The International English Language Testing System (IELTS) assesses the language ability of who wants to study or work in an English speaking country. In my still ongoing quest to study in the UK, I had to take this test because I'm from Portugal and the official language isn't English. I finished with an overall of 8.0 (I had a little issue with the Writing Test that I'll explain below). Here are my tips on how to get a band 7 or more. I did the Academic Test because I want to study. If you want to work, the General Test is for you and the structure is slightly different. Listening Test sample. Source: British Council Listening Test This is the first part of the IELTS test. It lasts for about 40 minutes - 30 minutes for the actual test and 10 minutes to transfer your answers. I had 8.0 in this part because I missed 5 of them. The test was almost over and my mind just went somewhere and I missed one, panicked, and missed four more.Never panic! In this part you have to listen to a tape and answer 40 questions. You have to fill in the provided gaps as you hear them. For example: My name is Josh _________ I live on ______ Street My phone number is _________ You hear conversations between 2-3 people. The challenging bit in this part is to not let your minder wander, If you do, you'll miss the answer, panic, and miss the rest. If you do miss one, don't worry. Just skip it and keep answering. Besides, you don't lose points for wrong answers, so give it a shot. Sometimes you can guess the answer. Note: write the terms as you hear them and if they say NO MORE THAN ONE WORD AND/OR A NUMBER don't write more. Reading Test sample. Source: British Council Reading Test I loved this part. This test is divided in three parts, each containing a text - of approximately 2000 words. For each text you have to fill in the gaps (just like the previous test) of 10 questions, 30 in total. The answers are in the texts, so look carefully but don't spend too much time with one question. You have one hour and no extra time to transfer your answers. I sugest you write them down in the answer sheet as you go along. I did that and I was able to finish. There was a person in my group that didn't do this and wasn't given any extra time. In this part, it's important to be able to skim and scan texts. If your English isn't the best, train yourself to read texts like this because there's too little time to read them properly. For this part I managed 8.5, which means I had 3-4 incorrect answers. Source: ielts88.com Writing Test For this part, I could have gotten at least an 8.0 but I made a mistake: I took the one hour for granted and couldn't finish the two tasks. Time management is essential in this part! The second task is worth double, and this was the one I didn't finish. They did not forgive me for it and gave me 6.5. If you finish both tasks you'll be alright. Just be careful and manage that one hour they give you. Task 1 should be answered in 20 minutes and it can be a graph, a table, a chart or a diagram. Here you have to describe, summarize or explain the information given in no less than 150 words. Task 2 is an essay and it should be no less than 250 words. You should spend 40 minutes on this task. You are given a sentence and have to write an essay. For example: It is better to finance health plans for those who can get better than for those who are terminally ill. To what extent do you agree or disagree? This is close to my sentence. I had great ideas, but I left this part for last and ran out of time. The key here is to write short but concise phrases. Don't overuse words: "I believe health care should be available to all because it's humane. Because we live in a small country, these plans need to be carefully considered." These sentences are more band 6 but it's so you understand. Don't repeat words, use synonyms. Give examples. Bands 7 or more know how to give real life examples to all statements. Don't just say "cars cause a lot of pollution". Say "In China, the levels of pollution rose considerably due to the numerous cars on the roads". Use complex words but if you don't remember them don't waste time. Just remember to give examples. Say 'unrecognizable' instead of 'not recognizable'. Bands 7 or more know that it's 'silk shirt' and not 'shirt made of silk'. This shows you know the language. Grammar matters. Don't misspell! Speaking Test sample. Source: British Council Speaking Test I was pleasantly surprised to get 8.5for this test. Here, there are three parts. Introduction and interview (4-5 minutes). The examiner starts recording and introduces him/herself. You are asked to introduce yourself and to answer some questions like: "are you working or studying? What do you work/study?" The questions can be about your home, town, family, goals, ... Monologue (2-3 minutes). You are given a topic in a task card with topics you have to cover. It can be about a place you would like to visit, why, with whom, what would you do there, etc. You have 1 minute to think or write down some ideas and then 1-2 minutes to talk about it. Two-way Discussion (4-5 minutes). Here the examiner asks some questions related to the monologue topic. There are generally 4-5 questions. Like the Writing Test, give examples. I gave my opinion, said why I agreed or disagreed and always gave examples. One thing, don't answer in short 'yes', 'no' or 'maybe'. And don't start with 'yes, I do. Because...'. There are "standard" answers that you learn in school and not appropriate for a conversation. Speak until the examiner cuts you off. Seriously. The more you talk the better. But don't speak about nothing, speak about the topic. Don't wander off. It's a conversation. So speak normally, don't worry about complex words. Bands 7 or above can keep a conversation flowing. Don't hesitate, if you need to think say so. The Bands explained. Source: IELTS booklet. Final Tips Grammar matters. Misspelled words won't be considered. In the Writing Test, do bothtasks. Even though the second one is worth double, don't leave the first one blank. Give examples (your own life experiences are appreciated). The examiners are normal people, they like to read/hear about interesting stories. If you don't know the answer to a topic, lie. Make it up. They don't care about your views as long as you can answer well. The more your Speaking Test lasts the better. Mine lasted 15 minutes, which means I had a lot to say. Lower bands can't express themselves a lot, so they don't speak much. Be calm. It really isn't a big deal. Practice, practice, practice. The more you practice at home the better you'll do. In the Writing Test, don't write more than 10-20 words above the minimum words. Source
