IELTS

GRADUATE MANAGEMENT ADMISSION TEST(GMAT)

IELTS (International English Language Testing System)

         IELTS or International English Language Testing System is a standardized test that evaluates the English proficiency of people whose native language is not English. It is a mandatory exam for people who intend to study or work in the countries where English is the language of communication. The test is jointly managed by University of Cambridge ESOL Examinations, British Council and IDP: IELTS Australia. IELTS assesses ones complete range of English language skills and nearly all education institutes in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand and Canada require IELTS scores from each applicant. The IELTS test is available to candidates all over the world through an international network of over 290 approved test centers in more than 120 countries, and is held upto 4 times a month.

IELTS Test Pattern

• IELTS test questions and tasks have been designed to reflect the general interests of people from an educated background. The test comprises of four band modules namely Listening, Reading, Writing and Speaking. All candidates are supposed to take the Listening and speaking modules. There is a choice for Reading and Writing modules, where a candidate can either opt for Academic or General Training Module, determined by the purpose of taking IELTS.

Test duration of IELTS is 2 hours and 45 minutes.

• Listening section comprise 30 minutes
• Academic reading/general training reading section comprise 60 minutes
• Academic writing/general training writing section comprise 60 minutes
• Duration of speaking section is 13 to 15 minutes

• There are four sections in the Listening test in order of increasing difficulty. The first two sections are on topics of general interest. Section one will be in the form of a dialogue and section two will be a monologue. Sections three and four will have an education or training focus. There will be a lecture and a discussion between two and four people.

• In the listening section, the listening material which is recorded on a cassette tape will be played, only once. As the candidates listen to this, they should write the answers on the question booklet. At the end of the recorded material, the candidates will be given 10 minutes to copy their answers onto the answer sheet.

• In the Reading test, the candidates are required to read three texts of between 500 and 900 words each. There will be around 40 questions to answer and record on the answer sheet within the 60 minutes. The texts and questions increase in difficulty.

• There are two tasks in the Writing test. Task one which should be completed in 20 minutes, is a report based on some graphic information and the candidates are required to describe it in a minimum of 150 words. Task two, that carries more weight in the final band score, is an essay based topic which should be written in at least 250 words in 40 minutes. 

• The Speaking test is in the form of an oral interview between the candidate and an examiner. During the interview you will need to answer questions asked by the interviewer, speak at length on a topic selected by the interviewer and give and justify your opinions on a range of issues related to that topic. Candidates who are not able to participate fully in the conversation may not achieve their potential band score, as they may not be able to demonstrate the level of language skill they are capable of.

• It is important that the candidates must practice for each tests regularly to develop their skills of recording, speed of speech, skimming, scanning and other timesaving strategies. The first three Modules- Listening, Reading and Writing- must be completed in one day. The Speaking Module may be taken, at the discretion of the test centre, either seven days before or after the other three modules.

CB IELTS
           Computerized version of IELTS is called CB IELTS which is available only for Academic module. It is the same test as IELTS but delivered differently. Listening and reading test are taken on the computer; writing test can be taken either on computer or on paper. But the speaking test will be conducted face- to - face. The CB IELTS is available currently at the New Delhi centre of IDP:IELTS Australia Test Centre Planet EDU in India.

 Test Centers

Graduate Management Aptitude Test (GMAT)

• Graduate Management Aptitude Test (GMAT) is the standardized test required for doing MBA or PhD in Business Management or any other graduate management programmes from a business school in US, Europe and Canada.
• It is the test that measures the verbal, mathematical, and analytical writing skills of the candidate (i.e the test taker). Designed specially for business schools, this computer-based test helps to assess the qualifications of applicants for advanced study in business and management.
• Many universities in Australia, New Zealand and Singapore also use GMAT scores for their admission. It is a Computer Adaptive Test (CAT) and may also be referred as 'GMAT CAT'.
• GMAT is scored out of 800 (in multiples of 10), and most scores fall in the range of 500-600.
• The test scores are valid for five years. A high GMAT score is not adequate for getting admission into a B-school of your choice. Many schools screen applicants by combining GMAT scores and undergraduate GPA (each school determining for itself their relative weight), then ranking all applicants in their initial pool accordingly.

