IELTS Listening Section

IELTS listening section of the IELTS exam is the first part of your exam. It has 4 sections. In each section, you will have 10 questions (altogether, 40 questions). The difficulty level of the sections is getting higher and higher. The entire time of the Listening Part is around 30 minutes, including the instructions that are played to you.
For each of the four parts, you will be given some time to look over the questions and check your answers.
You are given an extra 10 minutes to write down your answers on your answer sheet.
Each of the 40 questions brings you one mark.
For the candidates with physical disabilities, some modifications might be considered, for example, the question items might be available in Braille. However, you should contact your IELTS center and inform them about your special condition in advance.

Instructions for the IELTS Listening Part

In this part of your exam, you will be given some instructions as the following:

Do not open your question paper until you are told to do so.
Write your name and your candidate number on the specified space on top of this page.
Listen closely to the instructions for each part of the paper.
Write your answers to the questions on the questions paper while you are listening.
At the end of the test, you will have an extra 10 minutes to transfer your answers to a separate answer sheet. Use a pencil to copy the answers.

Section 1

In this section, you will listen to a conversation between two speakers on an everyday and comment topic, such as organizing events, arranging a trip, talking about the weather, etc. You are supposed to listen closely to get specific factual information.

Section 2

This is a monologue on a general topic, such as public events. Again, you are supposed to listen closely to acquire specific factual information.

Section 3

In this section, you will listen to a discussion between 2 or 4 speakers on an academic topic, such as assignments, taking courses, attending seminars, etc. While focusing on specific factual information, you should also pay attention to the speakers’ attitudes and opinions.

Section 4

In this section, you will listen to a lecture (monologue) on an academic topic. You should focus on specific factual information as well as the main ideas. Also you should pay attention to the speaker’s attitudes and opinions.
You will have around 30 seconds before the test starts to see what kinds of information will be required (for instance, names, dates, times, money, etc.)

IELTS Listening Section | IELTS Preparation