Below are some tips for the day of your IELTS exam. This tips are to guide you before your IELTS test and also during your test. These tips are for both GT and Academic tests. All pages on my site are relevant this year, 2023.
On this page, you will find:
- Tips for “on the day” of your test
- Last Minute Listening Tips
- Last Minute Reading Tips
- Last Minute Writing Tips
- Last Minute Speaking Tips
It is important that everyone reads this page before the test day and also on the morning of the test day. Good luck 🙂
1) On the Day IELTS Exam Tips:
Be prepared for your IELTS exam by making sure you know exactly what will happen in the day of your test. Check all tips and rules below.
- Sleep & Eat Well
- The IELTS test is long. It takes 2 hours and 40 mins to do the listening, reading and writing test. There is no break between the tests. Make sure you are well rested and have eaten in order to keep your concentration during your test.
- Clothes
- Wear comfortable clothing. You are not marked on your appearance for any part of the test. So, wear something that you are comfortable in and that gives you confidence.
- The test room might be cold in the aircon is on, so take an extra layer of clothing with you. Or if you are worried it might get hot, wear layers you can take off.
- Drink
- You can take a drink into the exam room as long as it is in a transparent bottle.
- Arrive Early.
- Make sure you know how long it takes to get to your IELTS test center and exactly where your test will be held. Don’t be late or you won’t be allowed to enter the exam room. You will need to check in so make sure you arrive with plenty of time to spare.
- Toilet
- The listening, reading and writing tests take 2 hours and 40 mins. There is no break so make sure you go to the toilet before you enter the exam room. If you need the toilet during the test, put your hand up and the invigilator will let you go. But you will lose valuable time by doing this and it could affect your score.
- No Phones
- You will not be allowed to take your phone or any other electronic items into the test room.
- Pen, Pencil & Eraser
- You should take at least two pencils and one pen – just in case one of them stops working. You should also take an eraser as well. You can’t take a dictionary or extra paper into the test room. For your speaking test, you can take nothing into the room except your ID.
- ID
- Check with your test center exactly what ID you need to take with you. Don’t forget it. The ID you take with you should match the details on your registration form.
- Listen to Instructions
- Listen carefully to all instructions given before your test starts.
- Clock
- There will be a clock on the exam room. You cannot take a watch into your test. Make sure you know where it is before your test starts so you can keep checking it in your reading and writing test. You can’t take your watch into the exam room.
- Disability
- If you have any form is disability that will affect your test, you must speak to the test center well before your test date.
- Focus & Be Calm
- Make sure you go into your test with a clear aim and an understanding of the techniques you need to use. Be calm and confident at all time.
Don’t
- Don’t cheat
- This is an international test and cheating or copying is not allowed.
- No dictionary
- You are not allowed to use any form of learning aid in your test.
- Don’t take the test paper home
- You are not allowed to take any part of the question paper home with you.
- Don’t continue writing after the invigilator tells you to stop. If you continue writing even one word or one sentence, you could have your whole test invalidated. In the computer based test, you won’t have the chance to continue writing as the screen with shut down at the precise time the test finishes.
IELTS Test Tips During your Test
The following IELTS test tips for each part of the IELTS exam will help you focus on the right things during your test. Don’t lose marks by not being prepared.
2) IELTS Listening Exam Tips
- Make sure your headphones are working. Raise your hand if you have a problem.
- If loud speakers are used instead of headphones, make sure you can hear the recording. If you need the volume increasing, raise your hand immediately and someone will come to ask what the problem is. Explain that you need the volume increasing.
- Use the time given to prepare the questions. Always read through all questions before the recording starts and note keywords. Thet keywords will help you keep track of the information and listen for answers.
- Answers to questions come in order (question 1 and then question 2 etc)
- Underline keywords in the questions. You should practice speed reading questions and spotting keywords at home as part of your preparation. For the computer test, you can highlight words in the screen.
- Focus on listening for answers rather than trying to understand everything. You win a point for each question you answer correctly.
- Write your answers on your question paper while you listen. For the computer test, you put the answers directly into the computer.
- Pay attention to how many words and/or a number or numbers you can have for each answer. Many people forget to check this. For example, “15 workmen” is one word and one number, “driving test” is two words.
- You will be given 10 mins after the recording has ended to transfer your answers to the answer sheet for the paper based test. For the computer test, you’ll only get 2 minutes to check your answers. Always check your spelling – any spelling errors and the answer will be marked wrong.
