IELTS Preparation Strategy

After a huge response on my first blog on Job search as a new Immigrant, a lot of people asked me how you achieved desired band score in IELTS in first attempt. So, I thought to contribute my two cents on IELTS preparation for the benefit of a bigger audience. I achieved 8 band overall after preparing for about a month on my own and here is how I did it…

For most of us, who studied in English or are now working in multinational companies, English is used in our day to day life, so preparing for IELTS is just about getting familiarized with the test pattern so there are no surprises on the test day. As everyone knows, the only way to master in IELTS is practice but at the same time it’s very important to review and analyze your mock test results to find out your weak areas and work on them. I have seen people giving 5-10 mock tests per day but no improvement in scores at all as you can’t expect different results by doing the same thing again and again. You need to assess and find pattern in the answers you are not able to score right and tweak your approach to such types of questions. In my case, after 2-3 mock tests I realized that I was making mistakes in questions involving maps and graphics in Listening section, so I quickly worked on them and got it right. Another thing which I hear a lot is you must have wide and complex range of vocabulary to score good in speaking and writing. It’s true that vocabulary increases your chances of scoring high but for people scheduled to appear for test in next 1-2 months, it’s a waste of time to focus on improving vocabulary, rather we should focus on avoiding silly spelling/ grammatical errors, making sure we address all the questions asked and coherence and cohesion. 

Second skill that is key in IELTS is concentration. This is another area we get to practice by giving these mock tests. With almost 3 hours of back to back tests of Listening, Reading and writing, we often loose concentration/ focus and tend to make silly mistakes. Specially in Listening, if we miss focus for even a second, we might completely miss out the answers to next 2-3 questions before we can catch up and get back on track. In listening, this can cost us a lot as there is no option of going back to speech again. 

Last and not the least, find out that your test will be on computer or paper/ pencil and practice in the same format.

Few tips and tricks for all 4 individual sections:

Listening:

·      Practice American, British and other accents so you get comfortable with all if you’re not

·      Focus on listening to the answers rather than trying to understand the whole speech

·      Pay attention to how many words you can write for each answer, this can be a big hint 

·      Write in CAPITALS to avoid any misunderstanding and check format/ spellings 

·      When asked to review your answers, don’t waste time in that as in listening, you can’t review anything as recording is played only once. Rather use this time to skim through the next few questions and be ready to catch those kinds of words to write the answers

·      If you miss an answer to a question, do no try to guess immediately as you will miss out on next questions as well. Listen to the speech carefully and jump to the next answer. You can always guess the missed answers at the end when you have time for transferring the answers

Reading:

·      Skim through the questions first before reading the paragraphs so you know what type of words you have to look for

·      Read instructions carefully & make a note of how many words you have for an answer

·      Do not waste too much time for an answer you can’t find. Move on to next question and come back at the end if you have time

·      If your test is paper/ pencil, you can circle/ underline the answers in the paragraph with question numbers instead of writing it then. This will save some time as anyways you will have to transfer your answers to answer sheet at the end

·      Keep your eye on the clock

·      Write in CAPITALS to avoid any misunderstanding and check format/ spellings 

Writing:

·      I hear a lot of people saying that we should attempt task 2 first as it carries more points but that really depends upon person to person as for me finishing task 1 first gives me sense of accomplishment and then I can peacefully focus on task 2

·      Think and make notes before start writing as to what points you are going to write on. Always plan both the tasks in the format of Intro- Body- Conclusion

·      Make sure you write at least 150 and 250 words in task1 and 2 respectively. Even a word less would get you negative points. There are no negative points for over writing except you might tend to make spelling/ grammatical errors and also it would eat up your time

·      Make sure you address all points asked in the question clearly

·      Keep 5 mins at the end to skim through both the tasks to check for any spelling/ grammar errors

·      Make sure your handwriting is easily readable for evaluator 

Speaking:

·      Be confident and clear in what you speak

·      Make sure you address all points asked in the question clearly

·      Do not hesitate to ask question again if you didn’t understand

·      Make sure you speak for at least 1.5 to 2 mins for part 2 

·      On the interview day, get into the mode of English speaking on whatever chance you get before the interview 

·      This is not a formal job interview, so just be yourself and relaxed. Treat it like a conversation more than an interview

So, the summary for all the sections is practice, realize your strengths and weaknesses and plan accordingly. Remember, IELTS is not a formal English exam but it’s just to make sure you are comfortable with day to day English listening, reading, writing and speaking. Be yourself and give your best. Please let me know if you have any questions on anything. All the best!