Considering the lower articles, I wonder why is this the monopoly of international English language testing system? Why immigration services for Australia and Canada have chosen not to offer other alternatives? Why don't I have the possibility to chose another testing system witch I consider fair? Are these guys from Cambridge University the ones who invented the English language and everybody must obey to their judgement? And why the hell I'm not allowed to display parts of the exam in any public environments? Is this some kind of secret service or what?
I am 100% agree with your conclusion,i don't know why someone take step about it
ReplyDeleteit is so true,
Deletepoop
I totally agree this is a business now,I feel they are trying to overcome recession in all ways possible,let ielts be one den
DeleteI have got 7&8 in all modules randomly in different tests taken over 3yrs time but I won't get 7 for all in single sitting. I don't understand how this happens, me n many of my colleagues r in the same situation, they know tat we will write again for the required score for particular profession n work visa associated with it. Just another ditch from these ppl!
Guys,
DeleteI sat for my speaking exam few days back. During the cue card talk, when I stopped for a while the examiner started to ask questions straight a way. There is no indication provided whether I completed two minutes. Will examiner notify us if we still have time to talk?
If you are applying for nursing or any other purpose. Please note the following.
Delete1. Do not enter the purpose of writing IELTS. Enter NA (Not Applicable) first time you apply for the exam. Other wise there is less chance that you will pass. They will give you required score for most to the sections except one. Its a trick.
2. If you are applying to NNAS and if you are from Philipines, India or anywhere mark your first language as English. These countries have one of the official languages as English so better you mark this. There are laws that exists governing the official languages.
3. Whoever applied to Canada for nursing on or before 2013 note that only those persons who is from a country where official language is not English needs to write IELTS. In such case people from Philipines and India are excepted. No one knows the rules so they fooled you when you applied.
Last oct 8 I took the exam I finish 2 colleges here and 1 university degree, to my surprise I got my results it was low which was very insulting for me. I got good grades in my essay and presentations in uni.. I think ielts is a money making organization
DeleteI have the biggest example of IELTS Fraud ... I took the Exam at IDP Center and for the first time they gave me 7.5 in speaking ... where as the second time they gave me 6.5 in speaking ... I applied for Reval where I attached a written application mentioning this and that I have lost my trust in IELTS because of all this ... they increased by point by 0.5 only ... where as the second time test was "Way Better" than the first one .... These guys are bunch of Frauds ... and nothing else ...
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteIELTS is designed to give an objective evaluation of a person's English ability. It may not always work out this way in practice, but it is intended to work that way in principle.
DeleteWhat many people here fail to appreciate is that IELTS is not like other tests. Other tests may be gamed. Other tests focus on a limited and therefore memorisable set of grammar and vocabulary points. Other tests are known to give high scores to candidates who are simply good at taking that test but who's real level of English is exposed as soon as you put them in a real situation. IELTS is designed to see just how good you are at functioning, communicating, and expressing your thoughts in the medium of English.
The reason people are angry is partly because they do not understand this difference between studying for a test and actually improving your language level. But mainly, I think, because they see IELTS as an artificial barrier keeping them from that job, that degree, or that life in another country they so desire.
Do not blame IELTS. Blame the people who decided your IELTS score needs to be so high.
It is very simple. Governments do not want to allow unrestricted immigration but it is politically fraught for them to impose bans or quotas: therefore, they simply raise the bar on the IELTS exam. Universities are overwhelmed with the numbers of applicants from abroad, and are caught in a dilemma between needing this lucrative revenue stream and not wanting to compromise their academic standards. Private companies are simply responding to the law of supply and demand: why should they accept job applicants who scored a 6 or 7 if they can get someone who scored an 8?
It may well be that IELTS examining standards fall short at some times or in some places. This is also a consequence of the sheer numbers of people involved: the pressures of processing candidates in great numbers means standards inevitably slip. And I am not saying there are not incompetent examiners out there.
However.
Do not accept too readily some of the stories in this thread. A speaking score of 9 and a writing score of 6? This would be an automatic red flag, and a senior examiner would be called in to re-evaluate the scores. A sample of the scores will be re-evaluated at random in any case, and examiners found to mark more than half a band away from standard will be warned, called in for testing, and disqualified if the problem persists. Most of the people complaining here are exaggerating or misrepresenting, are unaware of their own inadequacies, are somehow expecting improvement in their English level from a mere month or so of study - or, indeed, from years of studying the wrong way - or they are misdirecting their anger at IELTS rather than those people who determine what scores are needed.
IELTS is a money making machine which main purpose is to earn and be profitable. One fucking organization is behind the IELTS and the TOEFL. So these greedy bastards want you to fail first time, simply becasue of about 15 different kinds of tricks which are not even nearly related to English skills. On the second time you know what this shitty tricks are and try to learn them. My personal favorite "top 1" is Listening where you answer to questions which you don't have time to read. Even in my native language I can't fucking read and understand 10 questions and the answers in a 30 seconds.
ReplyDeleteIELTS sucks, that's for sure!
absolutely fucking thing it is..ielts sucks!!
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteCertainly agree. I got a band of 7 and 8 in all except reading where I get 6.5. What the hell. One has not finished uni without knowing this reading and writing. How can one excel in one section and not in others.I know the next time I do it, I'll fail some other section. And frankly, ielts is not even as difficult. We have done other English exams way diffcult than this and excelled. Bloody money making machines . It's genuinely annoying.
DeleteAll I have to say, from my experiences, that IELTS, specifically Australian, may be a doubtful testing system that is carried out by its scumbag followers. Not to forget, they won't allow any other English testing system to compete or even stand close to the IDP's monopoly.
ReplyDeleteFurthermore it operates in its own mysterious way. I always receive an overall of 7.5 band score with a consistent score of 8.5 in listening and 8 in speaking. The scores in writing sometimes is 7.5 or 6.5 and same goes with my reading. Having purchased some of the Cambridge sample tests and acing them during home practice in "test-like-simulated" environments seems like a joke to the Australian IELTS. These bureaucrats always find a way to lower my score in just one section my mere .5 (point five), so that I don't receive a 7 in each section which is required by the immigration.
I have taken the IELTS test (Australian version) three times, despite studying my whole life in an English school. When I came to Australia I had taken the test from another country. Then, the score was 7.5 overall with 7 or 7.5 in each sections. That certificate is not valid now because its been sitting in my file cabinet for more than 2 years, which is just the exact period for everyone to forget all the English you have learned in school or from your daily encounters with native speakers.
Without a blink of an eye, I have no doubts that the test is unfair. If someone is willing to sponsor the test fees for me, I can blow the whistle on this red tape.
the other way is to boycott Australian IELTS and take it from any other (British) countries. I suggest taking it from India, USA or any other Asian countries. I have even heard that Indian IELTS is half the Australian price and they serve breakfast or snacks before the test and also provide individual microphones for the test. Nothing beats the 2 tests for the price of one with added extras. Unfortunately, the only downside is the cost of plane tickets to these countries.
Bottom line, the greedy Australian IELTS institution needs to be taught a lesson which won't happen unless we are all united. throughout the history, the british are famous for their cunning wit without a sense of humanity. Its time to turn the tables and teach them their own lesson - "United we stand, divided we fall".
I would like to reply . You are absolutely right.If you like me to respond more:
Deletemy id jpv980@gmail.com
Hi Guys,
DeleteI'm a language teacher and I speak fluently 4 languages, and know another 3 languages. I have many years of teaching experience. I had to sit an IELTS exam in Australia and I found that it is a very unfair testing system designed to humiliate and intimidate migrants.
No fuckin way ..Im from India ...I did all my schooling and college in English.And I took this fucking exam twice all I got is some MFucking 5.5 ...I paid my ass off for this shit ..? Screw your fucking IELTS ..bunch of british pussies earning shit load of money but failing .....!!!
DeleteI am doing leaflet jobs and had to walk five hours everyday to save money for my test and after giving it three times all i received is 8,8,8.5 and 6.5. My teacher was giving me 7 in writing but these scumbags always gave me 6.5.
DeleteThis is absolutely money making process and they don't realize that someone is putting their hard earned money in giving these test to prove that they can write, learn and speak.
IELTS is just a fucking testing system. they don't have any assessment criteria. the only thing in their mind is MONEY. earn money from everyone and screw there future. even ielts cannot prove english proficiency if one gets unfamiliar topic in speaking or writing. each country / college must have there own test to identify the potential of candidate. IELTS is a joke.
DeleteI totally agree with all of you.I have done this test 7 times.These idiots know that we need 7 in each modules.My scores is are always similar 7.5 overall.I am getting 8 or 8.5 in all components except writing.They always give me 6.5.i just cant believe how the hell is it possible that you get same scores all the time.i also took ielts assist form idp which is another horse shit.And EOR no idea how it works.It takes 2 weeks to get the results of the whole test.And 6-8 weeks for EOR to be completed.i had enogh no more ielts.We all know that english is not our first language but hey i have done all my schooling and uni in english.Its a lit bit of relief that these idiots are loosing their market share after the introduction of PTE.i hope in near future iELTS will extinct.this crap has given a lot of us stress and many sleepness night.Also ripped us off.
