If you are planning to study abroad in an English-speaking country for your Bachelor’s Degree or Master’s Degree, you will most likely have to submit either an IELTS or TOEFL score. The TOEFL and IELTS are two of the most widely-accepted tests to certify your English proficiency, which determine your English level by assessing your reading, writing, speaking and listening skills.
So, what exactly is the IELTS?
IELTS is an abbreviation for International English Language Testing System. The test is available in two formats: ‘IELTS Academic’, for those planning to study at a higher education level abroad; and ‘IELTS General Training’, which focuses on social skills and workplace contexts. In this piece, we will focus on IELTS Academic.
The IELTS test uses British English and consists of four parts: reading, listening, writing and speaking. It takes two hours and 45 minutes to complete, including transfer time from one section to the next. In India, the IELTS exam is offered by two institutions: the British Council and an Australian organization known as the IDP. At essai, we prefer to use the services of IDP, as they offer both a paper-based IELTS exam in addition to the computer-based IELTS exam. Additionally, the design of the IDP tests allows you to send all of your scores through an online portal. In contrast, if you take the exam administered by the British Council, you have to physically send your documents and a demand draft signed by your bank to the British Council office in Gurgaon in order to send your scores.
And what about the TOEFL?
TOEFL is an acronym for Test of English as a Foreign Language. It is an English proficiency test, developed by an American company, ETS, to measure an individual’s reading, speaking, writing, and listening proficiency in American English. There are two methods of taking this test; it can be taken as a Paper-Based Test (TOEFL PBT) or an Internet-Based Test (TOEFL IBT); TOEFL IBT, however, is more popular. The test takes four hours to complete.
Comparing IELTS and TOEFL
For the UK, you can submit a TOEFL score for your application; however, only the IELTS UKVI, is accepted to support the UK Visa and Immigration application. But for Canada and the US, both the TOEFL or IELTS will work across all universities. For admissions purposes, both have equal weightage — however, if you are determined to attend a UK university, you’re better off with IELTS.
But do you really need to take these exams?
Kind of. Most colleges require you to submit TOEFL or IELTS scores if you do not hold a degree from a U.S. institution or from one of the English speaking countries (India doesn’t count). This might seem odd to you, as English has probably been the primary medium of instruction at school throughout our academic journey. Along with this, you’ve probably also taken the ACT or SAT examinations (which already test your skills in English). It is important to note therefore, that while the system is flawed, there are some ways in which you can get around these requirements.
It is possible for you to request a waiver for these English language proficiency exams — but first, you are expected to satisfy different conditions by different universities. Sometimes you can be automatically exempted, based on ACT/SAT score; sometimes, you have to send in an English Proficiency Certificate; sometimes, you have to write and request a waiver; and sometimes, you simply have to take the TOEFL/IELTS.
Depending on the the university requirements, you may be required to specify the particulars if not already covered as an automatic exemption. In such cases, the admissions committees will most likely evaluate the validity of the waiver request on a case by case basis. Here’s a list that covers the TOEFL/IELTS waiver policy of different universities:
| College Name | Score Exemption Policy | Form / Admissions Email |
|---|---|---|
| Babson | SAT Evidence Based Reading and Writing: 650 or higher
ACT English: 27 or higher |
ugradadmission@babson.edu |
| Bentley | Earned a score of 650 or higher on the SAT Evidenced-Based Reading and Writing section. Earned an ACT reading and English score of 29 or higher. | ugadmission@bentley.edu |
| Boston College | You score 650 or above on the SAT EBRW or 29 or better on the ACT English section. | bclawadm@bc.edu. |
| Boston Uni | Waiver requests must be received by the application deadline and must accompany a complete application (no specific exemption policy) | admissions@bu.edu |
| Brown | Brown does not require a test of English proficiency, but our most competitive applicants whose main language of instruction throughout high school is not English will submit the IELTS/TOEFL. | admission@brown.edu |
| Boston Uni | Waiver requests must be received by the application deadline and must accompany a complete application (no specific exemption policy) | admissions@bu.edu |
| Chapman | 600 on the SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing. 24 on both the ACT English and Reading sections (studying in English schools makes them automatically review you for a waiver) | admit@chapman.edu |
| Claremont Mckenna | A waiver can be granted for students whose primary language of instruction throughout high school was English. | admission@claremontmckenna.edu |
| CMU | No Waiver | admission@andrew.cmu.edu |
| Cornell | A score of at least 35 on the SAT Reading Test OR a score of 30 or higher on both the ACT Reading and English Sections. | admissions@cornell.edu |
| Dartmouth | If you currently attend a secondary or post-secondary academic program conducted in English, then this testing requirement is waived. | admissions.reply@dartmouth.edu |
| Emory |
SAT Evidence Based Reading and Writing: 700+
ACT English: 30+ 4 years in English school |
admission@emory.edu |
| GWU |
SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing or Critical Reasoning: 650+
ACT English: 29+ |
gwadm@gwu.edu |
| University of Indiana |
SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing - 560
ACT English section - 21 |
|
| Northwestern | English-medium school will qualify kids for waiver | admission@northwestern.edu |
| Notre Dame |
SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing: 650+
ACT English or Reading: 26+ |
admissions@nd.edu |
| NYU | Your education has been completed entirely in schools/colleges/universities where the language of instruction is English. | admissions.ops@nyu.edu |
| Santa Clara |
ACT Reading: 27 and ACT English: 27
SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing: 630 |
admission@scu.edu |
| UMass Amherst | Entire secondary education (four years) is at a school where English is the primary language of instruction and the British or American curriculum is followed | mail@admissions.umass.edu |
| UNC-Chapel Hill | Waiver granted on case-by-case basis | unchelp@admissions.unc.edu |
| UPenn | No Waiver | info@admissions.upenn.edu |
| USC | 650 on the SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing exam (redesigned SAT) OR 27 on the ACT English exam |
admissions@usc.edu
admitusc@usc.edu |