IELTS preparation tips from winners

Today, just in time for those of you taking the test this Saturday, I have some more preparation tips. These came from people who have proven themselves successful, by securing IELTS results of Band 8.

Hoang and Seema, the winners of our IELTS results competition in June and July, wrote and shared their tips for success.

Hoang said:

“In order to get a good result, just practice, practice and practice. Read a lot. In fact, read everything (in English), that is within your reach: newspapers, novels or even leaflets given to you on the streets.

Watch English-speaking programmes whenever you can to improve your Listening skill. Don’t be nervous and you will achieve the best result.”

Seema said:

“I realized that to succeed in IELTS exam or rather any exam there are two requirements, and they are:

1. Sound knowledge of the subject.
2. Sufficient practice.

I owe my English knowledge to strong foundation in school! But yes, the exam was easy for me as I practiced according to the exam pattern for 2 weeks.

For this purpose books and study material by British Council was of immense help and so were vast materials available at various sites, including IELTS-BLOG. My score would have been definitely better if I had practiced more.

My suggestions to score high is practice the IELTS related materials again and again, preferably for a month or two, if English basics are clear.

Do not panic. Stay cool.

Follow the guidelines given especially for the writing module. Writing part is the most difficult one for me, but if approached systematically it becomes easy.

I had done speaking practice for just 2 days, but will advise to do more and practice in front of a mirror or a friend.”

Thank you, Hoang and Seema!

We can never have too many preparation tips, can we? Especially when they come from people who have proven themselves as high achievers, by securing IELTS results of Band 8 or above. Melvyn, Ahmed and Sumit, the winners of our IELTS results competition in May, wrote and shared their tips for success.

Melvyn said:

“My main advice is to be confident during the reading test. I realised that I answer more questions correctly when I’m confident. This is because the answers are very similar and if you are doubtful, you tend to keep making changes and mess it all up.

For the listening, I practised by listening to English songs on my mp3 daily and trying to understand every single word until I can sing the whole song. It really helped in my listening test as I was able to put together words and also repeat the words/sentences in my head after they were played.”

Ahmed said:

“Practice allot. Read articles and books, and when you don’t know the meaning of a word use English-English dictionary. Listen to different sources of English audio – TV, radio, or the Internet. When you listen to songs, radio news, etc, try to repeat what they say and imitate their accent. Read the questions in the listening part, so that you prepare your mind to collect the answer once you hear it. And above all relax, and try to enjoy the exam.”

Sumit said:

“I must say you have a wonderful web site for IELTS.

I did not prepare much for IELTS, but took a few practice tests a few weeks apart and monitored how I was progressing. I listened to a few good speaking test recordings and read essays that had low and high scores, which helped me figure out the difference. Spelling is important. I should acknowledge my English teachers at school who were very particular about spelling and I inherited those qualities.

Be alert, learn from your mistakes and have fun.”