The Ielts Guide
The Ielts Guide
The Ielts Guide
IELTS Guide
www.ielts-pass.com
!
!
!
!
This
guide
takes
your
IELTS
score
you
would
achieve
today
and
adds
+1
in
20
minutes
of
reading!
!
Quite
the
claim
you
may
say,
but
the
truth
is
that
many
candidates
prepare
poorly
and
ignore
basic
things
that
should
be
part
of
their
IELTS
preparation
eorts.
from
day
one!
!
But
not
your
problem
any
longer,
because
you
are
reading
this
guide
here.
!
So,
do
you
have
20
minutes?
!
Thats
what
you
need!
You
can
time
my
claim
if
you
like,
Ive
done
it
myself
and
it
works!
!
Lets
get
down
to
business.
!
Im
Niels
Kokholm
Nielsen
and
Im
a
certied
Cambridge
examiner,
who
has
worked
with
the
IELTS
in
one
form
or
another
for
the
past
15
years.
My
contact
with
students
from
around
the
world
has
formed
the
basis
of
this
quick
start
guide.
!
After
reading
this
guide
you
will
avoid
!
!
and
you
will
certainly
be
better
at
understanding
the
!
!
Requirements
of
what
your
future
employer,
school
or
university
sets
for
you
Optimal
way
of
studying
for
each
of
the
IELTS
disciplines
Core
concepts
that
constitute
excellent
reading,
writing,
listening
and
speaking
performance
!
!
!
The
IELTS
Guide
!
!
!
!
Are
you
ready
to
get
started?
Lets
go
20
minutes
and
ticking
!
!
!
!
!
www.ielts-pass.com
!
First
things
rst
!
Before
you
do
anything
at
all,
you
need
to
ask
yourself
the
following
questions:
!
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
Why
I
am
preparing
for
the
IELTS
exam?
Is
it
for
migration,
work
or
other
reason?
Which
IELTS
test
is
right
for
me?
The
Academic
Module
or
the
General
Training
Module?
Which
score
do
I
need
on
the
IELTS?
Do
I
need
a
global
average
score
or
a
minimum
for
each
module?
What
is
my
current
level
of
English?
Which
score
would
I
get
on
the
IELTS
today?
Is
this
the
right
moment
to
take
or
prepare
for
the
IELTS?
The
test
result
is
valid
for
2
years
only,
unless
you
can
provide
specic
proof
of
continued
study
in
the
period.
Each
purpose
comes
with
dierent
requirements
e.g.
to
migrate
to
Canada
(2013
numbers)
you
need
an
average
score
of
band
7
to
be
qualied
to
apply.
In
other
words,
if
you
score
less
than
band
7,
you
simply
won't
be
allowed
to
apply.
As
simple
as
that!
So,
before
anything
else,
be
sure
you
know
which
score
you
need.
If
you
dont
know
the
required
score
you
dont
have
a
target
grade
and
thats
a
problem.
To
nd
the
score
simply
google
the
term
minimum
IELTS
score
migration
Canada
or
minimum
IELTS
grade
to
nameofuniversity.
Alternatively,
go
to
the
website
of
the
university,
school
or
employer
abroad
that
is
of
interest
to
you.
Under
normal
circumstances
the
requirements
should
be
easily
accessible
from
the
ocial
site.
It
is
also
here
you
will
see
if
you
need
the
IELTS
Academic
or
the
IELTS
General
Training.
The
vast
majority
of
candidates
need
the
Academic.
(please
refer
to
the
requirement
of
your
school
or
university
to
nd
the
answer).
!
As
the
old
saying
goes
If
you
dont
know
where
you
are,
you
will
never
know
in
which
direction
to
go.
!
Therefore,
the
next
thing
you
need
to
do
is
to
nd
a
way
to
evaluate
your
current
level
of
English.
Here
is
why
this
is
important.
There
is
a
limitation
to
how
fast
you
can
improve
your
level
of
English
and
your
IELTS
exam
skills.
The
IELTS
scale
goes
from
0
-
9
(no
assessable
data
(0)
to
expert
user
(9)
It
takes
longer
to
go
from
3
to
5
than
from
5
to
7.
Also,
students
are
dierent,
learn
in
dierent
ways
so
its
hard
to
generalise.
To
get
a
feel
for
your
current
level
of
English,
go
to
page
7
for
a
sneak
peak.
!
This
said,
your
preparation
should
centre
on
two
main
components.
Lets
together
nd
out
what
they
are.
!
How
to
prepare
for
the
IELTS
exam
!
