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What is IELTS-blog
IELTS-blog has everything you need to prepare for the IELTS exam by yourself.The whole idea of this blog is to remind you that you’re not alone, to share knowledge and experience and to be a place where we help one another improve our English.
You will find here valuable info about the IELTS test, strategies, tips and secrets of success. The right side-bar has lots of links to free IELTS practice tests. I will tell you about the common mistakes my friends and I’ve made and we will warn you about hidden traps in the IELTS test. Feel free to leave comments, ask questions – this is what IELTS-blog is here for!
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Attention!
Studying for the Academic IELTS?
“Target Band 7″ book is now available for download worldwide.
View our special offer and get it for the discounted price here.
To see what’s inside the book, read it on Google books here or download it for free trial here.
Worried about your General IELTS exam?
This special offer makes “Ace The IELTS” book affordable for everyone!
Click here for details
Download the book for free trial here
Want to share information about your IELTS exam? I want to know everything – click here to tell me.
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Problems with the IELTS Writing section? We can help: registered users of IELTS-Blog can get their tasks graded for the best online price by a team of experienced IELTS teachers, including approximate Band Score, remarks and suggestions. Please read how to submit your writing tasks here.
Note: “Target Band 7″ and “Ace The IELTS” users are getting a massive 45% discount on writing assessments as a bonus.
What is the IELTS exam
IELTS stands for International English Language Testing System. It is an exam intended for non-native English speakers. Its purpose is to find out what your level of English is (your result is a band score from 0 to 9). Usually you need to take the IELTS test if you are applying for a job or to study in a college or university in an English-speaking country or if you are migrating to such country. There are 2 modules of the IELTS test – Academic and General. The Academic Module is for future students and the General Module is for immigrants.
The IELTS Routine
The IELTS test consists of four parts in the following order
The Listening test takes about 40 minutes – 30 minutes to listen to a tape and to answer questions on what you hear, and 10 minutes to transfer your answers to the Answer Sheet.
The Reading test takes 1 hour and your task is to read passages of text and answer questions according to what you have read. There are also other types of assignments which I will cover later on in other posts on this website.
The Writing test also takes 1 hour and is divided into 2 sub-parts: you are given 20 minutes to write a letter/report and 40 minutes to write an essay.
The Speaking test takes up to 15 minutes and consists of 3 parts: a Personal Interview, a Cue Card talk and a Discussion.
All the parts continue one after another, and only before the Speaking test you get a break. Sometimes the Speaking test is even held on a different day.
The IELTS test formalities
When it becomes clear to you that you need to take the IELTS test, you’ll have to go through some formalities – which are:
1. Call your local IELTS test centre and find out the dates when you can take an IELTS exam and how much it costs. Note: the dates could be different for the Academic and General IELTS exams.
2. Download and print the application form, fill your details, enclose your photos, a copy of identification and, of course, the money and send it to your local IELTS centre.
3. Make sure they received it and allocated a seat for you on the date you have chosen.
Read more about the IELTS exam – techniques, tips and secrets here…
Get more IELTS preparation tips and advice here.
Get a self study book, for Academic click here, for General here.
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hi IELTS-Blog!
i am meesh.
good thing i found this website!
i am doing a self review and i am kinda mixed up when it comes to what books am i going to study..
may you please recommend a good books? for me to study in a month..
i am soo looking forward for your reply.
thank you so much!
godbless!
Comment by meesh — May 15, 2009 @ 9:54 pm
Hi Meesh,
I can actually recommend a good book (which I wrote especially for people to prepare in as little as 3 weeks). Have a look at Target band 7 here, you can download a free trial version and decide whether you like it or not. People are telling me it does wonders for their IELTS score.
Cheers,
Simone
Comment by admin — May 17, 2009 @ 5:59 am
Hello,
i read your article above ielts topic its clear and giving guidence for the students those who want to learn the ielts. Great guidence you are furnishing in your website.
Your Sincerely,
johnsimth
Comment by johnsmith9854 — July 3, 2009 @ 10:29 am
Hi,
Could someone tell me how useful will be my TOEFL study for taking IELTS? Should I take full course of study or I may skip some parts?
Comment by dkakalov — October 20, 2009 @ 10:34 am
I do really love this blog. it has a lot of iellts stuffs for anyone who r preparing for the test! Special Thanks 4 Simone
Comment by ieltsthai — November 17, 2009 @ 8:11 pm
Really appreciate all the great iellts information. Thanks.
