Job Discussion Forums

[Thwartley]

I would be interested to hear of anyone's experience in doing the IELTS examiner training and their subsequent employment.

The fee isn't small to do the training but by no means prohibitive. I'm interested in knowing if they put out a far bigger net than necessary to benefit from all those non-refundable training fees.

Obviously there will be some unqualified and inappropriate candidates weeded out during the process but is it a reasonable number relevant to those they invite?

Once you are certified, is the work somewhat interesting? Are the calls for work frequent, reliable etc.?

Any feedback from those who have gone through the training would be appreciated.

[Justin Trullinger]

I haven't done the training, but have several friends who have, and another who is the administrator of the local IELTS center.

You don't say much about your situation, so it's hard to speculate about the answers to your questions. It seems that the fail rate for the training isn't incredibly high, but it does happen. Experience teaching and examining, especially with Cambridge exams, and obviously familiarity with the IELTs itself, seem to be good indicators of doing well on the training.

[teacheringreece]

Yes, I can't believe they're expecting you to pay for the training! That seems incredible, and makes me wonder about their (whoever they are) motives. I am a Cambridge examiner but I decided not to do IELTS training, mainly because I found out the training lapses after three months or six months of not doing it (i.e. you'd have to retrain again if you don't do any examining during that time), and where I am there isn't much demand so it didn't seem worth it.

[Marcoregano]

In HK and China there is a huge demand for IELTS. Training is usually organised by the British Council or IDP Australia. You don't pay to do it (I have heard that in some countries you need to pay - a bit cheeky IMO!) and it's not easy to pass, though most do.

In both HK and China examining sessions are very regular and examiners can get a lot of work if they want - for some it is their main, or even only, source of income.

Interesting work? Not hugely, as there is little scope for the examiner to go beyond routine questioning in the oral part of the procedure, and assessing the written scripts is, again, fairly routine. It can be somewhat interesting if you get a mix of candidates, especially older ones who've been a few places, but most candidates - at least in HK - are school leavers or final year university students who have, shall we say, a limited repertoire.

You don't need to retrain after a three-month gap, but your first examining session is closely scrutinised to make sure your grading is accurate. Every two years every examiner needs to retrain and pass.

IELTS pay varies from country to country according to the local market. However, it generally pays quite well by local standards, and of course there's no preparation required or marking to take home afterwards.

In HK, examiners are a little disgruntled as there hasn't been a pay rise for a long time, and sense that one is due, especially as recent changes have made the job more difficult than it used to be.

[jpvanderwerf2001]

I'm going to be trained in IELTS in the coming months, too. I was wondering: Once you take IELTS examiner training can it be used anywhere IELTS is administered? For example, I'll be trained in Russia. Can I then go to, say, China and be an examiner there?

[Marcoregano]

Yes - it is a universal examining and grading system.

[scot47]

It can be an interesting change from the routine of teaching. I think it also gives insights into what is going outside the confines of yopur classroom.

One benefit I got from the training was to see that my students in the Middle East are actually quite good at SPEAKING - in comparison to candidates in other parts of the world. Part of the training is to watch video and listen to audio of candidates from many different linguistic backgrounds.

The 3 month/6 month rule is a pain but so it goes.

[robsam]

Hi there...
I was just offered a job as a IELTS test administrator. The school is part of Berlitz and is located in Santa Barbara, CA. They want $200 for the 5 day training, but said I could make up to $60 an hour as an administrator. I'm hoping to land a job with the NET Scheme in Hong Kong, so I thought the training could be useful there as an extra source of income.
Does anyone know for sure if the 3 month/6 month rule is in effect ro not? There seems to be contradictory information in this thread about it.
Thanks and good luck everyone!

[william wallace]

I found the old test allowed the Examiner more latitude in arriving at a proper score, then the new test came along.In the end, I found I was nothing more than a parrot - and it was hard to stay awake. The training went from free to about 100 USD, then up again to 200 USD.Then again the BC is registered as a charity. Not sure if IDP is ?

[Marcoregano]

In HK there's no fee for IELTS training. IMO it seems outrageous charging for it. Yes, the 3/6 month rules apply in HK. Loads of IELTS work here. It's tedious, but still pays quite well - if not so well as it used to - no rise in local payment rates since last century. But, a long afternoon's work (1-7pm ish) pays the examiner about HK2,500, or US320, which beats a poke in the eye with a sharp stick.

[jpvanderwerf2001]

I have passed the IELTS examiner course. It was pretty interesting, since I've been teaching the exam for years and had always wondered how the marks came about.
In any case, I wouldn't call it strenuous, but it can be a bit tedious. However, it's only four days (two for speaking/two for writing), so that's not so bad.
Good luck!

[william wallace]

Band 7 look for those idiomatic phrasings !