GMAT-CAT Test

Computer-Adaptive GMAT Test

        In a computer-adaptive test, the computer screen displays one question at a time, which is chosen from a very large pool of questions categorized by content and difficulty. The first question is always of medium difficulty, and each subsequent question is determined by your responses to all the previous questions. In other words, the CAT adjusts itself to your ability level - you’ll get few questions that are either too easy or too difficult for you.

        Each question in the GMAT CAT has five answer options, and you are required to select one of these five as the correct answer by clicking on it. A subsequent question is displayed on the screen only after you have answered the previous question, so you cannot skip a question. You cannot also go back to a previously answered question to change your answer. Thus, if you guess a correct answer or answer a question incorrectly by mistake, your answers to subsequent questions will lead you back to questions that are at the appropriate level of difficulty for you.

GMAT Registration

        Anyone is eligible for taking the GMAT, provided that the candidate must be at least 13 years of age. Minimal computer skills are required to complete the GMAT test.

         For current information regarding test and service fees visit the site www.mba.com

        For GMAT registration, you must first select a test center location. Test centers operate on their own schedules and can accommodate varying numbers of test takers throughout the day. After selecting the test location, you will need to schedule a GMAT test appointment using any of the following:

1. Online Registration - To schedule a test appointment, you can complete the required details online on the official GMAT registration website. (www.mba.com)
2. Registering by Phone - You may call up VUE Customer Centers to register by phone. Make sure to call at least three business days before the test date. 
3. By Fax 
4. By Mail

           Pearson VUE
           Attention: GMAT Program
           PO Box 581907
           Minneapolis, MN 55401
           USA

          One must send the documents at least three weeks before the choice of a test day. On receipt of your documents, an appointment will be scheduled for you to test at the test Center. Confirmation of the date, time and location of the appointment will be sent to you. If you do not receive confirmation at least three business days before your first choice of test day, please call the VUE customer service center to verify your GMAT appointment.

GMAT Test Centers in India

         GMAT is held all round the year in more than over 100 countries. A candidate can choose their own date and time for taking the exam. GMAT Test centers in India are :

            The candidate must present acceptable, original, and valid identification (ID) (i.e Passport, Government-issued driver’s license, Government-issued national/state/ province identity card (including European ID card), Military ID card), to be admitted to the test center. ID requirements are strictly enforced. It is the candidates responsibility to read and understand the instructions and requirements. If he/she do not present appropriate ID, they will not be admitted to the test center and will forfeit the entire test fee.

TOEFL Exam - Test of English As A Foreign Language

               Test of English as a Foreign Language is conducted by Educational Testing Service in different parts of the world. It has been regarded as one of the best language test for going abroad. The main objective of this test is to examine the candidate’s skills of speaking and understanding American English. It is the online internet based test where the score is generated the very next time after the completion of the test. The score for the TOEFL is valid for two years from the date of the test.

Registering for TOEFL:

There are generally two ways for registering the test:

• The first method to register is over the internet. The interested candidates can visit: http://www.ets.org/ell/register.html and register here for the test.

• The second method of registration is over telephone. The interested students can call 1-443-751-4862 and register there.

Examination Pattern:
There are usually four sections in the test, namely:

1. Reading section: There are usually 3-5 passages in this section with 39 questions. This part is usually of one hour duration.
2. Listening section:-It consists of 2 student conversation and 4 lectures or discussion which includes 6 passages containing 34 questions. The duration for this part is 50 minutes.
3. Speaking section:-In this section the candidate has to read a passage, listen to a passage and to put his point forward about the passage. There are usually 6 tasks in this part along with 6 questions which needs to be completed in 20 minutes.
4. Writing section: in this section, the writing skills of the candidates are checked by giving the task of writing on a passage. There are usually 2 tasks along with 2 questions which have to be completed in 55 minutes

NOTE: The score obtained in the exam is considered by most of the Universities abroad. Some of the top universities are:

1. University of New South Wales, Sydney
2. Victoria University, Melbourne
3. Oxford Brookes University, Oxford
4. Abu Dhabi University, Abu Dhabi
5. Jacksonville State University, Jacksonville
6. Columbia Southern University, Orange Beach