What are the components of the IELTS exam and what is the syllabus?

The IELTS exam has four main components: Listening, Reading, Writing, and Speaking.

- Listening: Four recorded conversations/monologues, 30 minutes plus 10 minutes to transfer answers. Includes multiple choice, matching, labeling, and short answer questions. Features various English accents. - Reading: Three long texts, 60 minutes. Includes multiple choice, True/False/Not Given, matching headings, sentence/summary completion, and diagram labeling. Academic and General Training versions use different types of texts. - Writing: Two tasks in 60 minutes. Academic: describe visual data; General Training: write a letter. Task 2 for both: write an essay. Assessed on task achievement, coherence, vocabulary, and grammar. - Speaking: Face-to-face interview, 11 - 14 minutes. Includes introduction, a short speech, and a discussion. Assessed on fluency, vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation.

Each section is scored from 0 to 9, with the overall band score being the average of all four.