Your
IELTS
exam
result
ultimately
depends
on
only
two
things:
!
a) The
level
of
your
English
language
skills
(vocabulary,
grammar,
collocation,
pronunciation
etc.)
b)
Your
understanding
of
the
IELTS
test
and
the
skills
needed
to
optimise
your
results
on
the
exam
!
This
means
that
every
single
aspect
of
your
IELTS
preparation
should
focus
on
these
two
components.
!
WARNING:
No
candidate
should
expect
to
do
well
on
the
IELTS
exam
test
if
they
have
ignored
one
or
the
other
of
these
two
core
elements.
As
a
result,
successful
preparation
for
the
IELTS
test
depends
on
your
willingness
to
improve
both
your
English
as
a
whole,
and
your
understanding
of
the
IELTS
tests
format,
structure
and
requirements.
!
!
www.ielts-pass.com
!
Improving
your
English
!
There
is
no
shortage
of
things
you
can
do
to
improve
your
current
level
of
English,
but
here
are
the
most
important,
fast
and
eective
measures
that
will
boost
your
performance
in
no
time.
!
Increase
your
exposure
to
the
English
language
!
Its
a
no-brainer!
The
more
English
you
are
exposed
to,
the
more
language
you
will
qualitatively
and
quantitively
be
able
to
reproduce.
The
brain
works
in
mysterious
ways,
but
one
thing
we
know
for
certain.
The
more
L2
language
(in
our
case
English)
you
are
exposed
to,
the
more
mental
capacity
is
dedicated
to
this
particular
activity.
If
the
brain
could
think
for
itself
(which
it
in
fact
does),
it
would
reason
like
this:
Hmmmmm
suddenly
I
am
hearing
a
lot
of
new
language.
It
must
be
important
for
me,
so
I
will
dedicate
more
braincells
to
this
activity
now.
This
was
put
rather
unscientically,
but
it
is
quite
true.
In
other
words,
the
more
exposure,
the
more
you
learn.
And,
the
more
exposure,
the
more
eciently
you
will
learn
because
your
brain
dedicates
more
resources
to
learning.
This
wonderful
process
quickly
becomes
a
positive
learning
loop
with
incredible
results.
All
input
is
valid
and
the
most
popular
sources
are
video,
the
internet,
cinema,
reading
books,
magazines,
news
reports
and
the
list
is
endless.
Here
are
some
highlights
and
ideas
for
increasing
your
exposure
to
the
English
language.
Read
more
English
from
quality
sources
Youve
heard
it
many
times
before.
The
bearded
teacher
with
the
small
glasses
tells
you
to
read
more.
Its
true;
always
has
been
and
always
will
be.
When
reading
the
internalisation
process
is
quite
impressive,
simply
because
you
see
contextually
relevant
language
in
grammatically
accurate
surroundings.
So
you
learn
both
new
vocabulary,
collocation
(word
combinations
that
are
in
accord
with
native
speaker
preference)
and
you
still
get
the
grammar.
You
need
a
place
you
can
go
back
to
when
studying
new
language.
Studies
show
that
people
need
to
see
new
language
on
average
at
least
7
times
to
memorise
the
language
seen.
Where
are
you
going
to
write
it?
In
your
notebook
of
course.
Evernote,
Things
and
other
note
taking
applications
work
great,
but
I
actually
recommend
a
traditional
paper-based
notebook.
Why?
Because
you
can
take
it
with
you
and
more
importantly,
while
writing
in
it
in
English,
you
are
also
slowly
developing
your
English
writing
skills.
!
Have
conversations
with
yourself
or
others
in
English
!
This
one
is
a
bit
strange.
Talking
to
yourself
is
not
only
for
the
elderly
or
people
suering
from
mental
disorders.
Its
a
fundamental
criteria
for
language
learning
success.
Initiate
short,
then
longer
conversations
with
yourself.
To
improve
your
speaking
skills
you
need
to
practice.
You
can
watch
Nadal
or
Federer
playing
tennis
as
much
as
you
want,
but
before
you
take
the
racket
in
your
own
hand
and
go
practice,
you
just
wont
learn
it
properly.
!
!
!
www.ielts-pass.com
!
Do
plenty
of
language
exercises
that
focus
on
grammar
and
vocabulary
!
!
Listen
to
standard
English
radio
or
radio
streamed
from
the
internet
!
Developing
your
listening
skills
for
the
IELTS
is
crucial.
Why
not
start
with
improving
your
passive
listening
skills
that
once
again
increases
your
exposure
to
the
language?
