IELTS preparation: A 4 step master plan

Preparing for the IELTS usually starts when you find out you need to get a particular IELTS score for your visa or your university application. Many students spend months alternately worrying about the test and preparing for it.

IELTS preparation

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The IELTS aims to test your level of English accurately, so in an ideal world, IELTS preparation would just mean improving your English. Unfortunately, it’s not quite that simple. Here is my 4 step master plan to keep you on the right track in preparing for the IELTS:

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If you don’t know what your current English level is in terms of the IELTS scale, you don’t know how far you are from reaching your goal. So the first step in any IELTS preparation plan should be to test your current level.

Find out where you stand

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There are lots of practice tests out there but the easiest way to check your current score on the IELTS is to take the EF SET. It’s a 50-minute test and because it will give you an EF SET score and an IELTS equivalency score for both reading and listening, it’s an hour very well-spent.

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You need to work on all aspects of your English: reading, listening, writing, and speaking. You can use IELTS-specific study tools, but you don’t have to at this stage. Any English learning techniques you find engaging can be effective IELTS preparation, for example:

Improve your English

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– Read in English about subjects you are interested in, and push yourself to look up words you don’t understand. Newspapers and magazines are a good place to build up your vocabulary.

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– Reading will help your writing, but practice writing too. Don’t limit yourself to a single writing style. Keeping a diary in English, writing short stories, and trying your hand at essays are all good practice. Correct your own work or find someone to go over it with you.

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– Watch English movies or listen to English-language radio. Replay the bits you missed until you understand them.

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– Getting enough speaking practice can be hard on your own, but with effort you can find a language exchange partner online or in your town. Push yourself to talk about more advanced subjects than just “hi, how are you” types of conversations.

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– There are also good IELTS preparation courses online and abroad, as well as in schools near you. If you have money to invest in an IELTS preparation course, this can jumpstart your efforts, and take you straight in to step 3.

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Improving your English is not enough to get a great IELTS score. A native English speaker who takes the IELTS won’t get a perfect score if he doesn’t study the test itself. You need to know how the test scoring works, what length of text is required for each prompt, and when points are taken off or added.

Learn about the IELTS test format

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When you can tell that you’ve improved your English and you’ve familiarized yourself with the IELTS test, there’s one more step before you sign up to sit the exam.  Test yourself again.

Test yourself again

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Thank You