Thank you. Good afternoon, Mr. Chair.
On behalf of the three partners of the international English-language testing system, more commonly referred to as IELTS, I'd like to first take the opportunity to thank you for the invitation to appear today as the committee continues to undertake this important study on settlement services across Canada.
My name is Kim Dienhoff, and I am the commercial director at IDP Education Ltd., based in Melbourne, Australia. I am joined today by Victoria Sellar, assistant director, partnership and policy, at Cambridge Assessment English in the U.K.
IDP and Cambridge Assessment English make up two of the three partners that own the IELTS test. Our third partner is the British Council. IDP and the British Council largely focus on test delivery, while Cambridge is responsible for test production, development, research and analysis. In all, between the three partners, there is an extensive collective experience in language testing and delivery internationally.
By way of background for the committee, since launching in 1989, the IELTS test has largely been recognized as the most secure, accessible, high-stakes English-language test around the world. Currently, the test is accepted as proof of language proficiency by over 10,000 institutions and organizations globally, including over 450 in Canada, most notably universities, professional associations and government immigration authorities. There are currently two versions of the test, general training and academic. The former is used largely for migration purposes, while the academic version is used most often by higher education and professional associations as proof of English proficiency. The test is broken into the four basic components of English assessment: listening, reading, writing and speaking.
For over 15 years, first on an interim basis and then in 2014 on a full designation basis, the IELTS test has been recognized by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada as proof of English-language proficiency for express entry, Quebec-selected skilled workers, and provincial nominee programs. In total, since 2003, over two and a half million IELTS tests have been delivered in Canada. We remain one of only two language tests currently accepted by IRCC. Over the course of our partnership with the Government of Canada, the IELTS partnership has enjoyed a strong, collaborative working relationship with IRCC. We greatly value our shared goal of providing a service that truly works well for all involved.
I'll hand it over to Victoria.