What Happens After You Take The IELTS Exam?

What you do after you have taken the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) exam depends heavily on how you have IELTS tests results. The IELTS exam is held in 130 countries, including Singapore, and accepted by over 9000 organisations. Since the IELTS exam is one of the most widely recognised language proficiency exams you can use your IELTS test scores to apply to study at many international schools, colleges, universities, employers, immigration authorities and professional bodies that recognize or require this English language test as part of their admission requirements.

How can you use your IELTS Test Report Form to apply to Universities and other Organisations?

When you register for the IELTS exam on the official website or in person at an official IELTS test centre, you will be given the opportunity to send 5 electronic test report forms to institutions of your choice. These institutions will automatically receive your results when they are available.  This can take up to two weeks for both the paper-based and the computer-delivered to Additionally, it is important to note that some organisations still require paper copies of your test report form and you can request your test centre to have these mailed at a small additional cost. The institutes you have chosen should receive your test scores about two weeks after you take the exam, and if there is any delay, you should check with your test centre for the reasons behind the delay

If you have taken your IELTS tests and at a later point you would like your scores to be sent to an additional organisation, you can do so by contacting your test centre and request this to be done for a minimal fee.

How Can IELTS Help Your Career?

Having a good IELTS general training or even an Academic test score can also help in other areas of your career, apart from using it to migrate to an English-speaking country. Many companies across the globe, also require a certain level of English language skills and proficiency. Therefore something as simple as showcasing a good band score on your Linkedin profile can help with securing positions at reputable companies.

What Can You Do If You Have Not Achieved Your Required Band Scores?

If you have not scored well enough then you have a few options, the first of which is getting your test remarked. This can be done for another additional fee at the British Council or IDP education, depending on who you booked you booked your test with. However, it is important to note that the changes in scores will not be very drastic, maybe the difference between a half-band or so. Therefore the option of remarking should only be considered in genuine cases where you have just barely missed your required IELTS score.

You will probably not see a score change. Instead of asking for a re-score, the smarter thing to do is to spend that money on a course and use it to learn strategies that will guarantee you a better score next time.

It is quite normal for students to underestimate the difficulty of the IELTS exam and this is the reason that most test-takers don’t get the score they need the first time. In this case, you should use this as an opportunity to learn from your mistakes. Try to improve your preparation for the next time you take the test, especially in the test section you scored most poorly in.

Take a good and honest look at your previous preparation methods and schedule to determine how you can improve upon these areas.

I believe the easiest and stress-free way to do this is to find an IELTS teacher, who can help you identify your weaknesses and help you to improve in these areas

Jonathan has been teaching students to prepare for the IELTS and PTE Exams for more than 10+ years. He's taught English to students in various countries in the world including Singapore, China, Australia, Canada and Colombia.