This page reports what ielts.org, IDP and Sohar University's how-to-apply page say, as read in October 2026. Pages change, and the university and the test provider decide, so check their current pages. Band Booster IELTS is a private online tutor, not a university or a test centre, and it has no tie to IDP, the British Council, a university or a regulator.
Sohar University's English rule: IELTS at least 5.0, with no skill below 4.5
Sohar University's how-to-apply page, in its direct-entry requirements, says an applicant can be exempted from the English component with an IELTS score of at least 5.0, with none of the four areas (writing, speaking, listening and reading) below 4.5. The page itself uses the abbreviation GFP, and IDP's list names the unit "Sohar University - General Foundation Program", so this page reads the exemption as applying to the English component of that foundation programme. The same page lists other routes too, including the university's own English Placement Test, so IELTS is one way to be exempted, not the only one.
Read together, the two figures set a target and a floor: a score of at least 5.0, which this page reads as the overall band, and nothing under 4.5 in any single skill. Only the university can confirm how it applies a real result.
A made-up result shows why the floor matters. Listening 6.0, Reading 6.0, Writing 4.0 and Speaking 5.5 average 5.375, which rounds to an overall 5.5. That is above 5.0, yet Writing 4.0 is below 4.5, so the result would not meet the wording as this page reads it. These numbers are invented, not anyone's real result; the IELTS band score calculator does the arithmetic with your own.
The lines read for this page do not say whether the test must be Academic or General Training, how long a result stays acceptable, or by when it must be submitted, and they carry no date. Ask Sohar University before you book; IELTS Academic or General Training explains how the two tests differ. Sohar's rule is set beside the rules of other institutions in Oman on our page about IELTS and the General Foundation Programme in Oman; this page keeps to Sohar.
The Sohar test picture, as read in October 2026
You book IELTS with a test provider. Band Booster does not register you for the test, hold a place, set exam fees or choose dates, so this page quotes no exam fee or test date; providers set them and they change. What follows is what ielts.org's pages and IDP's Oman pages showed for Sohar when read.
What ielts.org's finder shows
ielts.org's test-centre finder for Sohar returned five results when read on 24 October 2026. The cards overlap, so count venues rather than cards: the results were one venue listed under Sohar University's name, shown three times with different formats and tags; a second venue listed under a different name; and an IELTS Online booking card. That makes two venues and one online booking option.
The Sohar University venue: computer, and Computer (Writing on Paper)
ielts.org's page for the venue listed under Sohar University's name lists both tests in the same two formats.
| Test | Formats listed on ielts.org's page for the venue |
|---|---|
| Academic | Computer; Computer (Writing on Paper) |
| General Training | Computer; Computer (Writing on Paper) |
Computer (Writing on Paper) is ielts.org's label, and it appears to mean a test taken on computer with Writing handwritten. This page cannot say which sessions use which format. ielts.org announced on 5 March 2026 that from mid-2026 IELTS would no longer be offered as a paper-based test, with timelines varying by market; see its update on test delivery. So confirm the format on the session you choose rather than relying on a venue page. Our page on computer-delivered IELTS in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman compares provider pages in more detail.
IDP in Sohar
IDP's Oman test dates page lists Sohar among its city pages. IDP's Sohar page, read on 24 October 2026, listed no sessions under its default filters and offered IDP IELTS Oman at Al Madinat Plaza as the related test centre. That is one day's snapshot with default filters. It does not prove IDP never runs Sohar sessions, so check IDP's booking tool when you plan, and read the format on any session you find.
If no Sohar session suits you, the Muscat page sets out what IDP and the British Council list in Muscat, and the page on test venues in Nizwa, Buraimi, Sur and Ibra covers other towns. For ID, payment and moving a test, see booking IELTS in Oman.
IELTS Online
The finder also shows an IELTS Online booking card, which is a separate way of booking rather than a Sohar venue. Our guide to IELTS Online in Oman covers it. If you consider it, check first that the university or organisation receiving your result accepts it.
