takes 13 days. For healthcare professionals, there is also the option to take the OET, a test specifically designed for healthcare professionals.
6. What do you suggest our clients do before taking the test?
I would definitely recommend preparing for any exam in order to improve your results. I personally studied and prepared for roughly 10 hours before sitting the exam. This is after studying in Australia for over 13 years of my life. It is always very important to understand the structure of the exam and the type of questions that may be asked.
7. Where can you find out what score you need to get for the test?
Depending on what the purpose for you exam is, most requirements can be found on the DIBP website. Alternatively, you can always call us to find out exactly what score is needed for your individual visa requirements.
8.What is your overall opinion of the IELTS?
That is something I would be able to comment more on once I receive my results. But overall as a test itself, it is not something I believe is good at testing someone’s English Language ability. The good thing is that the IELTS exam is very organised and there are a lot of sample exams available for support, the procedures are in place to guide you and ensure a great service is provided.
Related topics
PTE or IELTS – Which one to choose?
English Language Requirements for Australian Visas
Occupational English Test (OET) for Healthcare Professionals