Deletewithout the blink of an eye. lolzz.... you really need to learn how to write. its hard for me to understand what you wrote.
DeleteHaving said that, IELTS is indeed a means of making money. They are not accountable to anyone and abuse their power.
** Sorry had a typo (NOT take IELTS in any British country) which is corrected **
ReplyDeleteAll I have to say, from my experiences, that IELTS, specifically Australian, may be a doubtful testing system that is carried out by its scumbag followers. Not to forget, they won't allow any other English testing system to compete or even stand close to the IDP's monopoly.
Furthermore it operates in its own mysterious way. I always receive an overall of 7.5 band score with a consistent score of 8.5 in listening and 8 in speaking. The scores in writing sometimes is 7.5 or 6.5 and same goes with my reading. Having purchased some of the Cambridge sample tests and acing them during home practice in "test-like-simulated" environments seems like a joke to the Australian IELTS. These bureaucrats always find a way to lower my score in just one section my mere .5 (point five), so that I don't receive a 7 in each section which is required by the immigration.
I have taken the IELTS test (Australian version) three times, despite studying my whole life in an English school. When I came to Australia I had taken the test from another country. Then, the score was 7.5 overall with 7 or 7.5 in each sections. That certificate is not valid now because its been sitting in my file cabinet for more than 2 years, which is just the exact period for everyone to forget all the English you have learned in school or from your daily encounters with native speakers.
Without a blink of an eye, I have no doubts that the test is unfair. If someone is willing to sponsor the test fees for me, I can blow the whistle on this red tape.
the other way is to boycott Australian IELTS and NOT take it from any other (British) country. I suggest taking it from India, USA or any other Asian countries would be a better idea. I have even heard that Indian IELTS is half the Australian price and they serve breakfast or snacks before the test and also provide individual microphones for the test. Nothing beats the 2 tests for the price of one with added extras. Unfortunately, the only downside is the cost of plane tickets to these countries.
Bottom line, the greedy Australian IELTS institution needs to be taught a lesson which won't happen unless we are all united. throughout the history, the british are famous for their cunning wit without a sense of humanity. Its time to turn the tables and teach them their own lesson - "United we stand, divided we fall".
My story is almost similar to urs. I did it for 7 times as I can remember. My results are quite miserable. My first result was a 6.5 for speaking but 7s and over 7s for other modules (7 for writing). I didn't attend any class in that attempt as I had to get just 6 each for temporary visa. After that I tried many times but I always get 6.5 in writing. But in a recent test I got a 7.5 in writing but a 6.5 in reading. My last test was quite hilarious (that old bitch had given me a 6 for speaking). Writing is 6.5. As I can remember in one of the previous attempts, I got a 6 for speaking where my health was not so good. I even had a 7.5 for speaking once. It's such a terrible life in Australia.
DeleteWhat a "Australia version"
DeleteMy general training results: L,R,S,W
8.5, 9, 8, 6.5
8, 8.5, 6.5, 7.5
6.5, 9, 7.5, 7.5
Do you know where I took those tests?
In AUSTRALIA!!!
IELTS Australia is totally a bullshit, you will always have one module under 7 and close to 7. Because they don't want you to pass so thay can still earn the money that you earned with blood from you.
DeleteI agree, and even if it was not bad enough that the standards are so low, they extort money from you through their incompetence. The people in charge cant even write in decent english themselves. Thats exactly what happens when you give a small number of people a great deal of undeserved power, in bureaucracy.
ReplyDeleteFUCK IELTS< the fucking interviewer was sleeping during my speaking... i counted 5 his yawns..
ReplyDeleteMy interviewer kept shaking her head during the interview, and she didn't even look at me when I was talking to her.
DeleteWhere are your manners? BITCH!
Oh gosh - that is soo rude!!
Deletewell my case is different. my examiner was nodding her head and seem like agree what I was talking. I spoke fluently without stop or thinking. I thought I am going to score above 7 but result came out, is 6
DeleteSame in my case. The examiner took a nap for about 30 seconds and I was like "Dafaq am I supposed to do now"
DeleteMy scene is different he nod a lot during my exam atlast he said it was nice to talk to you ...and I too taught that I performed well....but that asshole gave me 6....i was like wa dafuk....!!
DeleteI'm looking to take a test from where ever near/ out the australias borders in Fiji, India,or S.Korea, any advice?
ReplyDeleteI'm preparing to take IELTS in the UK and it seems to me, that texts and questions are made up in order to fail you, as some of the answers makes no sense what so ever. Or text itself is contradictory and makes no sense. You just pick randomly or you can only pick correct answer by knowing it already. Therefore you need to learn answers by hard and hope you will get them during the test. That is not a test, it is freaking torture.
ReplyDeleteMost of the things here, I agree. I had 9 speaking, 8.5 reading, 8 listening and writing 6.5. Can you guess what happened next test 7, 8,6.5,7.5. Everytime, it looks like they want to fail you by .5 in one of the sections. How can I get 9 and 6.5 in two different section. It is not consistent. They mostly use writing and speaking to fail but won't limit it to that.
ReplyDeleteThey will make money as much as they can. Really frasutrated. I have spoken, read, written English since childhood. I have a Masters from USA. Trying to migrate to Australia because US immigration sucks, but this IELTS is getting on my nerves. GOD !!!! HELP!!!
Hi Peter, I agree with you. IELTS is only partly language test, the rest is intimidation, humiliation of migrants. This is a well known fact within Australian society, when they feel like ,they will test migrants and raise the level of the test to where they like it. It is an unfair power game.
DeleteExactly - if they keep on doing this, they will loose skilled people and once all these skilled people have left..the country will be in a recession ...it's their choice...
DeleteI too feel they just want to fail us as many times as possible.
ReplyDeleteLots of foreign, who are non-native speakers of English, have become speaking examiners!!! The worst thing is they are employed by the TEST CENTRE itself. They know well nobody's going to cross check how they judge the candidates.
For writing, a native speaker (Englishman) who has written essays for his Uni only got 7.5!! Simon argues that this candidate's handwriting may not be good. I wonder how the examiner was able to give 7.5 without understanding his essay!!
People should ask other exams to be recognised as well. Why do they only need IELTS??
Correction: foreign ----> foreigners (EU and so on)
DeleteYou always amaze me! but i did't like this points
ReplyDeleteany ideas about to cheat on ielts?
ReplyDeleteI'm an 27 year old English national born and bread, with a degree studied in an English university and I didn't pass the IELTS entry for Australia. I scored an 8 over all but got a 6.5 on my written. I now have to pay to retake the exam ($400) then pay to fly to Sydney to sit it in the only slot I can sit, pay for accommodation, food, taxi etc before my temporary visa runs out. SCAM!!!!! Going to cost me about a grand to prove I can speak my native language, the ONLY language I can speak!!!!
ReplyDeleteI am not alone, doing my homework I have many English native speakers in my position. So angry I was tempted to let my visa expire and return home to England, and hope they welcome me back even though according to IELTS I would not be fluent with my family and friends!!!
EPIC BULLSHIT SCAM
I disagree - I think as well as testing foreign applicant's level of English it acts as a clever way of weeding out the type of native speaker who scores 6.5 in the written piece.
DeleteIf you don't know the difference between bread and bred, you won't get much sympathy from me. Being a native speaker does not mean you can put rubbish in and get a good mark!
DeleteI just want some one to show me the face (or faces) of people who are behind this.. and I will know exactly what to do!!
ReplyDeleteIt seems that we are all on the same boat.I`ve been struggling with this damn exam since 2010,6 attempts and each time I miss a .5 in only one section.It`s literally a pain in an ass ,humiliating and loss of lots of time and money .
ReplyDeleteGuys, so pissed feel like taking a legal action against these guys... 4 attempts, scores are - R/L/W/S: 8.5/8.5/6.5/7, 8/8.5/7/6.5, 9/9/6.5/8, 9/9/7/6.5........... These bastards are openly cheating people and we just cant do anything...
ReplyDeleteYou can set a fire to the ielts test venue. Don't let anyone know that I am the person who tell you that. BTW, is there a ielts headquarter? Burn that building too!
DeleteSomeone have any suggestion of what could be done, or you guys prefer to be complaining about the IELTs and do nothing about it?
ReplyDeleteDo anyone is brave enough to do something, to face those guys and say that the exame is not fair and I want it to change, or the immigration to accept another test?
NO
So stop complaining and go to study.
They should consider the overall score rather than the minimum score. If someone cannot speak well despite having 180IQ, that person is a reject in australia term. That is sad.
DeleteIt's a scam and you can't do anything about it. They make 330 per person. They will never let you score something that you needed. It's worse than lottery system.
ReplyDeleteEnglish is my first language. 12 years of school plus a university degree in an English speaking country. I have not passed all sections of the IELTS exam not only once, but twice!! Both times with a written score of 6.5. I'd also like to point out that even I was unable to receive top marks for any aspect of the test. The listening test played on the second exam had a thick Scottish accent, which I struggled to understand. Good work Australia, good work.
ReplyDeleteWhat hope is there?
I recently took the IELTS (Academic) on the 11th of January 2014. Surrounded by 200/250 other candidates, it was impossible for me to concentrate because some of them scratched their head, some burped, and some made weird noise with the table. In that moment, I knew I was going to fail.