A
great
place
to
start
is
with
Podcasts
such
as
those
that
can
be
found
in
iTunes,
or
streaming
radio
from
any
quality
website.
Most
respectable
news
broadcasting
services
today
feature
a
live
radio
streaming
service.
The
great
advantage
of
this
activity
is
that
although
passive
listening
does
not
provide
you
with
a
specic
task,
the
output,
the
voices,
interviews,
dialects
etc.
are
quite
accurate
compared
to
what
you
will
listen
to
in
the
IELTS
listening
component.
There
are
endless
IELTS
preparation
solutions
on
the
Internet,
but
most
fail
in
one
aspect
of
the
other.
Some
oer
only
exercises
but
no
language
enhancing
modules,
others
oer
language
exercises
but
no
good
overview
of
the
exam
itself.
Much
of
what
is
on
the
internet
is
not
properly
structured
and
very
few
courses
have
a
certied
Cambridge
examiner
seal
on
them.
!
!
!
www.ielts-pass.com
!
Preparing
for
the
IELTS
test
!
So
now
you
know
a
bit
more
about
the
importance
of
your
level
of
English,
and
you
have
spent
10
minutes
reading
so
far,
right?
That
means
we
have
another
10
minutes
to
go.
Lets
continue!
!
The
IELTS
Reading
!
This
module
comprises
of
3
dierent
texts
with
accompanying
questions.
You
have
1
hour
to
do
this.
Ouch!
You
are
in
a
hurry.
Lets
quickly
break
down
what
we
want
to
do,
and
what
we
dont
want
to
do!
!
!
!
Read
each
or
all
of
the
texts
rst
slowly,
then
look
at
the
questions.
Why?
Because
you
spend
too
much
time
and
you
indadvertedly
turn
a
language
exercise
into
a
confusing
memory
exercise.
Spend
more
time
than
20
minutes
on
each
reading
passage.
Why?
Time
is
of
the
essence.
You
dont
get
points
for
unanswered
questions.
Push
Push
Push!!!
Please do this
Focus
on
the
rst
reading
and
ignore
the
rest.
Spend
2
minutes
reading
the
questions
to
the
rst
reading
underlining
keywords.
Why?
Because
you
will
read
more
focused
and
nd
the
answers
easily
When
the
rst
reading
passage
has
been
dealt
with,
you
continue
with
number
two
making
use
of
the
exact
same
procedure
as
mentioned
above.
Dont
forget
have
fun!
!
!
The
IELTS
Writing
!
So
many
IELTS
candidates
get
this
part
all
wrong.
Here
is
why.
They
include
their
personal
opinions
in
the
report,
then
spend
more
than
20
minutes
on
this
same
report
(which
you
must
not
do),
fail
to
use
correct
time
and
tense
concepts
in
the
three
paragraphs.
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
www.ielts-pass.com
!
The
IELTS
Listening
!
Spoiler
alert!
The
IELTS
listening
is
played
only
once,
and
it
takes
approximately
30
minutes.
There
are
four
parts,
each
with
an
increase
in
diculty,
eectively
making
this
a
progressive
listening
component.
Your
concentration
and
focus,
language,
spelling
and
listening
skills
as
a
whole
are
being
tested
here.
!
!
!
Fall
asleep.
The
rst
part
of
the
listening
is
rather
easy.
Many
candidates
I
have
trained
think
the
rest
is
equally
easy
and
then
suddenly
they
get
lost.
If
you
do
become
lost,
remain
calm
and
focused.
Try
to
go
back
to
correct
answers
in
previous
sections.
Why?
The
IELTS
listening
is
a
bit
like
a
clockwork
of
sorts.
If
you
lose
your
focus
and
timing,
the
rest
is
likely
to
go
the
same
way.(badly)
Please do this
Remain
focused
and
calm
at
all
times.
Invest
in
underlining
keywords
fast
and
as
eciently
as
you
can.
Why?
Keywords
will
guide
you
through
the
listening.
Take
few
but
relevant
notes.
Check
your
spelling!
Accept
that
when
one
section
is
over
it
is
over!
You
cant
hear
it
a
second
time
so
please
do
not
waste
time
contemplating
the
past.
!
The
IELTS
Interview
!
There
are
three
parts
to
the
IELTS
interview
also
referred
to
as
the
IELTS
speaking
component.
Part
one
is
a
quick
ice-breaker
where
you
will
present
yourself
and
answer
simple
questions
about
who
you
are,
where
you
live,
hobbies,
friends,
family
and
plans
for
the
future.
