Introduction
IELTS Academic Reading and IELTS General Reading are two sections of the IELTS Test. The Academic Reading is more difficult than the General Reading section. There are several differences between these two sections but to be honest, it depends on the candidate’s reading ability also one should note that there is no clear answer of which section is more difficult or easier to crack in the Academic or General reading section as both have their own pros and cons.
IELTS Academic Reading: Syllabus and Pattern
The syllabus and pattern of IELTS Academic Reading are different from that of IELTS General Reading.
The syllabus of IELTS Academic Reading comprises:
• Documents on academic topics such as science, technology, and medicine; social sciences; arts and literature; business studies, etc.
• Academic texts with extracts from journals, newspapers, or magazines in English-speaking countries like Australia, Canada, etc., which will help students prepare for their university studies abroad.
IELTS General Reading: Syllabus and Pattern
- The IELTS General Reading Test is a reading test that is for non-academic purposes. It tests your ability to understand and respond to general academic texts in an academic environment.
- The syllabus and pattern of IELTS Academic Reading are different from the ones of IELTS General Reading, so let’s take a look at them now:
- The reading test consists of four passages, each with a different topic. Each passage will be followed by a number of questions that you need to answer. The time limit for this test is 60 minutes and there are two papers in the IELTS Academic Reading Test.
(Read More: How to improve IELTS Listening score?)
IELTS Academic Reading vs. IELTS General Reading
- The IELTS Academic Reading and the IELTS General Reading are two different tests. The Academic Reading test is more difficult than the General Reading test, as it requires you to use more complex vocabulary and grammar structures in order to answer questions successfully.
- The Academic Reading section measures your ability to understand written material commonly found in textbooks or other educational materials used at university-level institutions around the world.
- The General Reading test measures your ability to understand written material commonly found in newspapers, magazines, and academic journals. This section will also test your knowledge of the vocabulary and grammar structures used in every day reading situations.
Differences between IELTS Academic Reading and IELTS General Reading
- IELTS Academic Reading and IELTS General Reading are the two different types of reading tests in the IELTS test. These tests have their own rules, structure, time limits, and scoring systems that make them very different from each other.
- The main difference between these two versions is their level of difficulty. While both versions contain academic texts, they also contain non-academic texts such as newspaper articles or advertisements which can be easier to understand than academic texts like journal articles or textbooks because they’re written for a wider audience with simpler language.
(Read More: How to calculate IELTS bands?)
IELTS Academic Reading and IELTS General Reading: Which section is more difficult?
- When it comes to the difficulty level of both sections, there are many similarities between IELTS Academic Reading and IELTS General Reading. Both tests have their own challenges and require their own strategies. However, there are some differences that you should be aware of before taking either test.
- The difficulty level for each section is slightly different as well: while one section may be easier than the other for you personally (and vice versa), this difference is likely not enough to make a big impact on your score.
Why should you opt for IELTS Academic Reading or IELTS General Reading?
- If you’re planning to study at a university or college in a country like Australia, Canada or the UK, then you need to take IELTS Academic Reading. This version of the test is more technical and focused on academic reading. It requires more vocabulary and grammar skills than IELTS General Reading does.
- If you’re not sure whether your future plans involve studying at an English-speaking university or college, then it’s worth considering taking both versions of the test (IELTS Academic Reading vs General). This way, even if one doesn’t match up with what happens next in life after graduation day; there’s still another option available that might work better for us later down the road!
- The topics of the texts are also different between these two versions. The IELTS Academic Reading test contains academic texts that are based on social sciences, natural sciences, and technology while the IELTS General Reading test contains a wider range of topics including politics, sports, and popular culture.
- The reading test in IELTS Academic Reading is more difficult than the one in IELTS General Reading because it contains academic texts and non-academic texts. The rules for each version are also different: -IELTS Academic Reading has a maximum time of 90 minutes, while IELTS General Reading has a maximum time of 60 minutes.
(Read More: How to score 8 bands on IELTS?)
IELTS Academic Reading or IELTS General Reading: which is difficult?
IELTS Academic Reading and IELTS General Reading are both challenging tests. The difficulty level of these two tests is different, but some people think that the syllabus of IELTS Academic Reading is harder than that of IELTS General Reading.
• Level of difficulty: The difficulty level of each section (Listening, Speaking and Writing) differs from one another; however, the Listening section has more questions than the other sections because there are 4 listening passages instead of 3 or 2 like in Writing or Speaking respectively. However, this does not mean that if you have good listening skills then your chances will increase; as we know every skill has its own importance so does each section! For example if someone scored low marks in speaking skills but high marks in writing then his overall score would be higher than someone who scored high marks in speaking skills but low marks on writing paper! So don’t worry too much about whether or not one particular skill matters more than another because they all matter equally!
Conclusion
The conclusion of this article is that if you want to crack the IELTS exam, then it is better to opt for IELTS Academic Reading or IELTS General Reading. In this way, you will be able to improve your score in the exam and get admission into a good university abroad. So, if you are planning on taking up an English course abroad, then make sure that it has been designed keeping in mind all these aspects so that students can perform better! Enrol for IELTS coaching for better guidance.