ReplyDeleteDuring Listening, the audiotape didn't even mention 2 places in section 2, in which we had to situate different areas of a museum or whatsoever! Regarding the Reading, it was all about traps! When you thought something would certainly be the right answer, it wouldn't! I mean, were they really trying to make us fail? It felt so unfair.
To be honest, the 1st Writing task is the most stupid task ever, in every IELTS exam. What's the point in writing a huge more-than-two-hundred-and-fifty-word text to explain some graph/chart/phenomenon that you can easily sum up in 50 words?!?! Stop RAMBLING! MORE WRITING PLEASE.
When it came to Speaking, I got an examiner who was faking an American accent. Yes, FAKING AN AMERICAN ACCENT. He said "trah-velling" (long ah), he dropped the R in "your", and pronounced "about" like Canadians. I reckoned he was just trying to hide his real accent (he's probably from the UK/Australia/New Zealand) so candidates would comprehend. But then, what was the purpose of THAT?
13 days after the exam, which means today, I gave the permission to my aunt to collect my Test Report at British Council. I gave her a copy of my passport, for they told me I could, along with the consent letter. Yet as she arrived there, they refused to give her my Test Report and demanded my REAL passport?!?!? They even stated on their damn website that I could use a photocopied version of my document of identification! So f*cking stupid!!!
Here are my results: R/W/L/S - 6.0/6/0/7.0/7.5. Overall: 6.5.
As I checked my results online, I was really shocked at the inadequate results. I didn't understand why and I was about to burst into tears and anger. I told myself to get an overall band score of 7.0 or better with nothing below 7.0, because if I failed, I would waste $152 on a money-hungry test. Like no matter how hard I tried and how hard I worked, everything just went down the toilet!
I'm so vexed right now and I shall boycott the IELTS. I will take the Pearson Test of English Language soon. It costs less and you get the results within 5 business days. Plus, everything is online and you can send your scores to as many institutions as you wish.
IELTS, more like I Eat Lolly To Sustain (British slang, mates!)
IELTS is a fucking joke. So far, for different purposes, I have taken it for 5 times. At this moment, I need to apply for PR in Australia, therefore I am in need of 7 or above in all the 4 modules. The journey started on 14/12/2013, and the exam is of Academic module, with the results L7, R8.5, W6, S7. My second attempt took place on 11/1/2014. This time, I tried General Training module due to Academic module had been booked and I was reluctant to travel far to another test centers. Two days ago, I received my disappointing results L7, R8, W7, S6.5. As for previous one, I have sent it back for revaluation roughly 3 weeks ago and so far I have not heard anything from them. I will send this time's report back as well because I strongly believe I deserve better.
ReplyDeletePreviously I have taken exams several times, therefore I would somehow evaluate my band score according to my performance. As for the speaking section of this time, my examiner is an absolutely fucking bitch. It is a female examiner, old, tall, short hair, seemingly friendly, in glasses, smiling, having a name card stating her name, which I cannot remember, but it starts with an E and composes 6, 7 or more characters. So be careful, if you are unfortunately draw by her. I seriously suspect some examiners have their dark side within. I reckon some of them are either racists or psychos who gain satisfaction by failing us innocent candidates. I am pretty sure there are that type of examiners who would give you the low mark if you are at a certain range. For example, if your speaking is at 6.5 to 7 range, a ruthless examiner could throw you a 6.5. And I have a vague feeling that syndrome tend to happen in women than men. I did a much better job when compared to the previous speaking which I scored a band 7. I had significantly reduced my grammatical errors and had almost no pause as well as kept a good fluency throughout the whole session. For god's sake, I even luckily practiced my task 2 topic in the night before. And I got merely 6.5! Afterwards, I recalled my previous speaking repeatedly to compare them but I could not find anything to convince me to accept the band score. I mean, those speaking examiners see like 10 or more takers per day, therefore how the fuck could they guarantee their marks are accurate? We know many takers get their band scores increased through remarking, which is conducted by some senior markers, but in that case, why the fuck those incompetent junior markers are allowed to mess up our lives in the first place? For god's sake, we spend huge money and effort to take the damn exam. Furthermore we have to endure the anxiety of waiting for results, and anger, disappointment, despair, self-doubt, etc all sorts of negative emotions. At least for the money's sake, why could not they assign a second examiner to double check our works. I know it requires extra time and money but have not they made enough money? I definitely would send it back for another revaluation, just to give myself a chance to prove my ability.
I know I cannot really do something about it. Sometimes my life just is not in my control. As for me, I already booked my next exam and only God knows how many times I have to suffer from it. There victims who are still in the game. But there are survivors who have managed to squirm through it and the whole immigration bullshit. I suggest those who have suffered or are suffering from IELTS gather together to do protest against some extremely irresponsible and incompetent examiners.
Revised
ReplyDelete---------------------------------
IELTS is a fucking joke. So far, for different purposes, I have taken it for 5 times. At this moment, I need to apply for PR in Australia, therefore I am in need of 7 or above in all the 4 modules. The journey started on 14/12/2013, and the exam is of Academic module, with the results L7, R8.5, W6, S7. My second attempt took place on 11/1/2014. This time, I tried General Training module due to Academic module had been booked out and I was reluctant to travel far to other test centers. Two days ago, I received my disappointing results L7, R8, W7, S6.5. As for previous one, I have sent it back for revaluation roughly 3 weeks ago and so far I have not heard anything from them. I will send this time's report back as well because I strongly believe I deserve better.
Previously I have taken exams several times, therefore I would somehow evaluate my band score according to my performance. As for the speaking section of this time, my examiner is an absolutely fucking bitch. It is a female examiner, old, tall, short hair, seemingly friendly, in glasses, smiling, having a name card stating her name, which I cannot remember, but it starts with an E and composes 6, 7 or more characters. So be careful, if you are unfortunately draw by her. I seriously suspect some examiners have their dark side within. I reckon some of them are either racists or psychos who gain satisfaction by failing us innocent candidates. I am pretty sure there are that type of examiners who would give you the low mark if you are at a certain range. For example, if your speaking is at 6.5 to 7 range, a ruthless examiner could throw you a 6.5. And I have a vague feeling that this syndrome tends to happen in women than men. I did a much better job when compared to the previous speaking which I scored a band 7. I had significantly reduced my grammatical errors and had almost no pause as well as kept a good fluency throughout the whole session. For god's sake, I even luckily practiced my task 2 topic in the night before. And I got merely 6.5! Afterwards, I recalled my previous speaking repeatedly to compare them but I could not find anything to convince me to accept the band score. I mean, those speaking examiners see like 10 or more takers per day, therefore how the fuck could they guarantee their marks are accurate? We know many takers get their band scores increased through remarking, which is conducted by some senior markers, but in that case, why the fuck those incompetent junior markers are allowed to mess up our lives in the first place? For god's sake, we spend huge money and effort to take the damn exam. Furthermore we have to endure the anxiety of waiting for results, and anger, disappointment, despair, self-doubt, etc all sorts of negative emotions had the results are not what we desire. At least for the money's sake, why could not they assign a second examiner to double check our works. I know it requires extra time and money but have not they made enough money?
I know I cannot really do something about it. Sometimes my life just is not in my control. As for me, I already booked my next exam and only God knows how many times I have to suffer from it. There are victims who are still in the game but there are survivors who have managed to squirm through it and the whole immigration bullshit. I suggest those who have suffered or are suffering from IELTS gather together to do protest against some extremely irresponsible and incompetent examiners.
I felt gutted at the moment. I am younger than 25 and my working visa is going to expired this year. In such case, I need to qualify the highest requirement of language for four band 8 in ielts to launch my permanent residency application. I sat this exam twice last year, with the rest module being 8, only writing being 7. Then i decided to work harder on writing, finally i made it to 8 with my writing this time, but my speaking has dramatically dropped from 8 to 7 within two weeks. Coz the last 8 for speaking I got was only two weeks before 7 at this time. I mean I seriously feel wrong, coz I felt I have done better during the last speaking test. The result indeed is a surprise, and it shocks me. Before I came to Australia, my speaking were always 8, but this time, it is only 7. I cannot believe it. This fucking test almost ruins my life. I spend all my Christmas 2013 thinking about Ielts, but it turns out to be such a disappointment.
ReplyDeleteAnd I promise you the invigilator working at the test venue speaks poor English herself with seriously grammatical mistakes, and she stammered a lot trying to find the correct words to say. And they are the ielts professionals, what a joke
ReplyDelete8 or above in all the 4 modules is happening with a 0.1% ratio, meaning you are almost need to be the No. 1 in the whole test centre to have the possibility to score that band. And the ratio is Australian ratio, there are candidates who speak English as their first language or partially first language, such as British, Irish, South African. For those English is not their first language, all 8s is not a realistic target, unless they are going to invest their time in IELTS 24/7, get ready to endure endless anxiety, despair, disappointment, etc all sorts of negative emotions and prepare to take the exams 10 to infinite times.
ReplyDeleteBasically IELTS is a weapon invented by a bunch of needy psychos in Cambridge University to mentally and physically torture humankind. No matter how good you are, they will fail you by 0.5 until they squeeze enough $$$ out of you.
