Three IELTS requirements, one target: turning the rules into numbers
Each IELTS requirement has three parts: an overall band, a minimum per skill and a result age limit. When organisations differ, take the highest band in each column and the shortest age limit. A target of 7.0 in every skill lets two skills slip by half a band and still return 7.0 overall.
A requirement that reads "7.0 overall" and a requirement that reads "7.0 in every skill" are different tests, and only one of them forgives a weak Writing mark.
Three invented requirements
Take a candidate with three organisations. The figures below are made up for the example, but the shape is the one you will meet.
| Organisation | Overall | Minimum per skill | Age limit |
|---|---|---|---|
| University | 6.5 | 6.0 | Two years |
| Scholarship | 7.0 | None stated | Two years |
| Registration body | 7.0 | 6.5 | Two years |
Prepare for the highest band in each column and the shortest age limit. That gives 7.0 overall, 6.5 in every skill and a result no older than two years. One test aimed there satisfies all three. Three tests aimed at three targets would cost three fees.
How the overall band is built
The overall band is the average of the four skill bands, rounded to the nearest half band. IELTS rounds an average ending in .25 up to the next half band, and an average ending in .75 up to the next whole band.
| Listening | Reading | Writing | Speaking | Average | Overall |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7.0 | 7.0 | 7.0 | 7.0 | 7.000 | 7.0 |
| 7.0 | 7.0 | 7.0 | 6.5 | 6.875 | 7.0 |
| 7.0 | 7.0 | 6.5 | 6.5 | 6.750 | 7.0 |
| 7.0 | 6.5 | 6.5 | 6.5 | 6.625 | 6.5 |
Read the last two rows together. Two skills can fall half a band and the overall band still reaches 7.0. A third slip pulls it down to 6.5.
The floor is a separate test
The registration body wants 6.5 in every skill. Every row in the table above keeps all four skills at 6.5 or higher, so the floor holds in each one. Now take another profile: 7.5, 7.0, 6.0 and 7.0. It averages 6.875 and rounds to 7.0 overall, yet the 6.0 in Writing fails the floor. A strong average never repairs a weak skill when a minimum is set.
Setting the skill targets
For each skill, take the highest of three numbers: the organisation's minimum, the band that keeps the overall at the required level, and the minimum plus half a band for the skill you find hardest.
Say Writing is the hardest. The floor is 6.5, and half a band on top makes 7.0. Set 7.0 for Writing, and set 7.0 for the other three as well. That profile averages 7.0 and survives two half-band slips, as the table showed.
Test the target against evidence
A target on paper means nothing until your practice results meet it. You are ready when two full practice tests in a row reach it in every skill. If Writing lags, plan around Writing, not around the overall number.
Keep the table alive
Add a column called "my target" and a date to every row, and update a row whenever an organisation changes its page. If you may need a One Skill Retake later, add a column for it and ask each organisation, in writing, before you rely on one.
Open the three pages today, copy their figures into a table like the one above and circle the highest number in each column.
Questions readers ask
Do I need the same band in Listening and Reading?
Why take the shortest age limit?
What if two organisations name different versions?
This article is independent and is not endorsed by IELTS partners. Facts change: confirm them on the official page before you act.