One Skill Retake and the Sohar foundation unit
IDP's page of organisations that accept One Skill Retake in Oman, read in October 2026, includes Sohar University - General Foundation Program among its Oman entries. A listing on IDP's page is not the university's own rule, the page is undated, and lists change. If one skill holds your result back, ask Sohar University whether it will accept a retaken result before you rely on it. Our guide to One Skill Retake or a full retake compares the two options, and IELTS results in Oman covers what follows the score.
Sohar is 3 hours behind Hanoi, all year
According to the IANA time zone database, Asia/Dubai, the zone Oman follows, is UTC+4 with no daylight-saving rule in its current entry, and the database's backward file lists Asia/Muscat as a link to it. Vietnam has been UTC+7 since 1975. So Hanoi is 3 hours ahead of Sohar in every month: 18:00 in Sohar is 21:00 in Hanoi. This is a conversion, not a list of open slots; Mike's calendar decides which slots are open and no particular hours are promised. Because it is the same zone across Oman, the gap is the same for Muscat and Salalah.
How one-to-one lessons with Mike work from Sohar
Every lesson is live on Google Meet, one-to-one with Mike, who teaches every session himself from Hanoi. There is no classroom, centre or group class in Sohar; you join online. Lessons are taught in English, and the website interface is also available in Arabic.
You open the booking calendar, which shows each slot in your own time zone, pick a slot, and see your price in your own currency, with the payment options, before you pay. Once payment is confirmed, a Google Meet link and a calendar invite arrive by email straight away, with a link to set up your account for session history, receipts and progress notes.
Oman is in a higher regional price tier than Vietnam. A regular session is 60 minutes, and a paid 30-minute trial can be taken once, on your first booking. You can reschedule at no charge up to 12 hours before a session; a cancellation inside 12 hours is not refunded. There is no subscription or package. Questions first? Message Mike on WhatsApp or Telegram at +84 383 390 963 (a Vietnam number), or email mkcenter007@gmail.com.
Who teaches every session
Mike holds the Cambridge CELTA (July 2017) and has taught English and IELTS for 12+ years in Vietnam, Turkey and Iran. He has taught 500+ one-to-one sessions and scored 8.5 in Speaking in his own IELTS; see about Mike. A lesson is practice with a teacher, not an IELTS test, and no band is promised: progress depends on your starting point and the work you do between sessions.
What to practise, and how lessons fit
Sohar's wording puts a floor under all four skills, so your weakest skill can matter as much as your strongest. The format of each skill, in outline:
| Skill | Time and format |
|---|---|
| Listening | 30 minutes, 40 questions, 4 parts; the recording is played once |
| Reading | 60 minutes, 40 questions, 3 sections |
| Writing | 60 minutes: Task 1 (at least 150 words, about 20 minutes) and Task 2 (at least 250 words, about 40 minutes); Task 2 counts twice as much as Task 1 |
| Speaking | 11 to 14 minutes in three parts, with one minute to prepare in Part 2 |
The points below are a teacher's general advice, not guidance from Sohar University, IDP or ielts.org, and no band is promised.
- Find your weakest skill first. Sit a timed paper in each skill and note which is lowest; with a floor under every skill, that is the one to give extra time.
- Practise the way you will sit it. If the session you book says Writing on Paper, handwrite both tasks in one 60-minute sitting; if it is on computer, type them.
- Keep Speaking live and timed. Speak aloud to another person, with one minute to prepare Part 2. In a lesson, Mike runs Parts 1, 2 and 3 in the real format and gives feedback in the moment. See IELTS Speaking coaching (its prices are for Vietnam) and the Speaking Part 2 timer.
- Bring your own Writing. A Writing session marks Task 1 and Task 2 against the public band descriptors, with feedback during the session. See IELTS Writing feedback (its prices are for Vietnam). Listening and Reading can be practised in a session too.
Related pages
Elsewhere in Oman, see the pages for Muscat and Salalah. Living elsewhere in the Gulf? See the page for Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman. For other countries, see online IELTS tutors by country and city; to compare tutors, see how to choose an online IELTS tutor.