Unfortunately I am one of these candidates who need to have an 8 in each module in the General test and a 7 in each module in the Academic test ..passed the Academic..but guess what they won't let me pass the General..once of course with three 8's and one 7.5...ridiculous
DeleteIELTS the test is designed for candidates who do not speak English as their first language. To those takers from the USA, the UK, etc, it is really not your exam. In this case, you need to blame Australia's DIAC more than IELTS. It was DIAC heightened the requirement, making the majority of candidates suffer miserably. A few year ago, there were less noises, when all 7s were the highest requirement.
ReplyDeleteAs for the invigilators who are working in Australia test centre, oh shit, believe me or not, those invigilators were who took IELTS exams a few years ago when all 5s could help to get your residency granted. Lol
ReplyDeleteI not u lol
ReplyDeleteDid anyone sit the Academic IELTS kn the 15/02/14? If so does anyone want to comment on the Academic reading. I found it grossly unfair and I am a British born citizen!
ReplyDeleteyes I did in London yesterday.
ReplyDeleteWhat was your opinion on the Academic Reading part. I assume you got the same paper with articles on pearls, senses and Sherlock Holmes.
DeleteRelieved I passed witrh 8 - listening, 7- reading, 7.5- writing and 9 - speaking.
ReplyDeleteAs a British born English speaker I fiound the test to be very hard. I even know British born people who have failed. An average person will not pass it. You have to be at least an academic I think. I can imagine the agony non-native English speakers go through.
Congrats. But you should feel ashamed if you failed it. At least a band 7 is guaranteed if you make only slim grammatical errors in writing and speaking, and that is what we expect from a native speaker. As for listening and reading, they are plain easy.
Deletewell, first congrats.
Deletebut trust me, the shit for non-native speakers is way beyond your imagination
I am an English Citizen and English is my mother tongue. I have worked as a translator and as a writer for magazines for years. I have even taught English for over 7 years, and I have scored top marks in my English exams (10 over 10). As my University degree is from a non English speaking University, I need IELTS to work in Australia. On one exam I scored S/L/W/R 8/8/8/6.5. (I went slow on the reading and answered 31 questions). From there it has been complete nightmare, and I have scored 9/9/6.5/8. Despite putting more care in the writing, it never passed 6.5. It is totally inconsistent with previous exam, as I was scored 8 in writing. Also despite I am completely fluent (this is my main language) they had the audacity to score my speaking with an 8. The most shocking of it all was when I requested feedback on my writings under the Data protection Act 1998. They refused to give it to me, but they must do so by Law. It took them over 2 months, and for my surprise, all that they had written was false. It had nothing to do with my use of English. On some tasks they stated "you over-generalize", but on others they stated "you focus on details too much". They even wrote that my language "was generally complex" and that at times "it was a mixture of simple and complex words". (So the correct English uses complex words only? What on Earth is a complex word?). Their descriptors are ambiguous and are designed for them to be able to score people down and get away with it. From one band to another it states almost the same things. This is something very serious, as not even natives and professional writers are achieving their benchmarks.
ReplyDeleteIELTS examiners have at least 2 PHDs ( that I know). Most of them are speech pathologists or linguistics. Even if you make two punctuation mistakes you would get 1 penalty. 1-2 penalties = 8 bands. 3-10 penalties = 7 bands. Do you get me? This applies to both speaking and writing.
DeleteHi, how did you get to see your writing answers with their marks?
DeleteYou make some rather odd errors for someone who claims English as their mother tongue.
DeleteIELTS examiners are required to have a Bachelor's degree and significant experience in teaching English as a Foreign Language. Some may have a Phds but it is not a requirement.
DeleteMy suggestion with this is to send all these problems concerning this exam directly to the House of Commons, They have already received complaints regarding these exams from fluent English speakers with proof of their good skills in English from other sources, therefore inconsistent with the test's results.
ReplyDeleteThey can be contacted here:
http://www.parliament.uk/mps-lords-and-offices/standards-and-interests/pcfs/contact-us/
Also, it would be important to request feedback under the Data protection Act 1998, specially if there are concerns that there could be something fishy going on.
IELTS have created a system for failing people and making money, specially in the reading part, where they can apply very subjective criteria. Moaning wont stop them and they are becoming stronger and stronger, therefore the UK parliament must be aware of this circumstance.
Regardless of what you think of the motivations of IELTS organisations, it is governments or private companies who decide what qualifications they will accept. If they decide to raise the bar and thereby restrict the numbers of qualified applicants, you may question the reasons but it is not IELTS that is at fault.
DeleteEnglish is not my first language, therefore I am struggling with IELTS. But instead of the most difficult writing module, I am struggling with speaking. I wish I could speak like a native speaker, so I could clear IELTS in either of my last two attempts. Yes, I got band 7 in writing module and band 7 or above in reading and listening in my last two attempts, but speaking has been a pain in the ass. As for IELTS writing, it is not difficult. I write terrible English. So far I barely achieve making minor grammatical errors, writing formally with punctuation, etc, but my cohesion and coherence is miserable, as you can tell from what I wrote, and still, I got band 7 in writing. I think the native English speakers who failed IELTS writing are those who tried to be smartasses during the writing exam. I would suggest them to keep it simple, use four paragraphs, write short introduction and conclusion, write two paragraphs (the second and the third) with topic sentences in the beginning, then expand them by giving detailed explanations and examples if you need to make up 250 words. One important thing, from my observation, your viewpoints do not have to be realistic, or very convincing, as long as you can find reasonably arguments to support them.
ReplyDeleteBy the way, since December last year, I have taken IELTS for 3 times and I still need only God knows how many more to achieve all 7s. My results are - L/R/W/S 7/8.5/6/7, 7/8/7/6.5, 7/8/7/6. Though I miserably failed IELTS by missing band 7 in one module in all the three times, I can see my results are stable. I got continuous band 7 in listening three times, and my reading is never below band 8, which is a waste as I just need band 7. My writing rise from 6, when I had less clues about how to write an IELTS essay, to continuous band 7 - twice. But luck plays an important part in speaking to us non native English speakers. A prepared part 2 topic would heighten my chance to score a band 7. By contrast, a strange topic would make me stammer. And my problem is I tend to be nervous and speak faster during the exam. My speaking scores decline from 7 to 6.5 to 6, which is ridiculous and beyond imagination.
ReplyDeleteI applied for revaluation for the first and the second, none of them gets changed.
They shall always find a way to ensure that at least one of your marks is below your needed threshold (i.e. 7), and they shall do that where they can be more subjective, either with speaking or writing.
ReplyDeleteSTILL DREAMING OF GOING TO OZ?
ReplyDeleteIT LOOKS LIKE ONE BIG TRAP FOR DREAMERS.
TOO MANY PEOPLE,TOO MUCH MONEY INVOLVED.
GUESS WHO IS THE WINNER?
ONLY THOSE WHO REALIZE ITS NOT ABOUT YOUR LANGUAGE SKILL ANYMORE.WHAT TO DO NOW?YOU HAVE TO BUY THE EXPENSIVE DREAMLAND TICKET AND ...THEN WHAT...YOU MAY HAVE PASS THE ANTI HUMAN EXAMS.GOOD LUCK TO YOU ALL.pls excuse/correct my mistakes,bcs iam average speaker.
I totally agree with all of the above, I have given the test for 5 time till now and consistently in reading I get 5.5, how much good I do the number does not change, looks like they know what I want. My life is stuck because of this . I have been in Australia for 6 year , 2 years of studies and 4 years of experience. Nothing counts it is only IELTS band counts to get your PR. It really SUCKS!
ReplyDeleteBand 5.5 means you got half of the questions incorrect, which is not a good performance. And reading module is not that difficult when compared to other modules. I think as long as you could get the techniques right and develop proper skimming skill then you could achieve band 7 in reading module.
DeleteBut, it seems you have bigger problem in writing.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteFor those who wanna migrate to OZ why not click the 'for study' box on the form? Who the f*ck is not their business to know your purpose to take this test..don't understand ielts is the only test recognised by Aust. immi. prob' had their backs bent over or just wanna keep the gate closed.
ReplyDeleteI agree the IELTS suck this company is making billions of dollars off of poorer countries and the funny thing is these bastards claim that this is a effective exam and yet owing to the fact that they are native english speakers and yet they cant do any better than us these exam.
ReplyDeleteHi, I was the person posted a few passages above. I passed IELTS at my 4th attempt with LRWS 8.5,8.5,7,7 on 15th March. Finally I could bid farewell to IELTS and do not want to see it again in my life.
ReplyDeleteMay god shed light on you all.
My record:
14/12/2013 Academic LRWS 7, 8.5, 6, 7
11/1/2014 General Training LRWS 7, 8, 7, 6.5
1/2/2014 General Training LRWS 7, 8, 7, 6
15/3/2014 General Training LRWS 8.5, 8.5, 7, 7
Congrats
ReplyDeleteI agree. In my own experience, I've seen my friends booking up to 4 or 5 tests in ADVANCE! Without expecting any refund, just hoping that they would hit the jackpot once. All of them have a similar story- excellent in Eng, had all of their schooling in Eng, have performed well in IELTS in past (in another country) and now in Aus, they are stuck at last 0.5 in one of the bands!!
