Comparison between: Cambridge English Advanced (CAE) & IELTS

1. 1
Comparison
between
Cambridge English:
Advanced (CAE) &
IELTS

2. 2
AN EXPIRY DATE
C.A.E IELTS
No expiry
date
Expires after 2
years

3. 3

4. 4
COST
CAE IELTS
• Test fee at UFL:
200 000 VNĐ (no
international
certificate)
• International test
fee: 2.400.000
VNĐ (a permanent
international
certificate)
• Register at least
two months before
the test date.
• New IELTS test
fee:
4,750,000 VND

5. 5
TIME
C.A.E IELTS
3 hours 55
minutes
2 hours 45
minutes

6. 6
• 4 exercises and 4 reading passages
• 1 hour 30 minutes
• 8 parts/ 56 questions
CAE
• 3 reading passages
• 60 minutes
• 40 questions
• Includes non-verbal material such as
diagrams, gaps or illustrations
IELTS
Reading

7. 7
• Part 1 - Multiple-choice cloze
• Part 2 - Open cloze
• Part 3 - Word formation
• Part 4 - Key word transformations
CAE
• Task 1 – Multiple choice
• Task 2 – Identifying information
• Task 3 – Identifying writer’s
views/claims
• Task 4 – Matching information
• Task 5 – Matching headings
• Task 6 – Matching features
IELTS
Reading
USE OF ENGLISH (involved in
Gramma and vocabulary)

8. 8
• Part 5 – Multiple choice
• Part 6 - Cross-text multiple
matching
• Part 7 - Gapped text
• Part 8 - Multiple matching
CAE
• Task 7 – Matching sentence endings
• Task 8 – Sentence completion
• Task 9 – Summary, note, table, flow-
chart completion
• Task 10 – Diagram label completion
• Task 11 – Short-answer questions
IELTS
Reading
READ TEXTS AND ANSWER

9. 9
Listening
CAE
• 40 minutes.
• 4 parts/30 questions.
• 2 monologues and 2
conversations
IELTS
• 30 minutes, plus 10 minutes
extra to transfer your answer to
your answer sheet.
• 4 parts/40 questions (10 each
part)
• 2 monologues and 2
conservations.

10. 10
Listening
CAE
• Part 1 - Multiple choice
• Part 2 - Sentence completion
• Part 3 - Multiple choice
• Part 4 - Multiple matching
IELTS
• Task type 1 – Multiple choice
• Task type 2 – Matching
• Task type 3 – Plan, map, diagram
labelling
• Task type 4 – Form, note, table,
flow-chart, summary completion

11. 11
• 15 minutes/pair of candidates
• 4 parts
• Speak and answer questions on
your own in some parts and
discuss with your partner the
other parts
CAE
• 11–14 minutes/one candidate
• 3 parts
• Without a partner
IELTS
Speaking

12. 12
• Part 1 - Interview: General questions
• Part 2 - Long turn: Describe two of three
pictures in 1 minute then the other candidate
comment on what you said in 30 seconds.
• Part 3 - Collaborative task: Be given a
problem and discuss with the other
candidate and make a decision.
• Part 4 – Discussion: Further discussion of
part 3 between 2 candidates
CAE
• Part 1 – Introduction and interview:
General Questions
• Part 2 – Individual long turn: Answer
a task card, prepare in 1 minute and
answer 1-2 minute
• Part 3 – Discussion: the examiner and
the test takers discuss issues related to
the topic in Part 2
IELTS
Speaking

13. 13
• 1 hour 30 minutes
 Part 1: Compulsory question
 Part 2: Write a text from a
choice of text types –
letter/email, proposal, report or
review
• 220-260 words for both tasks
CAE
• Task 1 - 20 minutes: describe
some visual information (graph/
table/ chart/ diagram), 150 words.
• Task 2 – 40 minutes: a 250-word
essay
IELTS
Writing

14. 14