Comment by tom — December 26, 2009 @ 7:43 pm
I really wanted to comment on the post about the dangers of relying on internet information. As fabulous as it is (”the world’s biggest library at our fingertips”), it’s difficult to know if some item you’ve found is the current best understanding on the topic. You cant go by the copyright date at the bottom of the screen as that may be controlled by a script that auto-updates each year.
Cheers,
Gary
Comment by Online-High-School — January 8, 2010 @ 1:13 am
Well in this website you can rely on the dates – they are in the titles of the posts and are never changed by any automatic software. I hope it reassures you.
Comment by admin — January 8, 2010 @ 4:21 am
I really love this Blog and I recommend every one who is taking IELTS exam must read and make a habit to visit this site. I bought the book “Ace the IELTS” just couple week before the exam and I read only once. I did excellent in my Exam.
Thanks Simone
Comment by ziakmm — February 24, 2010 @ 12:33 pm
Thank you for sharing! I’m glad the book helped and that your exam was a success.
Comment by admin — February 24, 2010 @ 4:14 pm
This is a good website
Comment by Vinita Patel — March 8, 2010 @ 3:23 am
Hello,IELTS-Blog!
Firs I’d like to thank you for your existence
unfortunately i failed at my first IELTS exam but without you it would have been a lot worse.
And second i have a question, I really suck at essay writing, and there is nothing I can do about it
The help of private professionals is really good but kind of expensive, that can you recommend, cos I’m really desperate.
Comment by dager — March 16, 2010 @ 4:35 am
Hi Dager,
What private professionals do you mean, and what do they charge to check your work?
Comment by admin — March 16, 2010 @ 7:43 pm
thank for sharing information
Comment by kaka89 — April 19, 2010 @ 1:40 am
Hi
I wrote my ielts test last year i was quite disappointed with my writing section i got only 6.5 howeevr my target was minimum of 7 and still i am not confident about it but i have to write the test as soon as possible and score indivisual 7 in all 4 of them which is not as easy as we say!!!i want to knoe if i sent my essay for correction with you guys does it count as task 1 n task 2 as 1 or as a different ??n wat about the task questionaires do you provide us or do we have to manage with the other provided in the website.
i would be very grateful to you if you help me solve my quiery?
thanxs a lot xx.
Comment by sibyl — September 14, 2010 @ 7:53 am
Hi Sibyl, our teachers will be happy to help you. Every task, an essay or a letter or a report is counted as one task, and we do send out task questions for people to practice on. I hope this helps, send us an email if you have any questions.
- Simone
Comment by admin — September 14, 2010 @ 3:06 pm
The IELTS can be difficult for some and this information on your site is very helpful. I have read many other sites that are free and that is where I would direct my time on, I would never pay for it since there are a ton of resources online.
Comment by William Tingle Real Estate — January 17, 2011 @ 2:07 am
Hi
Iam very happy because I get band 7.5 inmy first attempts, and I am very delighted for it. thank you for everybody who helped me to tackle this problrm. IELTS blog is very excellent site. I never attend in any class, I just use books and videos from library and sites.
Comment by dolatgol — August 30, 2011 @ 5:53 pm
15.Hi
I wrote my ielts test last year i was quite disappointed with my writing section i got only 6.5 howeevr my target was minimum of 7 and still i am not confident about it but i have to write the test as soon as possible and score indivisual 7 in all 4 of them which is not as easy as we say!!!i want to knoe if i sent my essay for correction with you guys does it count as task 1 n task 2 as 1 or as a different ??n wat about the task questionaires do you provide us or do we have to manage with the other provided in the website.
i would be very grateful to you if you help me solve my quiery?
Comment by english-test — September 20, 2011 @ 9:44 pm
Hi there, thanks for your comment, english-test. We count task 1 and task 2 as 2 separate tasks, and yes you do get lots of topics to practice on when you sign up to use our writing correction service.
Comment by admin — September 21, 2011 @ 4:53 am
hi all. i given my ielts exam yesterday, i hope to get good score, ielts target band 7 buk helped a lot.