ReplyDeleteI have zero doubt that this is a scam. To top it off, they have now made it compulsory to take a new test for those re-registering in occupations such as doctor/migration agents etc.
can't agree with you more, bro. fuck IELTS
ReplyDeleteIELTS is a silly, stupid, perversive test.
ReplyDeleteThat was my feeling when I was preparing myself for it and that I can only confirm after I passed it with SUCCESS on the first attempt.
I wish it could be simply banned and people who created this BS lost their job.
additional observation: I invested much time and effort preparing to IELTS test and what I can say for sure, that contributed very little to my knowledge or control of English language.
ReplyDeleteUsually when you prepare for an exam or test, you eventually know the subject much better, this includes my experience with preparations to other English tests.
All the official IELTS preparation materials (5 or 6 books) which I worked on contributed just zero to my knowledge of the language, though probably made me able to get the score I needed on IELTS.
IELTS sucks...True story
ReplyDeleteIELTS sucks monkey balls
DeleteI have been reading many stories here and all I can say is none of you know how the scoring system works. You guys get 9 in one test and 6-7 in the other ones. So you claim this is unfair. Most of you guys think IELTS score should be stable but it is not WHY? It is not based on how well you wrote it but how many mistakes in your speaking and writing. They would give score accordingly. I have 8,9,9, 8.5 and 8.5,9,9,9 ( both were Academic). I have seen many students complain about the test because they know nothing about the scoring system. Though the method is not that transparent, it is a fair one they are using. I know how to write an essay without ERROS. So normally I score 9 in vocab and grammar. I also know how to write topic sentences and correct formats and how to support my arguments.
ReplyDeleteIn reading you should have :
1, Focus - the question 100%
2, Semantic or comprehension of the question 100%
3, Comparison skills ( question vs passage details)
4, Elimination skills ( how to kick out the wrong answers first- deductive approach)
Basically IELTS test is designed to check your linguistic capacity and aptitude in the English language. No matter what you are and where you are from. You can logically beat this exam. I would say this is similar to UK CAT exam or GRE GMAT exams. To cut it short, this is a kind of aptitude test.
Instead of ranting, Just learn and research more about this test. Find an examiner from your city or online. Sit with him and ask more questions about the nature of the test, whether it is reading or writing. Many of you guys fail in this exam because you think you speak English fluently or you are native speaker but you may have underestimated this test. Type on google ' Mike IELTS examiner Australia ( A kiwi). He would give valuable info about your speaking and writing. He's also affordable and he would score your speaking and writing. Just for $7 each. IELTSexaminer.com. By the way, I am not his spokesman. I can see you guys are frustrated but you can surely beat this exam. FIRST, admit that your English isn't perfect = error-free. Learn Task response and Coherence if you are a native speaker, which is not normally taught in GSCE or UNI.SECOND< willing to learn rather than wasting your time as a loser by ranting. THIRD, IELTS may make money but they make it in a professional way. They know how to beat you and your weak point. Your score is based on how weak you are NOT on how good you are. This is a proficiency test. I can't be bothered to proof read my post but I hope you understand what I mean.
I LOL'd hard on this one .. "I know how to write an essay without ERROS" .. seriously, ERROS!!!
DeleteYes, YAY! It is a typo. Thanks
DeleteI wan to be a part of this project too.Right now my blood is boiling with anger over this whole f@#$ ing procedure IELTS has in place.Firstly, I believe they have gone too far.They have set their own standard of English.They want you to memorise the vocabulary in their preparation books and use some of the sentences from their sample answers and they will give you a passing band.So they don't want you to be original. Secondly, they are confused, they seem to think testing your logic,reflexes and GK is part of your English language skills.Bullshit.Get your criterias right.
ReplyDeleteAnd then if you think of getting your paper remarked, you feel like you are standing between the devil and deep blue sea.The fee for retesting is INR Rs 70000 and the test fee is INR 10,000.So do you apply for retest or do you just put in another 3000 bucks and sit the exam again.Lets just burst their bubble....it's high time.
I wan to be a part of this project too.Right now my blood is boiling with anger over this whole f@#$ ing procedure IELTS has in place.Firstly, I believe they have gone too far.They have set their own standard of English.They want you to memorise the vocabulary in their preparation books and use some of the sentences from their sample answers and they will give you a passing band.So they don't want you to be original. Secondly, they are confused, they seem to think testing your logic,reflexes and GK is part of your English language skills.Bullshit.Get your criterias right.
ReplyDeleteAnd then if you think of getting your paper remarked, you feel like you are standing between the devil and deep blue sea.The fee for retesting is INR Rs 70000 and the test fee is INR 10,000.So do you apply for retest or do you just put in another 3000 bucks and sit the exam again.Lets just burst their bubble....it's high time.
Rohini , I think you don't want to admit that you don't know how to error free sentences and you still need to learn. Have you ever consulted an examiner yet? Try Mikkie (Michael Wattie IELTS examiner google it. IELTSexaminer.com or something). He provides the right info to improve your score. Many native spears can't get a high score so it is not what you think. First admit that you DONT know and second, LEARN it from a right source. Stop wasting your time with these losers. Most people like to rationalize when they fail. I do not know why people have such a hard time to admit that they don't know or their skills are not enough.
ReplyDeleteJosh,
DeleteAs I said i have been in Australia for more than 3 years. I studied and I am working full time nearly one year.
All of my tutors telling me that your English is pretty good and no one could give help to get a proper score.
Its not wasting time or disappointing people, its just about i am tired of sitting exams and putting my life on HOLD to get IELTS. every time i drop in one band!! that i got 7.5 or 8 on the previous exam.
As soon as i get home at 6pm I start studying and i do not enjoy my weekends as i need to study to pass but i do not know which skill i need to improve as i got 7.5 or 8 !!!
I need this for immigration a si think i deserve it after doing Master's Degree and working full time in Australia.
Instead of studying a text book, read novels and newspapers, and watch television in English or listen to a radio station, Immerse yourself in the language and make friends with some Australian native speakers so you will get used to speaking English. That is the best way to learn how to join sentences together logically and use idiomatic English.
DeleteI find it curious that you, on your side of the argument, are making errors, yet Rohini, on his side of the argument, writes very well and ought to breeze through the IELTS writing test at any rate.
DeleteIn my case I had to do the F*** GRE and the F*** TOEFL for a research centre in the EMIRATES!!.
ReplyDeleteWith two postgrads in Britain they asked me for 155 in GRE and 91 in Toefl.
Of course I failed 145 and 86 and what I dont understand is what is the F*** relationship between my research and these tests....particularly the TOEFl
so they measure your fucking abilities as researcher with just fucking test.
When you get the marks you just feel like shit
I have been studying and living in Australia for more than 3 years. When I was applying to get an admission from on of the Australian universities i got IELTS AC 7.5 and my scores in each band was quite reasonable.
ReplyDeleteAfter 3 years being here, i though i will be alright to get 7 or above in each band, I studied hard for exam though.
Now i have been sitting for the 6th times to get that bloody score.
I got three different examiner tutor, I've heard from them that " Its a business for us and THEM" and " The average time of sitting the exam is 8 ".
That is all scam, they just using migrants' money to run their country and also they manipulate people's mind.
I have had a friend although he has got the mark finally, he is still having nightmares about IELTS.
I myself am stressed alot. I am using tablets to get a proper sleep. For over a week i had nightmares about IELTS that I am not able to get the mark.
all i cam say is a BullSh!t exam and playing with people's life.
I've known people who have lived in Australia for many years but still could not make themselves properly understood. That's the sort of thing the IELTS test can help prevent. Length of time in a country means nothing; it is language proficiency which counts.
DeleteHello,
ReplyDeleteEven if you live in Australia for 9 years, your IELTS score may not change. I think you ended up with some fraud tutors who do not even know about it but claim that they are *****. However, you have your choice to believe. You should always remember that IELTS is not a university exam or not equivalent to UNI. If migration gave you 10 points for 7 bands ( I am not sure exactly), it should not be a piece of cake. Do you know how many errors you already made ? Perhaps, some typos and silly errors but they are still errors when it comes to IELTS. Let's have a look. By the way, sorry I didn't mean any offense. Sorry for being an ar**ole police.
1.
ReplyDeleteAs I said i have been 1 in Australia for 2 more than 3 years. I studied 4 and I am working full time nearly one year.
All of my tutors 5 telling me that your English is pretty good and no one could give help to get a proper score.
Its not wasting time or disappointing people, 6 its just about i am tired of sitting exams and putting my life on HOLD to get IELTS. 7 every time i drop 8 in one band!! that i got 7.5 or 8 on the previous exam.
As soon as i get home at 6pm I start studying and i do not enjoy my weekends as i need to study to pass but i do not know which 9 skill i need to improve as i got 7.5 or 8 !!!
I need this for immigration a si 10 think i deserve it after doing Master's Degree and working full time in Australia.
I have been studying and living in Australia for more than 3 years. When I was applying to get an admission from on 1 of the Australian universities i got IELTS AC 7.5 and my scores in each band was quite reasonable.
After 3 years being here, i though 2 i will be alright to get 7 or above in each band3 , 4 I studied hard for 5 exam though.
