See open times in your own time zone. Questions before you book? Message Mike on WhatsApp, Telegram or Zalo at +84 383 390 963, or email mkcenter007@gmail.com. Looking for the test venues? They are in the table below; you book the test with IDP or the British Council, not with Band Booster.
One-to-one online lessons, not IELTS classes in Penang
Band Booster IELTS is a private tutoring service, not a test centre and not a class. Mike teaches every lesson himself, one-to-one, live in English on Google Meet from Hanoi. He holds the Cambridge CELTA, and his own IELTS result is 7.5 overall with 8.5 in Speaking (see About Mike). There is no classroom or branch in Penang.
If you searched for IELTS classes in Penang, this is a different format: one student, one teacher, and each slot chosen from Mike's open calendar. A class can suit you better if you want a fixed weekly timetable and classmates.
Three results have been reported back to Mike, each anonymous: 6.0 to 7.5 overall, 5.5 to 7.0 in Writing and 6.5 to 8.0 in Speaking. They are individual outcomes, and no band is promised: progress depends on your starting point and the work you do between sessions.
Penang is one hour ahead of Hanoi, all year
Penang is UTC+8 and Hanoi is UTC+7, and neither currently observes daylight saving, so the gap is one hour throughout the year: 8 pm in Penang is 7 pm in Hanoi. The booking calendar shows each slot in your own time zone, so you need not convert. Open slots follow Mike's calendar and no hours are promised, so check the calendar first if your hours are fixed.
The sources: the Penang State portal places Penang in Peninsular Malaysia (Penang Island plus the mainland, Seberang Perai). The IANA time zone database sends peninsular Malaysia to its Asia/Singapore entry, currently UTC+8 with no daylight-saving rule. IANA's Ho Chi Minh entry, which it says matches all of Vietnam since 1975, is UTC+7, also without a daylight-saving rule.
How a lesson works from Penang
- Open the booking page and choose a slot. Every time is shown in your own time zone.
- See your price in your own currency, then pay with an option shown on the booking page. The Malaysia page has more on booking.
- A Google Meet link and calendar invite arrive by email once your payment is confirmed, with a link to set up your account.
- A regular lesson is 60 minutes, live and one-to-one, with feedback during the lesson rather than days later. Lessons can be recorded on request.
- Written progress notes appear in your account afterwards. You can reschedule at no charge up to 12 hours before a slot; a cancellation inside 12 hours is not refunded.
Your first booking can be a paid 30-minute trial, available once per student. A lesson can cover Listening, Reading, Writing (Task 1 and Task 2, marked against the public band descriptors) or Speaking (Parts 1, 2 and 3 in the real test format). See IELTS Speaking coaching, IELTS Speaking tutor for Malaysia and IELTS Writing feedback for how those lessons run.
IELTS test centres in Penang: what the providers list
The providers' Malaysian pages list four IELTS venues in Penang state: IDP Penang (Pulau Tikus Plaza, Jalan Burma), IDP Butterworth, and two British Council venues, one in George Town and one in Bayan Lepas. ielts.org's test-centre finder lists the same four. Band Booster does not register students, set fees or choose dates, so this page quotes no fees or dates. The provider pages below were read in October 2026 and change, so confirm the venue, format and date when you book.
| Provider | Penang-state venues on its pages | What its pages say |
|---|---|---|
| IDP IELTS Malaysia (test dates, Penang sessions, IDP Penang, IDP Butterworth) | IDP Penang (Pulau Tikus Plaza, Jalan Burma); IDP Butterworth (Butterworth) | Both venue cards are labelled IELTS on Computer, with sessions marked One Skill Retake available. IDP's centre pages also list UKVI test types. |
| British Council Malaysia (dates, fees and locations, booking) | One venue in George Town and one in Bayan Lepas | Its paper-or-computer page names Penang as a place where IELTS on computer is available, and its booking page lists IELTS Academic, General Training and IELTS for UKVI as in centre, on computer. |
| ielts.org test-centre finder | Lists all four venues above | All four are tagged Computer. |
Where the lists differ
- Venue names. IDP's Butterworth page gives one venue name and address at the top but uses a different venue name in its session listings, so check the venue on your booking confirmation.