Part
two
is
a
task
or
a
negotiation,
based
on
a
prompt
card
you
receive.
You
will
have
a
minute
to
prepare
your
answers
to
this.
Part
three
is
an
extension
of
part
two
with
some
additional
questions.
The
interview
takes
approximately
15
minutes
with
a
certied
Cambridge
examiner
such
as
myself,
acting
as
both
interlocutor
and
assessor.
!
!
!
Be
too
shy
and
speak
with
few
words
and
a
low
voice.
Why?
We
cant
evaluate
potentiality,
but
only
real
performance.
Shyness
is
part
of
who
some
of
us
are.
Make
an
eort
to
be
outgoing
and
speak
up.
Make
use
of
the
same
words
all
the
time.
Avoid
I
like
I
go
I"
.Why?
If
you
produce
language
equivalent
to
a
basic
student,
your
grade
will
be
given
accordingly.
Please do this
Answer
the
questions
posed
and
make
use
of
the
+1
technique.
Add
additional
information
which
is
relevant
in
the
context
Why?
Because
you
generate
genuine
and
interesting
language
that
impresses.
Use
as
many
relevant
and
dierent
words
as
you
can,
while
making
use
of
accurate
grammar.
Remove
your
chewing
gum,
dont
work
from
scripts,
be
genuine
and
interesting.
Be
honest!
!
!
The
IELTS
Guide
www.ielts-pass.com
Here
are
language
samples
that
are
approximations
to
each
IELTS
score.
In
other
words,
compare
the
samples
below
to
the
average
of
your
own
spoken
and
written
English,
and
you
will
have
an
idea
of
your
current
level
of
English.
I
have
underlined
the
features
that
characterise
each
sample,
whether
good
or
bad.
Here
we
go!
!
Band
9:
Expert
user
!
With
a
background
in
medical
science
and
mathematics,
I
decided
quite
early
on
in
my
life
to
not
only
study
medicine,
but
also
at
a
later
stage
to
immerse
myself
in
the
wonderful
world
of
numbers."
!
Band
8:
Very
good
user
!
I
was
born
and
raised
in
Brazil
in
the
state
of
So
Paulo.
I
currently
have
two
siblings,
my
brother
Henrique
and
my
sister
Aline
and
Im
quite
fond
of
them
of
course.
My
plans
for
the
future
are
to
"
!
Band
7:
Good
user
!
I
am
from
a
small
family
because
I
am
an
only
child.
In
my
pastime
I
enjoy
sports
especially
football
and
tennis.
I
want
to
take
the
IELTS
because
I
have
a
dream
of
studying
in
Canada
"
!
Band
6:
Competent
user
!
I
love
English
and
I
am
taking
the
IELTS
because
I
wish
to
one
day
work
or
study
in
the
United
States.
I
hope
I
can
works
as
an
engineer
there.
!
Band
5:
Modest
user
!
"My
name
is
Elina.
I
am
from
Russia.
I
want
to
take
the
IELTS
because
I
want
to
study
in
a
foreign
country"
!
Band
4:
Limited
user
!
In
my
free
time
I
read.
I
like
to
read.
I
read
books
and
magazines.
I
want
one
day
to
travel
to
other
country"
!
Band
3:
Extremely
limited
user
!
"I
live
Greece.
Work
as
accountant.
Like
numbers
want
work
in
foreigner
country
!
Band
2:
Intermittent
user
!
Name
Maria.
Live
Spain.
Have
.
2
childs
I
married.
Want
IELTS
to
live
New
Zealand
!
Band
1:
Non
user
!
"I
.
Vishy
.
live
.
Pakistan
.
study
.
very
.
like
English
!
Band
0:
Did
not
attempt
the
test
The
IELTS
Guide
www.ielts-pass.com
!
!
IELTS
General
Skill:
Time
management
!
!
Learn
to
optimise
and
accelerate
the
way
you
answer
questions
in
the
IELTS.
Be
100%
disciplined.
Many
candidates
go
back
and
forth
between
options
and
answers
and
waste
precious
time.
Train
your
time
management.
Learn
to
answer
questions
fast!!!
!
!
IELTS
Listening
and
Reading:
Administrate
and
minimise
large
tasks
!
!
Never
try
to
read
all
the
texts
and
questions
in
one
go.
You
get
confused.
Take
any
text,
question
or
task
and
break
it
down
into
smaller
components.
Texts
are
normally
chronologically
organised,
so
read
a
bit,
answer
a
question,
then
continue.
(for
more
on
listening
and
reading
strategies,
please
refer
to
the
respective
modules
in
the
www.ielts-pass.com
course).