Now i have been sitting for the 6th times 6 to get that bloody score.
I got three different examiner7 tutor 8, I've heard from them that " Its a business for us and THEM" and " The average time of sitting the exam is 8 ".
That is all scam, 9 they 10 just using migrants' money to run their country and also they manipulate people's mind.
I have had a friend although he has got the mark finally, 11 he is still having nightmares about IELTS.
I 12 myself am stressed a lot 13. I am using tablets to get a proper sleep. For over a week i had nightmares about IELTS that I am not able to get the mark.
all i cam14 say 15 is a BullSh!t exam and 16 17 playing with people's life.
I found 27 mistakes in total ( gram+vocab). This way of writing is so vulnerable as your consciousness is not there. I understand that some of them are typos but IELTS examiners are well trained to identify them and penalise you for that. Your band score for the post ( around 320 words) is just 6 band. Also, if it is a writing part you should learn how to support your ideas LOGICALLY. This is to prevent any memorised answers from the candidates and to ensure the score for candidates who can write naturally and accurately (+ logically). This doesn't mean I do not make mistakes. Your so called examiners may not be the real examiners as I do not see that you capable of writing error-free sentences. You have produced frequent erroneous sentences,IMO. I think you been fooled by those tutors (perhaps they wanted to con you and sucked your money by saying that they are examiners). Ask them their badge and membership. I found there are many on gumtree claiming that they are examiners. To be honest, you guys are so gullible to believe them in the first place. Even if they are native speakers, they may not be IELTS examiners. We have 100's of examiners from Singapore,India,Italy, Turkey etc...
ReplyDeleteI would urge you to find a real one. If you can post your best essay, I can score it. If you don't know about the scoring method, do not claim and argue. Say that you do not know. To learn something, you need to surrender or admit first that you don't know. Don't be silly. Also there is no point if you keep blaming IELTS ( rationalisation -- a sore loser's behaviour) because immigration dept needs your 7 bands or w/e. So prepare with a positive mind. If your source of learning is crap, then I am not not surprised why you failed it. Instead of blaming IELTS, first puch your so called ' tutors' in their face until they bleed. You can see some native speakers' rants here, can't you? They even got 6.5-8. When people get 9, they don't blame IELTS, do they?
I do not claim that my post was error free. I do not proofread it because I am not sitting for the TEST. My aim was to tell you what you should have done in the exam.
ReplyDeleteThe Department of Immigration has announced that the TOEFL and Pearson tests of English language ability will be accepted for immigration purposes from November 2014.
ReplyDeleteCurrently, only the International English Language Testing System IELTS and Occupational English Test (OET) are accepted for the purposes of applying for General Skilled Migration and Permanent Employer Sponsored ENS/RSMS visas.
From November 2014, the following tests will also be accepted:
• Test of English as a Foreign Language internet-based test (TOEFL iBT)
• Pearson Test of English Academic (PTE Academic)
so fed up! I took IELTS twice. and my score are the same.
ReplyDeleteSo, if the score is the same, that is your skill level. To change your score, you have to perform better.
DeleteIf the scores are consistent, the test must be fair!
DeleteI am so sick and tired of retaking IELTS. waste of money yet I can't get the desire score.
ReplyDeleteHi, i m fed up of giving ielts exam from sydney.Can anyone tell me that giving ielts from fiji or malaysia which one is better option?
ReplyDeleteI am afraid that there is no good location for taking ielts test. ielts is a international company, which means that you will get fucked up as long as you take the god damn test. No offence but I have taken ielts in a non-English speaking country to get four 7s, and I got 5 in writing and 7s+ for other 3 modules.
DeleteI just want to say good luck to all ielts candidates, particularly those in Australia.
ReplyDeleteHello Everyone, I agree with all of you the IELTS test is just a money making machine. Apparently the Australia IELTS is a not-for-profit company ..hm...Had to sit the academic test 4 times till I achieved the required score of 7 each. Thought it was enough to apply for PR in Australia. However, then I was told due to my age I need to do the General IELTS test and get 8 each to get the points. Sat the test 6 times so far, and one time I achieved 8,8.5,8 and of course they had to let me fail by giving me a 7.5 in writing. Writing is subjective..and maybe someone else would have given me an 8. Am so upset, because I have been living in English speaking countries for the last 15 years and no-one ever complaint about my English. My boss even said to me that I have excellent English otherwise I would not have gotten the job. What else does Australia want? Robots?? If they continue putting such an emphasis on IELTS ..they will lose a lot of skilled people and the country will be in a recession soon...anyway, we should all go on the street and demonstrate ...see if this makes a difference...aarrrghh
ReplyDeleteHi Everyone, I did the Ielst in Australia and score 4.5 in one topic, the listening ( for the Temporary visa I needed 5 in all topics). I was suspicious and I did the appeal. They changed my score from 4.5 to 7.5. Do you think this is the case to go to court and ask for damages, since I've risked to be forced to leave the country due to their huge mistake?
ReplyDeletenice blog !! good read it. its funny and knowledgeable IELTS Institutes in Chandigarh
ReplyDeleteThe test is not really about English. It is about making money on passing and preparing for the test, because everything in it is made to confuse you. The test is simply a bunch of tricks to mess up your attention. In everyday communication and academic setting this does not happen.
ReplyDeleteAs a very well educated individual and also a native speaker, I have to agree with the majority of comments. I have sat the test four times now! I sat the first test with no preparation and scored L/W/R/S 8.8.7.9 because I was so close to achieving the 'pie in the sky' 8, I rebooked ASAP. 2nd time I scored the following: L/W/R/S 8.5, 8.5, 7.5, 9. (Just one mark away from the dream of a 8!) Booked an academic test due to admin error at the centre, I revised for this but only scored L/W/R/S 7.5, 7.0,7.5, 9. So I realised that the academic is a lot harder and booked another general L/W/R/S 7.0, 7,0, 8.5, 9. Finally scored a 8.5 in reading BECAUSE the article was a damn sight easier than the first two in the general BUT the listening was so difficult. My question is how can my skills in writing and listening actually decrease? Anyone will know that our skills language is always improving! Why can we not transfer previous marks over to the lastest test which would be the fairest process? My conclusion is that it is all about luck on the day!
ReplyDeleteContinued from the post above. My test scores have now detorirated even further, My last test score was an unbelievable L/W/R/S 7.0, 7.0, 7.0, 9.0 and this basically demonstrates my point that English does not decline but should only progress. I have also sat my sixth test and I am waiting for the results, however, I was the most difficult listening test to date! Not one diagram in the whole section and the range of vocabulary required was quite sophisticated, which is unfair when spelling needs to be correct in a LISTENING exam! Fuming! Does anyone have any suggestions? Perhaps I should write a letter of complaint or something?
ReplyDeleteIELTS IDP BANGALORE SUCKSSSSSSSSSSSS
ReplyDeleteASSHOLES Have not announced my result its been two months !!!!!
A friend in Rome said that his answers could be 'adjusted' by other people because they use the pencil! I wonder why when doing my MA in Math in Manchester I found that some Chinese students that were supposed to have an IELTS with at least 7.0 as entry requirement could barely speak English!
ReplyDeleteI am English born and bred. Even completed a BsC Hons degree this year.
ReplyDeleteI am very pissed off with IELTS. Because I got:
Speaking: 9
Writing: 8
Listening: 7.5
Reading: 6.5
That is a fucking joke! Fuck IELTS
yes,200% agreed. i have been sitting for 16 times in the past 7 years and i came from english school and also had a master degree from a good university in UK. IELTS exam is a syndicate to cheat and fucking rip money from those immigrants, there is no transparency in the marking system. even you get 7 or 8 in a particular band, you may end up with 0.5 lower or even 6 to kill you off.apparently, those greedy and shameless bastards, who claimed fairness on the website as a marketing gimmick, are manipulating the mark themselves to earn money out of our hard-earned money. these IELTS IDP bastards get away easily as there is no existing laws or authority to investigate ethical practice of IDP Australia in the marking systems.Candicates should unite and polices forces should investigate and brings those greedy bastards to court regarding the manipulation marking system and exorbitant price which always increase without reason,down with these vampires,god punish them!
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely right! We should do that. I am in the same fucking situation as yours.
DeleteHey folks,admit one thing in the first place that all of you are a bunch of losers!
ReplyDeleteDid you score 7 in all 4 bands? Winner?!
DeleteHi everyone,
ReplyDeleteI am also trying to get the score for Aus Skilled Migration and have the same story, similar to many of you. I have taken IELTS 3 times in 2014:
In May I received L/R/W/S 6/6/7/6
In July, after 2 weeks of full-time IELTS training in my spare time between jobs I received L/R/W/S 6.5 /6.5 /7.5 /6.5
And recently, in November, my score was even more awful: L/R/W/S 7/5.5/5.5/7.5
Yes I was not feeling well and worried during the test and was only wishing to get out of there, so this can explain my low performance in Reading, but I have no idea what could be wrong with my Writing!!! I felt like this time I have done it much better than before, using wider variety or grammar and vocabulary, providing examples etc. And I got 2 points lower than before! I have addressed my query to British Council and they offer me to pay 60 pounds + the courier service for revision!
