MIT celebrates 25 years of IELTS testing
Manukau Institute of Technology and the British Council are celebrating a quarter-century of partnership delivering the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) this week.
Since that time, the exam system has helped thousands to work and study here, as well as live permanently in New Zealand as evidence of their English language proficiency.
“The IELTS is more than just an English language test – it’s an opportunity for many to migrate to another country and build a career there. It is recognised by Immigration New Zealand services, which opens up the opportunity to study in New Zealand,” says Suzanne Thom, who has led testing at MIT for the past five years.
In that time, the institute’s testing centre has flourished, moving from a paper-based system and cash transactions to a modern automated system with most functions completed online.
“We've switched over from using a system where examiners had to come in and mark the written test papers, to a system where all of those test papers are now scanned and marked in an offsite hub. The only examiners we have are the speaking examiners,” she says.
IELTS is the most popular test for those looking to migrate to Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. It is globally recognised by more than 11,000 employers, universities, schools and immigration bodies, including 3,400 institutions in the United States.
The institute will be celebrating the partnership with an online event where guest speakers will talk about what has been accomplished since opening. These include two original staff and the British Council’s East Asia Regional Manager Kishore Roy
A key part of the centre’s success has been in recruiting great IELTS agents who are associated with a registered business, education provider or community organisations and who support test takers.
Auckland Edinburgh College marketing specialist Peyton Zhang has been an IELTS agent since year 2020, predominantly working with learners from China and Korea.
“As an agent, we help our test takers through the testing process. We help them register, we help prepare them and we check in on their progress. Over the years, I think I have worked with anywhere between 80 and 100 students,” says Peyton. “Test takers can often feel nervous at first, but once you develop a level of professional trust, we can help guide them through the process.”
Pre-COVID, Peyton was working mostly with international students, but after travel restrictions and multiple lockdowns, she has seen a rise in residents coming in for their IELTS test as they look to transition careers or make themselves more employable.
“We have seen many people come in who would like to retrain to become primary or secondary school teachers. We’ve also seen a huge rise in learners wanting to pursue nursing, as the IELTS is one of the only English language tests that the Nursing Council will recognise.”
If you would like to attend the online celebration, click here for the calendar invite. If you would like to learn more about how the MIT IELTS Centre can benefit your students and potential students or might be interested in becoming an IELTS agent, click here.
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