General and Academic Writing- Marking

[Aqua]

Hello Ryan,

I am considering to re-sit my IELTS test. I needed 7 in each band, but my writing is always my biggest problem.

I have been doing academic test, cause I needed to, however now, for some reason I do not have to academic and could choose to do General test.
The last time I did academic, I managed to get 6.5 for the writing ( the first time ever). Now, I am thinking If I should take General test, and will have higher chance of getting 7.

My question is that, do you think it is wise/ beneficial to do general test (as I have never done it ). Does the marking way is different for academic and general test. Does the marking criteria for general is less strict (ie, if i get 6.5 when I did academic, would I get 7 if i were to do general ? )

Appreciate your advice.

Thanks

[Ryan]

Hello Ryan,

I am considering to re-sit my IELTS test. I needed 7 in each band, but my writing is always my biggest problem.

I have been doing academic test, cause I needed to, however now, for some reason I do not have to academic and could choose to do General test.
The last time I did academic, I managed to get 6.5 for the writing ( the first time ever). Now, I am thinking If I should take General test, and will have higher chance of getting 7.

My question is that, do you think it is wise/ beneficial to do general test (as I have never done it ). Does the marking way is different for academic and general test. Does the marking criteria for general is less strict (ie, if i get 6.5 when I did academic, would I get 7 if i were to do general ? )

Appreciate your advice.

Thanks

Hi Aqua,

As you know, the Academic and General exams are structured and graded differently. It's hard to say that one exam is "easier" than the other. The grading of Academic reading is slightly more lenient than General reading. However, the readings on the General exam are less academic in nature, and thus often easier for non-native English users to understand. Academic Task 1 writing is, in my opinion, more challenging simply because it demands a more specialized writing style. In most instances, General Task 1 permits a less formal writing tone. Further, most people have some degree of experience writing emails in English and these skills transfer directly to the exam. According to the ielts.org website, General Task 2 responses may be written with a more "personal" tone. However, I've spoken to examiners that have told me the grading of the General and Academic essays are almost identical. My advice here is to always maintain an academic tone when writing an essay.

Thus, if it makes no difference which exam you engage, I would advise you give the General exam a try. Spend a few weeks honing your letter writing skills and get your essay checked to ensure it is scoring at band 7 or above. Doing these things should put you on track to success.

Good luck!