Any idea? Well, I can try 4th time for sure, but now I really don't understand how can I perform well in writing if the score seems to be random! It seems to be absolutely unfair scambaggery.
Anna
I took General IELTS in Darwin. It was my first attempt in Australia. L 8, R 7.5, W 7.5, S 7.
ReplyDeleteI don't think my English is that good. I reckon passing the test is a mixture of knowing how the scoring system works ( esp writing), good preparation and luck !!!!
Can you give some tips about writing?! Coz I know all the tips! I learnt from Simon and I still don't get any more than 6 in writing!
DeleteStart with learning the verb tenses and punctuation. You won't get much help here, these people just complain in terrible English instead of realising it is up to them to find out what the tasks are (that is all on line in IELTS websites) and doing them in reasonably grammatical English. These people are their own worst enemies, with attitudes like theirs, they won't improve their English and their scores will stay the same.
Deleteskills assessments are also scams. third world migrants with no working experience assessing an engineer graduated from same university that produced albert einstein. full cdr required. australia should use nz immigration university exception list.
ReplyDeleteA high score represents a high level of proficiency; a low score shows a lower level.IELTS is an exam designed for people of any level to take. It gives a result which does not show a pass/fail according to a certain standard, but rather shows your current level in different areas
ReplyDeleteDifference among TOEFL and TOEIC
IELTS has the following problems:
ReplyDelete1. academic and general reading has at least 3 ambiguous or wrong answers. You can never get a 9 or only if you are lucky.
2. for general test they ask what you need the test for. for instance, if you need it for australia you get at most a 6.5 in speaking or writing. speaking or writing have both a subjective assessment. They want it that way because they have political control on processes.
3. In my speaking test the investigator asked before and after the official test with insistence what I learned, where I work and what I work. I am pretty sure this went into their record.
4. You do not get your writing or anything as a copy plus ‘enquiry on results’ procedure is ielts intern only. This opens doors for a fraud.
5. They are the only test for australia and other countries. Intransparent by design and not better like the beloved DDR.
6. All this can be changed easily but they, australians, canadians, british do not want it.
In a world that is connected and global such processes are like stone age. For someone who wants to move to another country, it is these days normal that at the destination someone already waits to rip you off. Not my problem anymore the us dv green card process does not know language tests or corrupt government organisations AND they do not ask you to write system conform bullshit essays.
Learn to use punctuation marks and people might think you can write and give you a better mark.
DeleteFrankly I don't want someone who is so deluded they think the poor English displayed in your comment should get a high mark. If you want to come to a country, make an effort to learn the language. If you can't do it properly, stay away.
I want to add my freaking depressing experience too. I took the damn thing in Feb 2015 in General Training module in Singapore. I received [L, R, W] 8.5, 9, 8.5 and bloody speaking module just blew EVERYTHING off with 7.5. I signed up for the exam again this week for the sake of 0.5 points. Let's see how it goes. So far I have paid nearly 800$. How in the world the can they decide if I speak like Queen or not within these 15 minutes? Should I speak RP? I have been living in an English speaking country for the past 15 years and literally did my schooling, territory studies and currently carrying out my professional career here as well. Entirely ridiculous.
ReplyDeleteget a remark! You could also get another remark on your previous remark! But don't go through this shit again!
DeleteDon't waste your money on a remark until you have learnt to write without so many errors in your work!
DeleteWell, this is shit! I got my marks again an hour ago, after 4 tries... I still could not get a fucking 7 in each band! It is just shit! Feels like shit! Smells like it too! If I get my 45 sevens one day... I doubt I will feel happy about it! Just too much shit that I can only be angry!
ReplyDeleteFrom Australia ( like you did not already know)
Got my results today (Australia).. (L) 9, (R) 9, (S) 7, (W) 6 !!!! can you fucking believe it?!?!? I needed at least 7 in all of them. Very upset and angry. As it was my first time, I'll try again, I hope I don't get the other scores to lower
ReplyDeleteask for a remark!!!!!!
DeleteYes, it will cost him money that he could spend on English lessons. So he will waste even more money and give it straight to the IELTS people. Do some of the people writing in this blog understand logic at all? The evidence is that they cannot write English very well ...
Delete########Sorry for copying part of the following [Dame, they are doing the same trick whenever possible!!!!] #############
ReplyDelete"I want to add my freaking depressing experience too.I took the damn thing 3 times from Aug 2014 to Jan 2015 in General Training modules in Singapore."
First two times overall band 7.5 and 8 [Writing 6.5, lack of 0.5. Ok fine, maybe I am not that strong at writing in the "Expected" way...]. In the 3rd test, I passed my writing with 7.5 and God, they scored the speaking to 6.5 [stable at 7.5 for previous two exams]. Dame, speaking is probably the most stable component among all 4! Moreover, my 3rd speaking examiner was the same professional [sure?] as my 2nd speaking test [about 1 month gap between two!!!]. Last but not least, the examiner was not in a stable status on the test date [He kept calling friend/colleague to deliver a jacket to him on the test day due to aircon issue...and my speaking session was delayed for almost 30 mins]. There were some other administration issues related to the 3rd exam which BC admitted it in emails at last and offered waiver of remark fee or exam fee if i retake!!!! Now it is under remarking as I do not have so much time to retake again and again especially for speaking [hardly can secure a weekend slot!!!!] I need to work and feed my children!!!! Bloody High Quality Experience!!!
Thank you! Good article :)
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThe IELTS Engish test maybe unfair however you need to complain when you fail. Otherwise your complain on a blog like this will make no difference. This website is really helpful. http://www.calis.com.au/
ReplyDeleteAfter three years of living in an English-speaking country my IELTS speaking dropped by 0.5 points. I'm totally convinced the examiner was biased.
ReplyDeleteAfter three years of living in an English-speaking country my IELTS speaking dropped by 0.5 points. I'm totally convinced the examiner was biased.
ReplyDeleteIELTS is a biggest scam. They have your passport number and they will make sure maximum will not score 7 in each. It is easy to write algorithm for it. It is a money sucking business. Surprisingly India has largest english speaking population in entire world and Indians need to write this scrap exam just to make developed countries richer.
ReplyDeleteIf so many people in India speak English, why am I finding it so hard to make myself understood? The English they do speak is usually gabbled rather than spoken too. When I am home, if I get an Indian voice on the phone (marketing, help lines etc) I usually end up hanging up frustrated because their brand of English is unintelligible to other speakers of English. They don't use stress timing, that is the biggest problem. It makes their speech impossible to understand.
DeleteThanks!! Very nice post!! :)
ReplyDeleteGreat Post, Thanks for the information. IELTS Exam Online Preparation
ReplyDeleteTheir website is full of errors and poor choices of vocabulary. Here's an example: "...make your more fluent in English". Don't trust this site.
DeleteThe whiners on this site are too focussed on feeling sorry for themselves to do anything about their inability to write correct English. Their choice whether they improve their English or keep complaining that English full of errors does not get a good mark.
DeleteI have been taking IELTS examination since 2013 for an immigration purposes in Australia. All I need is four sevens but I have not still achieved them. I did not count exactly how many times I have taken but as far as I know I have taken the exam for as much as 15 times. And because of this, I have not got a job yet and been stuck in one position for 2 years now after completing my Master's Degree. What sucks is everytime I passed speaking module for example, I failed something else such as listening and writing and vice versa. I just took the exam today and I hope I get all 7. I am not sure if it is a scam or not but all I can say is that, I am never ever going to give up even if it takes 100 years.
ReplyDeleteThank you for reading.
Hey Man! Look, I am myself stuck in getting 4 X seven(s). I myself agree with almost everybody on this blog! But man, you have got to work on your grammar! It is impossible to get a seven writing, with this grammar! Work on it! seriously!
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteHi, I am exactly in the same situation, have sat IELTS 7 times but it has been impossible to score 7 in a single exam. I have got 7 but in different tests. Have you tried or will try PTE?
DeleteDon't buy air and don't let others use you and handle your dreams .There is no credibility is that test ,don't give money to frauds .You want to build your self ,build your self first where you are ,don't expect them to free the way for you to achieve your dreams .
ReplyDeletePretty section of content. I simply stumbled upon your site and in accession capital to say that I get actually loved account your blog posts.
ReplyDeleteAnyway I will be subscribing to your feeds and even I fulfillment you get
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I totally agree with you , why so many people are taking this test? Its not that much important. TOEFL Certification Programs in Atlanta | GMAT Prep for esl
ReplyDeleteIf other testing systems give high marks to someone with grammar like yours, the test won't have much weight with people who want a test which shows English ability.
DeleteHi,
ReplyDeleteAs one of the participants in the ferris wheel of IELTs, I can support almost each and every comment here.
Since you have started this, how about taking it to the next level. If all the disgruntled are brought together, a decent lawyer can be hired to sue IELTs for lack of transparency etc. Any thoughts?
I would suggest PTE Academic for those who needs an above competent English scores:) Got my PTE results yesterday and I've got my required scores :)
ReplyDeleteCould you please share what your IELTS score was and the new score based on PTE? Thanks.
