IELTS — International English Language Testing System
IELTS (International English Language Testing System) is a standardised English proficiency test jointly managed by the British Council, IDP: IELTS Australia, and Cambridge Assessment English, scored on a 9-band scale and widely used for study, work, and immigration applications.
IELTS tests four skills — Listening, Reading, Writing, and Speaking — and reports a band score from 1 to 9 for each skill plus an overall band. The Academic version is used for university admission; the General Training version for work and immigration.
Band scores map approximately onto CEFR levels: band 4 sits around A2/B1, band 5–6 around B1/B2, band 6.5–7.5 around B2/C1, and band 8–9 around C1/C2. Universities and employers typically require a specific overall band (commonly 6.0–7.5) rather than a CEFR level directly.
Comprehensible input is a strong complement to IELTS-specific practice: extensive listening and reading at the right difficulty build the vocabulary and processing speed the test measures, while targeted practice with real past papers builds familiarity with the exam format itself.