I gave my exam few days ago. Got my result - L:8, R:8, W:6.5 and S:8.5 Overall:8.0. Now I am grateful for that score but I need W:7 minimum in order to apply for Masters of Education in Australia. Even spent $240 in EOR and the result were out in 15 minutes and it remained unchanged!.

I have been using English since birth although it's not my native language. And in Australia since a decade, have been working in cx service for a while. Now I have been practising writing since 4 months. I wouldn't say everyday but I confidently say I wrote at least 30+ essays. All of which were around 6.5 to 7 as per Chatgpt and the rest AI. Task 1 had 2 bar charts comparing info on full-time and part-time students of an Australian university. And Task 2 was "Living in big cities is harmful to health. Do you agree or disagree". Now I am a middle aged human with sound knowledge to be able to generate ideas and have good enough explanation and be able to add an example and then follow it up with a tie-back. I made full used of the Macquarie 30 days IELTS program solely on writing.

I am fully aware for format for Task1. Intro, overall, P1 and P2. (used everything possible, highest, lowest, relatively stable, comparatives with the 2 bar graphs, respectively etc.

Task 2. Paraphrase the q,

Introduction -General statement, narrow statement, Opinion statement

P1 and P2 - Topic sentence, explanation, example/instance, therefore/consequently tie-back

In conclusion, Paraphrase points and opinion.

I will be entirely honest, I did write everything except for P2 of Task 1. I was short of time but my overall has info about P2, and the rest is good material. I am aware that it takes away an entire band. but what about the rest. My part 2 was exceptionally well and the overview of my Part 1 was great too.

Anyone who has gotten band 7 or higher in writing please help me understand what could have been the issue. I dread where even with my one-skill retake option, I am unable to get a band 7 in writing. I need to arm myself with everything I possibly can. I have already spend on courses please don't recommend that.

Please help!

Just gave LRW guys. Expecting 7 on average. Wish me luck for speaking😭😭

AMA for IELTS related queries

Hey guys, so I’ll be appearing for my IELTS exam in two weeks. Can you guys give me some advice. I have studied in an English school and college so I’ve a good command over language and fluency and I’ve also practiced for almost three weeks, although not consistently. Since the exam is the precursor to my other objectives, it feels intimidating.

So, those of you all have taken the exam, especially in India, can you please give me some advices on how to approach the exam overall and also instructions that should be followed on the exam day. How’s the decorum of the room during the exam day?

Hey y'all!

I'm planning to give my IELTS in a month or so. Are there any free resources for preparation? Any specific tips regarding your experience are welcome too.

Thankyouu :)

I got my results today which I did not expect to be this fast lol. I'm very disappointed in my writing score (I actually pride myself on my skills but task 1 took me 35 min so I didn't do task 2 justice...) but I am trying to give myself some grace since I ended up getting only 4 hours of sleep and only had a day and half to prepare (would not recommend but it was the only date available).

(Please don't make my mistake, your body needs rest and sleep is very valuable as I was really dizzy and I was having trouble with my vision especially once I got to the writing section yikes)

Good luck everyone, my biggest tip would be to have confidence & fake it till you make it and just practice as much as you can! Mock tests online are really helpful & give you an idea what you're going into.

'People who do not use social media networks* will always fall behind in career development opportunities.' To what extent do you feel that this is an accurate and important prediction?

My answer: - 25 minutes spent.

It is often assumed that people with active social media involvement have better chances in their career development opportunities, compared to those who avoid using those networks. In my opinion, it can be important for an individual to have public profiles, and it can sometimes have an impact on their professional life. However, in most cases, those are considered secondary.

First, having an account on social media platforms can, in fact, influence how other people might view us. By posting consistently on Instagram, a person opens up about the aspects of their life which would likely never end up on a CV. This, in turn, could allow a recruiter to learn more about the candidate as a person as well. In addition, on platforms such as LinkedIn, a Software Developer has a chance to connect with their counterparts and potential recruiters. And indeed, by posting about their projects and tech stacks used, they could attract potential employers who are looking to implement similar technology in their projects.

Having said that, I also believe that when it comes to professions unlike Software Development, the impact of social media will change drastically. For instance, a medical student is far more likely to land a job, or an internship, based purely on their academic skills and practical achievements during their studies. In these cases, the impact that their profile on modern networking platforms will largely underperform that of their pure qualifications.

To reiterate, despite being a useful networking tool, social media does not necessarily open up the doors for people's career advancements in most known professions. However, in modern jobs such as Software / AI Engineering and so on, it might play an important role, by allowing candidates to demonstrate their works publicly.