DeleteThis article is so ridden with English errors (for example, just in the top paragraph - "highest decision factors", "I would appreciate", "you would like to involve" " After all"). It's actually quite amusing to see such a staggering level of arrogance - whining about a system designed to test if people's English is good enough whilst clearly displaying an inability to write coherently and accurately. I give this blog a 6.0 or a 6.5!
ReplyDeleteAgreed, These people can't be bothered learning the language properly yet complain when they fail. They don't even use punctuation properly, but that is so simple primary school children can do it better.
DeleteThese complaints are not worth taking seriously,.
Of course you WOULD! That is the hole point, you understood exactly what I meant and yet you have chosen to transform it into a misunderstanding. This shows exactly what kind of person you are, along with your fellow examiners.
ReplyDeleteLook up the difference between hole and whole. Your English does not deserve a good mark. Stop whingeing and face reality!
DeleteGood blog post!
ReplyDeleteEnglish Language School Dubai
it is realy nice site.thanks for awarenees!
ReplyDeletewww.careerzonemohali.com/
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it is very good site.
ReplyDeletewww.itzonemohali.com/ielts-training-institute-in-chandigarh-mohali/
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How on earth do some of you expect to get a good mark for English language writing when you make so many errors in your writing here? Don't complain a bout the test, improve your English!
ReplyDeleteI agree. They are just kidding themselves if they think they can write good English judging by the samples on this blog.
DeleteIt is about not a bout. Just saying.
Deletesomeon was tell me that the way to beet exam is to talk fast as you can, not giv axaminer time say thing if he say thing he use word you dont no and you lose mark!!! jus keep talkin scrip you learn and sho how good yo speaking!!! they tell me it work
ReplyDeleteYou sure? How would you like to have someone gabble at you without pausing in bad English like yours? That would make me feel like giving them a fail! It's not how fast you can speak but how easily you can be understood that matters.
DeleteThanks for post!
ReplyDeleteИнтересный пост и комменты..
ReplyDeleteHa ha ha! You think you can write English! A twelve year old can do better!
ReplyDeleteThe Universities and Governments set the IELTS score required for entry. IELTS does not do this. If you think the score should be lower for immigration or entry to a university complain to them. Most of the complaining here is that you did not get 8 when you clearly are not an 8. Fine, complain to Immigration and say that you should only require 4. Complain to a University and say that you should only require a 4.5 to get admitted.
ReplyDeleteILETS is a complete scam. It has become a new business for the governments, especially in Australia. I know lots of people who got <8 in three modules and >8 in the last. They purposely dont give you an all 7 or all 8 so that you dont get migration points. And then you end up giving the exam a couple of times, waste heaps of money and still end up not getting the desired score. STOP PROMOTING AND GIVING ILETS AND SPREAD THE WORD!
ReplyDeleteFirst up it's IELTS not ILETS. Second, you don't even know the difference between TAKING and GIVING. It's no wonder you don't score well. You can't write English coherently or spell correctly. Dummy.
ReplyDeleteI was checking details about ielts exam that is coming next month. I selected British Council for my test. I was searching blog from where I can get some tips regarding practice test of ielts and found your blog simply awesome. I must say that you have provided really good information. I will follow your tips and surely I will get good result. Thanks for your blog and help!!
ReplyDeleteThe whole point
ReplyDeleteI hope ielts doesnt exist
And its a fucking money making
heyy.. i didn't appear in speaking module due to some reasons.. can i appear in other modules?
ReplyDeleteIt is very unfair that IELTS rip people off so much. This website is quite helpful to complain EducationComplaints.com http://www.educationcomplaints.com/au/ They help you get your money back from the tests that you failed and also try to get your results changed to a pass.
ReplyDeleteI have taken general module IELTS exam for as many as twenty times in total but I still haven't got my desired score which is 7.0 for all the band, Hence, I am going to take another alternative exam like OET, TOEFL and PTE.
ReplyDeleteGood luck to all the exam candidates taking IELTS. For those who struggle to get the ideal scores on IELTS, perhaps it is wise to consider the other exams.
I feel a bit relieved it was not my English, but of coruse it makes me feel absolutely angry at the same time...We all have been cheated... I have to say, this does not happen just in Australia, I used to think the same, I took it there the first time. My examiner said to me "you can just take it again... just after finishing the test, and .... I scored 7,5 in Speaking, but 5 in writing... on the other hand, my husband, who was congratulated for his examiner scored below 6.... pfff ... It was back in 2011, then I took it again in a country in South America, (July and Sepetember 2015). Apply to Australia has risen the band over 8... crazy.. then, all I asked was 7 in all bands, First attempt got 7.5 listening, 7 speaking, 7.5 reading and... 6 in writing... I thought it was because maybe I had not written the 250 words, then I repeated being totally positive about it, I counted almost 300 words, no mistakes, no repeated words, and what happened? Grrrr just 6,5 in writing, all the others 7,5 and 8,0... Now I am unsure if taking it a fourth time would give me 7,0 in each band..
ReplyDeleteThere is another option which seems much fair: International Second Language Proficiency Ratings (ISLPR) but it works just in Australia, and
there are two more options, Cambridge English: Advanced (CAE) and Cambridge English: Proficiency (CPE. but those are still run by Cambridge examiners... and what is worse, there no more for this rest of the year, and the results come afert 2 months... this is just so unfair! Does anybody know about these exams? CPE or CAE or is it just the same IELTS scam under a different name?
Reading these blogs, I am absolutely shocked and scandalised at how many people have fallen victim to this IELTS corruption. I am a UK citizen and an Honours graduate of the London School of Economics. I have written many academic papers in my time, as well as having qualified as a Chartered Accountant in the UK which is where I was born and raised. And yet IELTS gave me a score of 9 in both Listening and Speaking, 8.5 in Listening, and then 6.5 for writing. I am 100% confident that this score should have been above 8 and that they have only marked me down in one module knowing that I require a min of 7 in all modules in order to qualify for immigration. To add insult to injury, I had this remarked paying another $175 foolishly thinking that they might actually reconsider this blatant act of injustice. I have since found some example written papers but note that they never post anything more than a 7 score. However, just have a read (last page) of what they have graded as a 7 and compare this to your own standard of writing. Take note of the spelling mistake, poor grammar and incorrect use of vocabulary. If this really was the standard to which they were marking 7's then I'm confident that most people on this blog page would have easily achieved that score. Here is the link;
ReplyDeletehttp://www.ielts.org/PDF/113313_AC_sample_scripts.pdf
I would really like to expose this scandal and am considering taking this to the media here in Australia. I would appreciate any advice on whether it is possible to force IELTS to release my paper, perhaps on the basis of Intellectual Property rights or something along those lines? This way I can prove that there is no basis for them marking down these papers in the way they do just to make you sit again. Many applicants are not well off and spending their rent / food / living money in order to sit this exam in good faith. Something needs to be done about this ...
Perhaps you could start off by speaking to some immigration advocacy groups. You may be able to find someone who is aware of the problems and willing to work with you to expose them.
DeleteAs an example, if you could find someone qualified and willing to grade some papers..... have them grade papers written by yourself and other skilled but failed IELTS applicants and compare it to the actual IELTS score received. Also have them grade the IELTS example papers as well. If it could be proved that the grading is inappropriate or inconsistent, then you would have some hard evidence to take to the media and ministers of parliament.
Of course finding that person and organizing it would be extremely challenging. Especially in the current political climate of "screw dem immigents" ...
What the hell? really? I can not believe your story!! FUCK IELTS!!
DeletePTE is a money making exam too. I hope the assholes dealing with such exam rot in hell
ReplyDeletehahahah! see these losers who cannot pass the IELTS. why be so angry that you did not have a good foundation with regards to the English language? I took the exam one time and aced it (8.0 OBS). I consider myself just an average english speaker. it's either the pressure got to you or you're one of those people who does not know the difference between they're and their. later losers!
ReplyDeleteComplaining is completely fine however instead of just expressing your disgust in the test. You can also get your money back from the tests that you had failed or to get a re-mark for your IELTS test. This is a helpful article if you have failed your IELTS test Do you believe ielts oet excessively fail students
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteLet me share my experience.
ReplyDeleteI need to score 7 on each band in IELTS in order to apply for Australian PermanenT Residence.
As part of my current work, I have to use English every day as I have to deal with clients in US and Canada.
I have sit 7 times IELTS and never been able to score 7 on each band in a single exam which is what I need to get 65 points for residence.
Unfortunately, what I see is that IELTS does not test your real English. Instead, what IELTS is looking for is an English level comparable to that of a journalist. Does a Chemist, an Accountant, an Economist have to know what a topic sentence means in an essay?. I can guarantee they do not.
However, IELTS do test you in that way. You have to write like a journalist; otherwise, they will not be satisfied with your writing.
I have seen many cases, hundredths, thousands of cases of applicants struggling with IELTS, specifically trying to get 7 on each band.
I studied from many resources, books, blogs, classes over the Internet and British Council. I even hired an IELTS teacher to give me private lessons. The result?.. Never got 7 on each band. Every time I got a mix of 6.5 and 7.0 among the bands.
Unfortunately, IELTS is a business and many people’s income comes from this exam.
The more applicants repeat the test, the more earnings they receive
Stupid ranting ignorant cunt.
ReplyDelete