!
!
IELTS
Listening
and
Writing:
Improve
your
English
spelling
!
!
Sounds
like
a
detail
but
it
is
not.
So
many
candidates
lose
important
marks
due
to
poor
spelling.
Even
if
you
have
the
right
word,
but
get
the
spelling
wrong,
you
will
not
get
any
points.
Improving
your
spelling
can
most
eciently
be
done
either
via
reading
and
taking
notes
of
various
words
and
expressions,
or
by
downloading
an
English
spelling
software
or
module.
!
!
IELTS
Interview:
Plus
one
technique"
in
the
IELTS
interview
!
!
Dont give neither too short nor too long answers in the interview. Here are two extreme examples of what to avoid.
!
!
IELTS
candidate:
My
name
is
Maria
and
there
are
so
many
interesting
things
I
could
tell
about
myself.
When
I
was
7
years
old
I
got
my
rst
puppy.
It
was
a
German
Shepard
that
actually
had
constant
urinary
infection,
so
it
could
not
pee,
so
I
put
a
piece
of
stick
to
its
penis
so
it
could
pee
and
then
we
!
!
!
!
www.ielts-pass.com
!
!
IELTS
Writing:
Strict
inclusion
of
IELTS
core
writing
concepts
!
!
You
need
to
follow
certain
norms
in
the
IELTS
writing
tasks.
The
most
important
ones
are
that
the
report,
which
gives
input
in
the
form
of
a
line
graph,
bar
chart,
pie
chart,
table
or
map,
should
feature
3
separate
paragraphs,
the
rst
providing
short
insights
to
what
can
be
seen
in
the
graph,
the
second
giving
details
and
the
third
featuring
the
conclusion.
Do
not
include
any
opinions
here.
The
IELTS
essay
is
a
discursive
text
and
it
should
follow
the
specic
guidelines
for
essay
writing
as
can
be
found
in
the
IELTS
Pass
Course.
Make
use
of
linkers
and
contrastive
devices.
Write
in
semi-formal
to
formal
style
with
good
range,
appropriate
vocabulary
and
with
a
high
degree
of
accuracy.
!
!
IELTS
Writing:
Impress
with
the
5
stars
of
prociency
in
the
English
language
!
!
Some
very
specic
language
can
take
your
IELTS
writing
from
grade
4
or
5
to
7
or
8.
By
some
referred
to
as
simply
procient
English,
I
personally
like
to
call
the
the
5
stars
of
prociency.
They
are
the
use
of
Participle
clauses,
Noun
Phrases,
Pronouns
with
Quantiers,
Inversions
and
Cleft
Sentences.
(for
an
in-depth
discussion
of
this,
please
refer
to
the
IELTS
Pass
Course).
The
inclusion
of
this
language
simply
makes
your
production
much
closer
to
native-speaker
language
and
this
translates
into
a
much
higher
mark
on
your
IELTS
writing
and
speaking.
!
Realistic
IELTS
timing:
Dont
"start
and
stop
your
IELTS
preparation
eorts
!
!
I
know
what
you
think.
I
need
to
start
and
stop
because
I
have
a
hectic
life,
family
and
several
hobbies.
I
simply
dont
have
the
time
to
sit
down
and
practice
for
an
hour
or
two
every
day.
Advice: Find the time! Part of IELTS success is your time management skills as previously mentioned.
!
!
Persistence
prevails:
Never
give
up,
push
yourself
and
be
disciplined
!
!
While
studying
for
the
IELTS
you
will
have
moments
where
your
productivity
falls.
When
this
happens,
stop
and
grab
a
piece
of
pie,
coee
or
whatever
is
your
preference.
But
when
the
energy
is
there
again,
focus
and
push
yourself.
Take
note
of
all
the
amazing
language
your
nd
during
your
studies,
then
integrate
it
into
your
own
language,
experiment
and
see
just
how
incredible
you
can
sound
in
English.
!
!
Motivate
yourself
and
look
beyond:
Your
English
studies
is
worth
their
weight
in
gold
!
!
Your
rate
of
learning
is
much
higher
when
you
are
motivated,
so
nd
motivation
and
rejoice
in
it.
Think
of
all
the
incredible
things
you
will
do
abroad,
the
new
experiences
that
are
waiting
for
you!
The
IELTS
is
the
key
to
these
opportunities!
!
!
Book
your
exam
in
time:
Give
your
local
IELTS
centre
a
call
in
due
time,
and
Good
luck!
!
!
www.ielts-pass.com