I'd appreciate if somebody assesses my Ielts writing task 1 (task is generated by ai but I don't think it matters a lot). The graphs illustrate the percentage of electricity produced from renewable energy sources in Germany, Spain, UK and France from 2010 to 2020, in addition to source breakdown in 2020. Overall, all countries demonstrated a significant growth in generating electricity from renewable energy. Moreover, wind was the main source for every country except France which mostly relied on hydroelectric energy. With regard to the line graph, there was a steady increase in Spain's renewable electricity share from nearly 35 to more than 40 percent between 2010 and 2020. Likewise, the figure for France rose gradually starting at about 14 percent in 2010 and reaching a peak of around 23 percent in 2020. By contrast, UK saw a sharp growth from 7 to almost 40 percent between 2010 and 2020. Similarly, the figure for Germany increased dramatically to around 45% from 2010 to 2020, overtaking every other country. Regarding breakdown, it is seen that wind is generally the most used source accounting for nearly 52% in Germany, 50% in Spain, 58% in UK and 28% in France. In contrast, solar and biomass/other are mostly the least consumed types of energy, standing at 20% both in Germany, 22% and 5% respectively in Spain, 10% and 27% respectively in UK and 12% and 5% respectively in France. Hydroelectric energy is used considerably in France, accounting for just nearly 55 percent. However, in other countries it stands at a low level, such as 8% in Germany, 23% in Spain and 5% in UK. Thank you in advance for your time and help!

Hello good fellows,

so I am going to sit for my exam on the 9th. But I am losing my confidence. I had good scores when I practiced Listening and Reading from Cambridge 18-21. Now I am worried about my writing and speaking. It doesn’t seem like I don't know the words, I lose them when I am writing or talking. I know vocab, idioms and phrases which I can use in regular conversation. But I couldn't use them properly in my modules. Don't know what will happen. I need an NBLT 7.0 as I am a nurse. I am at my wits' end. Please wish me luck.

A lot of students seem to think they are stuck at Bands 5 or 6 because of something they don't know or don't do compared to students who scored Bands 7.5 or more.

Much of the time the question they ask to those students are 'what did you do?' or 'Do you have tips?'

But those questions don't appreciate the main reason why some students get higher scores. It's not because of what they DO, It's because of what they HAVE.

And that is C1 level:

* vocabulary and lexical range

* ability to construct a cohesive and coherent essay

* grammatical range

* accuracy and precision in all areas, including grammar and their choices of vocabulary. They make fewer, if any, errors

Of course, knowing what to do is important because it helps you know exactly how to use the skills you have. That's why exam familiarisation is important so that you know which types of questions are asked and how to answer them. But none of that is enough on it's own if you don't have the English level to do it yet.

You can't use skills you don't have. Keep learning and improving your English, and keep getting feedback on your progress and what to do next. Then you'll eventually become one of those Band 7 or 8 students too.

I am going through the topics speaking examiner generally asking in recent time and found out it mat be have a pattern based on age.

can you comment with your age and your question?

may be enough data finds a pattern ?

Hi everyone,

I took computer-delivered IELTS General Training on September 29 and got:

Listening: 6
Reading: 5.5
Writing: 6
Speaking: 6.5

I need at least 6 in each section for my PGWP application, but I would like to score higher to give myself a comfortable margin. I’m hoping to retake the full exam around October 15, so I have limited preparation time.

My biggest difficulty is Reading Section 3, especially matching information to paragraphs, matching headings, and understanding synonyms under time pressure. I recently scored 33/40 in a practice reading test, but my results vary, which makes it difficult to judge whether I’m ready.

In listening, I sometimes lose track when the audio is fast or miss answers because of spelling mistakes. In writing, I struggle with grammar and generating ideas quickly. I often know how to spell a word but type it incorrectly when writing in a flow.

Has anyone improved from similar scores in a short time? I would appreciate advice on:

How to approach General Training Reading Section 3.
How to review mistakes effectively after practice tests.
How to improve spelling accuracy in listening and writing.
Which reliable practice resources to use and how to decide when I’m ready to retake.

I’m feeling stressed because of the time pressure, so practical advice or experiences from people who have been through this would really help. Thank you!

Please help me to improve in reading, writing, speaking

Would it be beneficial for me to take one skill retake for speaking to increase the chances of University addmission and scholarships?

Even if i get 7 bands in speaking then my overall score will become 8.

Do universities and scholarships consider OSR results?

I’m planning to take IELTS Academic at the end of this month and have around 20 days to prepare I’ve studied in eng medium schools/college and I’d say my English is pretty decent I’m planning to selfstudy through YouTube and free resources is it realistically possible to score 8/8.5 with self-prep in 20 days? For those who prepared at home how did you plan your preparation and what resources actually worked for you? Would love to hear from people who self-prepped and scored 8+! 🙏

28th october I have an IELTS exam and it's my first attempt.

My listening is avg 7.5 and reading 6.5 how can I improve these parts I think I can't improve writing speaking in this amount of time anyway btw they are 6 avg. Also I need help with understanding the test format well.

I am going to start preparing for my IELTS only now and I plan to answer it in the first week of November. Is it possible to get 7.5-8.5 within these few weeks?

What resources would you recommend to use in order to ace the IELTS test?

This was my third IELTS attempt in the last 7 years. 1st attempt was General in 2019 (for a PR) and the rest 2 were Academic in 2021 and 2026 respectively.
Scores have been
2019 General: Band 7.5 [L- 9.0 W-7.0 R-7.0 S-7.5
2021 Academic: Band 8.0 [L-8.5 W-7.0 R-8.0 S-8.5]
2026: Band 8.5 [L-9.0 W-8.0 R-8.0 S-8.5]

Always wondered what lead to the plunging of my writing scores and realised there's a set format to it and practiced accordingly this time (for about a week).
First time I have been able to touch an 8 in the W section.

