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The International English Language Testing System is the world’s most widely recognised English-language proficiency test for non-native speakers. It measures how well you understand, speak, read and write in English — and the result is a single band score that universities, employers, professional bodies and immigration authorities use to decide whether your English meets the standard they require.
Whether you are applying to a degree programme abroad, registering as a nurse or engineer in an English-speaking country, or moving for work, IELTS is very often the test you will be asked to take.
A globally recognised English test for non-native speakers
Accepted by more than 11,000 institutions and governments worldwide.
Trusted by universities, employers and immigration authorities
A standard reference for academic admission, professional registration and visa applications.
Essential for studying or working in English-speaking countries
The UK, Ireland, the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand all use IELTS as a key benchmark.
The Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) is the standard used across Europe to describe language ability on a six-level scale, from A1 for absolute beginners to C2 for near-native speakers. Lingu’s English courses are structured around the same six levels, which makes it straightforward to estimate the IELTS band you are likely to achieve — and the band you will need to study or qualify for — from where you are today.
You can handle very basic phrases, introduce yourself, and ask or answer simple personal questions about everyday things.
You can communicate on familiar topics — work, family, shopping, local geography — using simple, direct exchanges.
You can hold everyday work, study and travel conversations and write straightforward connected text on familiar subjects.
You can interact comfortably with native speakers, follow detailed argument, and produce clear writing on a range of topics — the most common university entry requirement.
You express yourself fluently and spontaneously in academic, professional and social settings — the level expected for professional registration in many fields.
You understand virtually everything you read or hear, and express yourself with near-native precision and nuance.
The mapping above is approximate — IELTS does not publish a single official conversion table. As a rule of thumb you need to be working comfortably at B2 to reach a band 6.5, and at C1 for band 7+. English Fast-track is designed to lift you one full CEFR level in a single programme, with weekly group classes, marked writing and unlimited speaking practice doing the heavy lifting.
IELTS is a single test made up of four separately scored components, completed on the same day. Together they take around two hours and forty-five minutes.
Forty questions across four recordings — a conversation, a monologue, a study-context discussion and an academic talk — testing whether you can follow spoken English in everyday and academic settings.
Three long texts and forty questions assessing skim-reading, scanning for detail and full comprehension. The texts are drawn from books, newspapers and journals.
Two tasks: a shorter report or letter, then a longer essay. You are marked on the clarity of your ideas, your organisation, your vocabulary range and the accuracy of your grammar.
A face-to-face interview with an examiner in three parts: an introduction, a two-to-three-minute long turn on a given topic, and a two-way discussion that explores the topic further.
You sit one of two IELTS modules depending on why you are taking the test. The Speaking and Listening sections are identical across both modules; the Reading and Writing tasks differ to match the context you are preparing for.
Take the Academic module if you are applying for an undergraduate or postgraduate degree at an English-speaking university, or if you need to register as a doctor, nurse, engineer or other regulated professional abroad. The Reading and Writing tasks use academic source material.
Take the General Training module if you are moving to an English-speaking country to work, to join family, or to study below undergraduate level. The Reading and Writing tasks use everyday and workplace contexts.
There is no “pass” or “fail”. You receive a band score from 1 to 9 for each section and an overall band that averages the four. Most institutions publish the band they expect, and the test is structured so that tasks become harder as you advance through each section.
Fast-track is built around the same four skills IELTS measures — and pairs them with a dedicated teacher who knows how the test is marked. You practise the format every week, get individual feedback against IELTS band descriptors, and arrive at the test centre prepared.
You join the same small group every week with a qualified teacher who follows your progress across the whole programme. Lessons target the test format directly: timing strategies, paragraph structure for the Writing tasks, and the cues examiners look for in the Speaking interview.
For Listening, Reading, Writing & SpeakingSubmit Task 1 reports and Task 2 essays whenever you like inside the app. Your teacher returns line-by-line corrections covering task response, coherence, lexical range and grammatical accuracy — the same four criteria IELTS examiners use — with a clear note on the band you are currently writing at.
Focus: WritingThe Speaking section is short, but the band depends on fluency you can only build by talking. Drop-in live classes give you small-group conversation practice every weekday, while the AI conversation partner lets you rehearse long-turn answers at any hour of the day or night.
Focus: SpeakingMost candidates need to be working comfortably at CEFR B2 to reach a band 6.5, and at C1 for band 7+. Fast-track is designed to lift you a full CEFR level in one programme, with the interactive course filling grammar and vocabulary gaps in the background while live classes apply them.
Focus: foundationChoose English Fast-track for the full preparation experience — a dedicated teacher, weekly group classes, marked writing, and unlimited speaking practice — or pick a lighter plan if you just need to brush up your general English. Either way, you can put together a personalised study plan with our qualified teachers.
