Hi there, it's Asiya. I've taken both computer-based and paper-based IELTS and in this
video I want to tell you about all the advantages and disadvantages of the computer-based tests that
you should know about. I'm also going to show you the real platform on which you'll be taking the
test. Just one quick question before we begin. Do you regularly watch my videos? Do you like them? If
the answer is yes, please subscribe to this channel, it means a lot to me. And now let's get started!
First of all let me tell you about a few advantages of the computer-based
ielts in general if you take a paper-based test you have to wait for your results for 13 days
with the computer-based ielts results are published in just 3-5 days much more pleasant
however if you take ielts UKVI for uk visas and immigration you still have to wait for 13 days
whatever test you take also in a computer-based ielts there are usually fewer people in the room
so there is less noise and the admin part of the exam takes less time
what's more important is that in a computer-based ielts you always know how much time is left
because there is a timer right on the screen in front of you if you take the paper-based exam
there will be a clock on the wall but you need to note what time the section begins
in order to know when it ends the only thing you need to know about the computer-based
test and its timer is that it doesn't show seconds so you will see that you have two minutes left
one minute left and then your time is up and if you're thinking what about your own watch
you're not allowed to take it into the room now let's talk about each section of the ielts exam
starting with ielts listening and i'm gonna show you the platform you're gonna use during your exam
i like it i think it's quite convenient but you need to learn how to use it and know what you can
do there beforehand because no one's gonna teach you on the exam day so here it is okay that's the
practice ielts listening test and actually i find that selecting answers to your questions
is easier here you can simply click to select an answer and if you want to change it
you can click again and remove it or you can simply click on the other answer and it will move
automatically you can click here to switch between sections sometimes you need to select two answers
and again you can click again if you want to remove an answer
sometimes you need to drag the answer to the correct place for example we take finance
and we drag it here and then we release if you want to change it for example to choose rooms
you can just drag it on top and it will switch the answers or you can select an answer and then
you can move it to another place or if you want to completely remove it you can just take it and drag
it back to the answers and then release so that's quite handy there is nothing difficult but you
just need to try how it works before your exam of course sometimes you need to type answers and you
will have to type and listen at the same time you can highlight words if you want you select a word
right click highlight here it is and you can select which questions you want to review
later for example now we have number 17 selected you just click to review
and you see it's round so that means that you want to come back to this question when
you have some time left at the end you can move between questions freely just click here or click
these arrows to move to the next question just be careful when the next section starts you need to
switch to see the next questions the screen will not switch automatically this is a practice test
and i see two differences between this test and the real test well first of all there are only 24
questions here and of course you're gonna have 40 questions in your real test but also in this
test the dialogue stops after each section and you need to switch to the next section
to hear the next dialogue that's not the luxury you're gonna have during the rio exam these are
the only two differences i've noticed you should know that you're gonna get only two minutes after
your ielts listening if you take it on a computer not 10 minutes like in a paper-based test at the
same time all your answers are already selected you don't need to transfer them to a separate
answer sheet so actually two minutes is enough to go back to any questions you mark to review
and think how you're gonna answer them a good thing is that you're guaranteed to have earphones
it's just easier to hear everything when the sound is right here without any noise
it is true that many santas give you earphones even if you take a paper-based test but it's not
always the case and the last time i took my exam in london i wasn't given any earphones and there
were probably 100 people in the room and a lot of noise i often get asked if you get a pencil and
paper in a computer-based test the answer is yes you get a sheet with instructions and a pencil
and you can take your notes on it but i personally never do it and i think that you can do everything
you need on the computer in front of you now let's talk about ielts reading and let me show you the
platform straight away what i like about the computer-based test is that you see the passage
on the left and your questions on the right so you don't need to turn pages but there are some
differences between this platform and the real one and the first difference is that here you only see
some paragraphs but in the real test you will see the whole passage here and you'll be able
to scroll it up and down and of course there is 41 question here but you're gonna have 40 questions
this is an academic practice test there is one for general training students too
in order to select your answers you just click here but in order to answer the second question
first you need to click on the question and then select your answer and the same with the third
question clicking selecting clicking selecting and in true false not given questions finally you
don't need to write for words you just click and that's it okay sometimes you need to type a word
you can either type your answer or you can find it in the text select it click ctrl c to copy
ctrl v to paste here it is and you are guaranteed that there is no spelling error
if you are wondering if you can use ctrl f to look for words the answer is no
and you can highlight words the same way right click highlight and both in question
and similarly in questions right click highlight you can actually take notes and type something
here but i don't think you have time for that so if you click you can read your note
i don't think it's useful and of course you're very likely to have the match headings questions
and here you just drag the heading to the correct place if you want to replace it
you just drag another answer on top of it or you can just drag it back to put it back
in a computer-based ielts reading you don't need to transfer your answers anywhere and it feels
like you gain a couple of minutes in comparison with a paper-based test now let's talk about ielts
writing and i think the key question here is this one how quickly do you type
if you're comfortable typing on the keyboard it's great
many people can type more quickly than they can write particularly right with a pencil
and of course you can easily correct anything in your answers and you don't risk running out of
paper if you take your exam on a computer yes it is a bit of a problem in task 2. i need to write
in a smaller letters than i normally would just to make sure that my task 2 fits on a single answer
sheet if it doesn't you have to request a second sheet so you have to wait until you get it and
then you need to write your name and your code on it so it takes much more time and it's not
an issue in a computer-based test at all but of course when we type we make typos unintentional
errors which you have to correct because they are going to affect your vocabulary and grammar score
and that requires time and of course if you are not used to typing on a keyboard you may be better
off taking a paper-based test because otherwise it's just going to be too much in any case let's
have a look at the platform in ielts writing you can freely switch between your task 1 and task 2.
just here and usually i like to read both tasks quickly to decide which one i want to start with
and if you're wondering what is a word in ielts the answer is everything
as you can see we have four words here there is another convenient feature of ielts writing
if you want to change something you can just press ctrl x to cut it out
and ctrl v to paste it in a different place but if you're wondering if you're gonna get a spell check
like in microsoft word the answer is no if you make a typo you won't see it
you have to correct yourself that was ielts writing ielts speaking is the same test
whatever version of the exam you take it's still a face-to-face interview with an examiner and if you
take ielts indicator the test that is available at home then the platform there is slightly different
the one i showed you is used in ielts centers and the test i showed you is available on the
ielts essentials website by idp i'm gonna link it in the video description box below you can
also find the link in my ielts study plan that's a pdf guide with five steps to quickly prepare for
your ielts exam and links to all the essential resources for your preparation and all the free
practice tests so thank you for watching me today good luck with your preparation and your exam bye