- British Council booking offices. British Council Malaysia says you can book online or at its offices in Kuala Lumpur and Penang. Where you book is a separate question from where you sit the test, so check the test venue on your booking confirmation rather than assuming they are the same place.
- Paper or computer. IDP labels its Penang venues IELTS on computer, the British Council names Penang as a computer location and ielts.org tags all four venues Computer, but the providers' wording on paper differs. British Council Malaysia says on its paper-or-computer page that, from 1 March, the IELTS Test Partners no longer offer IELTS on paper in Malaysia (the page gives no year). IDP Malaysia's test-dates page still says you can choose between computer-delivered and paper-based formats, although its Penang and Butterworth venue cards show computer only. An ielts.org announcement of 5 March 2026 says that from mid-2026 IELTS will no longer be offered as a paper-based test, with timelines varying by market and no mention of Malaysia. Confirm the format when you book; computer-delivered IELTS in Malaysia covers the national picture.
On test day: how Speaking is delivered
On IELTS on computer, Listening, Reading and Writing are done on a computer, but the pages differ on Speaking. ielts.org's ways to take IELTS page says it is a face-to-face session with a trained examiner, while its Guide for Test Takers says face to face or via video call. British Council Malaysia's paper-or-computer page says face to face with a trained examiner, but its Academic page says its test centres deliver Speaking by video call, with the examiner in another location and you at a test centre. IDP Malaysia's computer-delivered page says face to face, while its FAQ page says Video Call Speaking at the test centre. If you book with the British Council, its booking page says Speaking may be on the same day or on another day within a 7-day window before or after the main test day, so check your confirmation.
One Skill Retake in Penang
IDP's Penang and Butterworth pages label their sessions One Skill Retake available. For the British Council's Penang venues it is less clear: its retake page lists no locations, and ielts.org's finder tags those venues on some listings but not others, so ask the centre. ielts.org says the retake needs a full IELTS on computer test at a centre that offers it, once per original test, sat within 60 days. Our guide compares One Skill Retake with a full retake.
Which test, and IELTS Online
Which test you need depends on who receives your score; see IELTS Academic vs General Training. ielts.org says tests for a UKVI visa must be taken at an official IELTS test centre. IELTS Online is the Academic-only test taken at home or in another private location. IDP Malaysia's pages are not consistent about it for Malaysia: an IDP Malaysia article on choosing between the computer and online formats, dated 2024, lists IELTS Online as one of the two formats available in Malaysia, alongside the test on computer, and says it is for Academic only, with Speaking by video call with an accredited examiner, while IDP's IELTS Online page says only that it has been introduced in "select countries" and does not name Malaysia in its body text. The British Council Malaysia pages read for this page do not describe an at-home IELTS Online test. ielts.org says receiving organisations can decide whether to accept online results, so confirm availability with IDP and check with the organisation receiving your score before relying on it.
Which score do you need? Ask the organisation that receives it
Universities, employers and migration bodies each set their own IELTS requirements, and IDP Malaysia says to confirm the score with the organisation itself, so this page states no thresholds. See IELTS scores for study abroad and the IELTS band score calculator.
What to practise before test day
ielts.org's Academic test page lists Writing as 60 minutes, and its Academic Writing format page says Task 1 needs at least 150 words and Task 2 at least 250, with Task 2 contributing twice as much as Task 1 to the Writing score. The suggestions below are general teaching advice from Band Booster, not guidance from IDP, the British Council or ielts.org.
- Practise on a screen. The provider pages list IELTS on computer in Penang, so if that is the format you book, practise Listening, Reading and Writing on screen, against the clock.
- Time the Writing hour. Split the 60 minutes between the two tasks in advance, giving Task 2 the larger share because it counts twice as much.
- Speak aloud with a person. Practise with someone who can respond and correct you, and use the Speaking Part 2 timer for the long turn. If you book with the British Council, its booking page says Speaking may be on a different day within a 7-day window before or after the main test day, so have your Speaking practised well before the main test day.
For practice material, computer-delivered IELTS in Malaysia lists the familiarisation tests the providers publish. To combine them with lessons, attempt a Writing task or a Speaking answer first, then bring it to a lesson, where Writing is marked against the public band descriptors and Speaking gets feedback during the session. Check the calendar when you are ready.