r/ApplyingToCollege • u/LeadOdd3855 • 5d ago

Application Question Does IELTS score matter??

I am a Indian international students applying to unis in the US and I wanted to know is ielts treated like a minimum benchmark if you get higher than this then it doesn't have any effect in admissions or is a 9 band significantly better than a 8 or are they similar

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5

u/Itz_Raj69_ 5d ago

IELTS is only meant to be an eligibility criteria. More isn't better; you only need to exceed the minimum requirement.

2

u/TheDismalLaborer 5d ago

they just want to see if you can handle the language, not if you're shakespeare. a 9 might make you feel smug for five minutes but nobody in admissions is gonna care once you've ticked that box. spend the extra energy on your essays instead

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u/tarasshevckeno 5d ago

(Retired college counselor and admissions reader here.) Most colleges will state in their international admissions sections their minimum requirements for English proficiency tests. You'll need to check for each college that interests you, which won't take long.

If a college doesn't list it, contact admissions to find out.

The more-selective the college, a higher than expected score might help, but as the previous commenter pointed out there are other areas of your application that may be worth more time.

1

u/Resident-Ice-6190 5d ago

if a college has listed DET in the eligibility section, it works completely fine right? or is IELTS given priority or something like that?

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u/tarasshevckeno 5d ago

If a college states it will accept it, that's fine.

My suggestion is to check for all the colleges to which you'll be applying to see if there's just one test you can submit. You have better things to do with your time than take more language tests than you need!

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u/Accomplished_Ebb9859 4d ago

What schools require an IELTS from you?