Comment by raman — October 8, 2011 @ 10:09 pm
Thank you for sharing iellts information. I really need this
Comment by sirayub — October 31, 2011 @ 9:18 am
Starting trial tomorrow! Thanks for the chance to evaluate the book for free!
Comment by QriS — November 6, 2011 @ 5:25 pm
I have no much knowledge about IELTS. I have master degree and i am proficient in English speaking and reading. But not proficient in writing. I want to Increase my writing skills. How it is possible?
Comment by iftijafar — November 18, 2011 @ 1:08 am
Hi iftijafar, you should receive an email from us soon with the answer. Won’t be long.
Comment by admin — November 18, 2011 @ 2:04 am
Hello all Specially “IELTS-BLOG”,
I want to get IELTS minimum 8 Bands but I am from non english country, so I am feeling maybe due to grammer/spelling mistakes as well as axcent I am fail to get. I need your guidlines what to do & how to do????
I didnt correct my mistakes by spell check, because you get to know my level of english.
I have tomuch time to appear in exams but I want ASAP.
Please help me.
regards
Ali Mukhtar
Comment by alimukhtar786 — November 20, 2011 @ 2:07 am
Hi Ali,
we’re sending you an email with suggestions on how to study. You’ll receive it shortly.
Cheers,
Simone
Comment by admin — November 20, 2011 @ 1:55 pm
Hi I did the IELTS on 17th November and scored 7-Reading, 8.5-Listening, 8-Speaking, 8-Writing. I needed perfect 8s in all the sections. Will a re-mark improve the 7 because I’m wondering why it’s the only 7 yet reading is relatively simpler than the rest
Comment by onyangoliech — December 8, 2011 @ 12:37 am
Sorry to tell you this, but the chance re-marking will improve the reading score is not big. Writing and Speaking are sort of subjective skills and sometimes it will help to get the work re-marked by another examiner. Reading and Listening are clerically marked, there is no examiner’s judgement involved – the answer is ether correct or it’s not.
Comment by admin — December 8, 2011 @ 4:23 am
Hi folks! I´ve just received my academic test score. I got an overall score of 7, which I must say it´s great for me. Well, thanks to all your contributions!!
CU!
Gustavo.
Comment by gustavo — December 16, 2011 @ 5:50 am
Hello Simone,
First I would like to say thank you for this great website and the book Target Band 7. I used it intensively and my first attempt was over all-7 (7L, 7R, 7W, 7.5S), while second time improved to 7.5 (8L, 8R, 6.5W, 7.5S). As you can see, for the second time although overall score was higher, writing was reduced to 6.5 which is quite minimum. My question is which result I shall submit to university application. Even though the first result is lower, it shows evenly over 7 in all sections, which may give a better impression than having writing 6.5 even other sections resulted in better scores. Some schools require 7 in each section, so there is no question, but question remains for those requiring only overall 6.5. Thank you for your advices.
Comment by Malgretout — December 16, 2011 @ 10:39 am
Hi Malgretout,
Congratulations on getting these excellent scores!
In regard to your question, I think you should send the score that meets the university requirements.
Some places rule out 6.5 and in that case you should send the result where you have 7+ in all skills.
Well done! Good luck with your application.
Simone
Comment by admin — December 16, 2011 @ 2:38 pm
Hi Gustavo,
Great result! Congratulations. I am happy IELTS-Blog.com was able to help.
Cheers,
Simone
Comment by admin — December 16, 2011 @ 2:40 pm
Dear Admin, How can I submit a sample of writing in the blog
Comment by Amin — April 30, 2012 @ 2:37 am
Thank you for the job that you do for IELTS students. The book you published is really useful!
It would be great if you post several IELTS Speaking model answers with different bands.
Cheers!
Comment by dmitry — May 9, 2012 @ 12:48 pm
Hi Dmitry,
as a matter of fact we do have what you’re looking for – go here to listen to speaking samples and see what teachers say: http://www.ielts-blog.com/ielts-speaking-samples/
Comment by admin — May 9, 2012 @ 5:55 pm
Hi there
Please tell how i can submit a sample of essay
Thank you in advance
Comment by sky — May 12, 2012 @ 3:01 am
i want to get a clarification on Point System on Age.
Now im 32 years and 2 months.
So how much i get under age category ?
is it 30 or 25 ?
please help me . thanks in advance
Comment by Kumara — December 14, 2012 @ 10:58 am