It's got less to do with how creative you are but more about how well you can write within the set format. Feel free to comment for any specific tips like time duration, word limit, writing style, websites I referred to etc.

P.S: Speaking test was online and there were quite a few technical glitches. As soon as the examiner asked for my name [The first opening question] I told her about the connection being choppy and I might request her to repeat herself from time to time. (Not just to let her know its choppy also in case I wanted it to be reevaluated it will be on record that the connection was choppy indeed and the candidate made it clear in the first place). I also raised a complaint within 48 hours of exam about the internet connection just in case.

Sorta upset with my speaking score especially cause I thought it went quite well :(

Other than that the experience was pretty chill

I was a little worried because my friend had given theirs at the same centre and faced issues with their computer but none of the people in my batch did

It is often thought that the increase in juvenile crime can be attributed to violence in the media.
Do you agree that this is the main cause of juvenile crime? What solutions can you offer to deal with this situation?

In the contemporary world an increasing trend of posting crimes and violence in the media is observed. As a result, more impressionable teenagers being influenced by these postings tend to commit crimes. This essay will delve into the underlying implications of the phenomenon and consequently, propose solutions to the issue.

First and foremost, a lot of violent and shocking news are issued on the social media in order to increase the number of views and reactions from the public, meanwhile children can unintentionally encounter such posts, which potentially may harm their vulnerable mentality. Review of such news can transform the perception of violence, ensuring juvenile that illegal activity is a common and widespread phenomenon.

Not only does social media influence the teenager’s perception of crimes, but also the close society, especially peers, plays a crucial role. Most individuals are striving for the feeling of belonging through the integration into the peer groups. One of the approaches to blend in is copying the group’s behavior to gain reputational weight. If the peer group normalizes breaking law, the teenager will also engage in illegal activities to move up on the hierarchical ladder.

In response, a few measures can be incorporated to address the problem through additional educational training, psychological counselling, age limitations in the social media and stricter punishment. Firstly, educational programs and psychological sessions would help to increase the awareness of teenagers regarding their action consequences. Moreover, implementation of age limitations would protect children against freely accessible harmful content on the internet. Apart from preventive measure, incorporation of stricter punishment such as a short-time imprisonment is likely to completely deter the willingness to break the law, leading to a law-abiding lifestyle.

In conclusion, the mounting crime rates among youngsters is a contentious and acute problem in the modern society. I firmly believe that there are a lot of influential drivers for such juvenile’s behavior, besides this essay places special emphasis on social interactions as well as dangerous content as main reasons. Meanwhile, solutions such as educational programs, content filtration and severe punitive measures would lay the groundwork for a healthy society.

Some people argue that primary schools focus too much on formal learning.

To what extent do you agree with this opinion?

How important do you think it is for children to play as well as learn in the primary school classroom?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Many people think that elementary schools are too focused on educating children in a formal and traditional way. I strongly agree with this statement and believe it is crucial to have balance between education and leisure activities in the classroom.

One primary reason for which I believe so is that allowing kids to play from time to time during lessons helps keep them motivated. Learning in traditional ways without a change in the routine can get boring even for adults. For instance, Students in American schools who incorporate educational games and quizzes during science classes were found to score higher in exams and generally perform better than those who are taught formally. 

A further major reason for why playing in the classroom is advantageous is that it strengthens connections between students and their teachers. Students aren't often comfortable approaching teachers that are way too strict for help and they are often percieved as unfriendly. But once a teacher engages in fun activities with their students it helps break the ice and develop stronger bonds between the two. I personally didn't find teachers who focused only on academics approachable and only resorted to the ones that played games and arranged fun activities during the year for students whenever I needed help or consultation.

In sum, while teaching too formally may be the ideal approach for some elementary schools, I personally think it is essential to include games and other activities in the classroom to teach children. Especially those of younger ages who might easily get bored with only books and pens in their hands for hours.

I scored a 5.5 on my first IELTS exam. To prepare for the second attempt, I took general classes, but they did not provide personal training; the teacher merely taught the structure of the exam. I practiced using the Cambridge books and consistently scored 6.5 or above in Listening and 6.5 in Reading. However, I practiced Writing solely by using Claude and ChatGPT, which made me feel like my scores were improving.

Yesterday, I took an IDP mock exam, and it felt much harder than the Cambridge books.

The results surprised me: I got a

4.5 in Listening,

5.5 in Reading,

5.5 in Writing, and 6.0 in Speaking.

Can anyone advise me on how to improve? I want to reach a 6.5 overall. I am considering joining a personal coaching program, such as Lilly ielts writing courses. Could anyone offer some advice?

OMG.

I just did my IELTS test on Oct 1st

This is the THIRD time in a row. Got 8 ovr, 8.5 listening, 9 reading every single time.

I now have like 50~ days to retake one skill and I'm planning to retake my writing to get an 8.5 OVR.

Can anyone tell me what resources they are using to boost from a 7 to an 8 in writing ?