If you plan to study in higher education or seek professional registration, you can take an IELTS Academic. Or if you want to study in secondary education, work or migrate to an English-speaking country, IELTS General Training might be right for you.
Where you want to study, work or migrate to will affect which test you need to take. If you want to go to the United Kingdom, you will need to specifically take an IELTS for UKVI. This can either be an IELTS Academic for UKVI, IELTS General Training for UKVI, or the IELTS Life Skills A1 or B1.
Make sure you visit the relevant government or institutional websites to confirm which test you need to take, as government agencies, institutions and other recognising organisations set their own IELTS entry requirements.
Ask IELTS
IELTS Academic and General Training are two wholly separate types of test, for two different purposes. While some individual organisations may accept an Academic result in the place of General Training, this decision is up to them. You will need to contact your specific organisation to learn more.
IELTS for UKVI, sometimes called SELT, is the same as any other IELTS test, but with additional security measures required by the UK Government.
The Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) is an international standard for describing language ability. It describes language ability on a 6-point scale, from A1 for beginners, up to C2 for those who have mastered a language.
If you wish to migrate, study or work in the UK, you may be required to take the IELTS for UKVI test. Use the UK Government visa check list to find out whether you need to take an approved test and what level you need to achieve.
If you plan to study in higher education or seek professional registration in an English-speaking country, you might need to take an IELTS Academic.
The General Training test looks at your English-language capabilities in a work or social environment. If you plan to study in secondary education, enroll in vocational training, move abroad for work or migrate to Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the UK or the USA, you might need to take an IELTS General Training.
