IELTS Scores Explained

After the completion of the IELTS examination, the test is graded by experienced examiners at the test center. This is to make sure that the results are available without any kind of delay. Usually the standardized scores are available about two weeks after the test. They are sent to the students by mail and are strictly not revealed by any other means. The main objective of taking the IELTS test is to show the university administration department how able the student is in English communication. The score is scaled to a band of 1 to 9. A different score is taken for the different sections of the test and is averaged and rounded off to determine the overall score. The rounding off is done by using a conversion table. Half band scores can be possible for the overall scores, the reading section score and the listening section score. The writing and speaking sections’ scores are reported only in full bands.

The scores are reported in a format that consists of the individual scores of each section as well as the overall band score. A descriptive statement giving the summary of the English proficiency of the applicant is also present on the report of the test.

Conversion of score into bands:

Number of correct answers out of 40	Score
20	5.5
25	6
28	6.5
30	7
33	7.5
35	8
38	8.5
40	9

The above table shows the conversion of the number of correct responses for the listening and the reading sections into band scores. The writing section is divided into two sub-sections, the report writing and the letter writing. The maximum scores for these are 3.6 for the report writing and 5.4 for the letter writing. For the speaking section, there will be no decimal scores. The grading is entirely based on one’s speaking skills and way of answering questions. Below is a table that shows the band scores explained.

Score	Remarks About the Applicant
9	Expert User: Has fully operational command of the language: appropriate, accurate and fluent with complete understanding.
8	Very Good User: Has fully operational command of the language with only occasional unsystematic inaccuracies and in-appropriations.
7	Good User: Generally handles complex language well and understands detailed reasoning.
6	Competent User: Can use and understand fairly complex language, particularly in familiar situations.
5	Modest User: Has partial command of the language, coping with overall meaning in most situations, though is likely to make many mistakes.
4	Limited User: Basic Competence; Is not able to use complex language.