How Does IELTS Prepare Me for US Study?

Do you believe the IELTS test helps you prepare for study in the United States? Believe it or not, your preparation for the test, your focus on spoken, written, read, and heard English, and the steps you must take to do your best on test day all matter. That time, effort, and preparation you are taking now to take IELTS is an excellent preview of what your studies in the U.S. would involve.

Research Resources

Perhaps most surprisingly, over 3,400 institutions in the United States already accept IELTS. Most importantly, all the top 50 colleges and universities ranked by US News and World Report readily say that IELTS is acceptable for international students needing to document their English language proficiency.

As you may have already found, the Prepare for IELTS section of the British Council website provides excellent online tools to help you get ready for the test, including several free practice tests as well as resources to improve your reading, writing, listening, and speaking skills. All four of those skills are absolutely essential for your studies at a U.S. college or university.

Practice the Skills You Will Use

Ideally, as you search for universities in the United States that have the academic subject you wish to study and meet other requirements you have (size, location, climate, costs, etc.), you should research what band scores you will need to meet the English language proficiency standards each institution sets for non-native speakers. Most colleges will have at least an overall score minimum to begin a full academic load of courses in your first term. Some will also set minimum band scores across the four sections of the IELTS test.

As always, you can prepare for test day with practice tests that will share your anticipated individual band scores as well as your overall result. Be sure to check those results to see what areas you may need to focus on before taking the official test.

Fulfil The Requirements

In terms of tips you can use to use IELTS as the key to unlock your door to a U.S. higher education, there are three pieces of advice we can offer:

• Apply with confidence – have faith in your abilities to succeed.
• Meet your deadlines – yes, the dates set for application deadlines matter.
• Achieve your dreams – use your IELTS preparation and testing experiences to realize your goals.

Resources For International Applicants to US Colleges and Universities

For more discussion on this topic, check out our Facebook Live chat from April 2022 on this subject.