- It is recommended to use ALL CAPITAL LETTERS FOR YOUR ANSWERS for the paper based test to avoid problems with handwriting. This is not an issue with the computer test.
- For 25 essential tips for listening, watch this video: IELTS Listening Essential Tips
3) IELTS Reading Exam Tips
- Read the instructions carefully and make a note of how many words you can use for your answer. Each word is counted, for example “university reception hall” is three words and “workbook” is one word.
- Each answer is worth one point so don’t waste too much time finding one particular answer when you could spend the same amount of time finding two easier answers. You decide when to move on to the next question.
- Keep your eye on the clock. Make sure you have enough time for the final passage.
- You can tackle the passages in any order you want. This is the same for the questions – you can skip questions and come back to them later if you want.
- Write your answers directly on to your answer sheet for the paper based test. There is no extra time for transferring later. For the computer test, your answers will be put directly into the computer.
- Always spend time analysing the questions before looking for an answer. If you don’t analyse the question enough, you’ll end up jumping from question to passage so many times because you are confused which wastes valuable time.
- Look out for paraphrasing. Find the keywords in the question and pay attention to paraphrases in the passage.
- Your aim is to find answers – not to understand the whole passage. Focus on your goal – find as many answers as you can.
- It is recommended to use ALL CAPITAL LETTERS FOR YOUR ANSWERS for the paper test to avoid problems with handwriting. This isn’t an issue with the compute test.
- Spelling is essential to get right or the question will be marked wrong.
4) IELTS Writing Exam Tips
Click on red links to access more pages:
- Don’t spend more than 20 mins on task 1. Keep checking the time so you don’t make this mistake. You need 40 mins for task 2 as this task carries more marks and requires more words.
- Always write over 150 words for task 1 and over 250 words for task 2. See this lesson about the recommended word count.
- Don’t count the number of words you have written. You won’t need to total up the words and you won’t need to mention them at the end of your essay. If you are concerned about word count, just quickly count the lines and multiple by the usual words you see on a line with your writing. See this lesson to learn about using the official IELTS writing answer sheet properly. For the computer test, there is the advantage of seeing how many words you have written appear on the screen.
- You can plan your essay on the question paper. No extra paper is given for planning. The examiner will not look at your planning, only at your essay. Planning is essential because the examiner will be marking the chosen content, not just your language. For a quick overview of the writing task 2 marking criteria, click here: Band Scores & Tips for Writing Task 2
- Always write a clear overview for task 1 academic. See here about the conclusion/overview issue. For GT task 1, make sure you cover all points requested in your letter.
- Always write your conclusion for task 2. Never miss it out. If you only have 3 mins left, use it to write your conclusion. See this video: Using the last 5 minutes
- Always organise your writing for both tasks into body paragraphs. Paragraphing will be marked.
- Check your spelling. You can use either American or British spelling but don’t mix them.
- Keep all information focused and relevant. More does not mean better.
- If you run out of paper, put up your hand and you can get more.
- Do not remove any paper from the exam room.
5) IELTS Speaking Exam Tips
- Practice speaking English before your test. Practice expressing your opinions on different topics and talking about your past experiences.
- This is an informal interview/chat with an examiner. So be friendly and open. Explain what you mean.
- Be chatty. The more willing you are to use English, the better.
- Listen to the question and answer it directly. Be direct. This applies for part 1 and part 3. For part 2, you will have a chance to prepare your answer.
- Add more information (details, examples, description) to all answers. Keep talking until the examiner stops you.
- Don’t ever be silent. There is never a reason for your English to completely stop working.
- Don’t focus only on vocabulary. Vocabulary is only 25% of your marks. However, do make sure you use relevant topic based vocabulary. For example, if your top is Happiness” then you will use words such as “smile, laugh, giggle, contentment, joyful, fulfilment” as well as antonyms (opposites) such as “sad, depressed, feeling low or feeling down”.
- Idioms are not the key to a high score. Most candidates overuse idioms that are too common or outdated. The examiner will note if you use idiomatic language but that doesn’t necessarily mean idioms. Instead use phrasal verbs – calm down, bring up, work out, get over etc. Phrasal verbs are the best types of idiomatic language to use in IELTS.
- The questions are not aimed to test your knowledge. Each question is just a chance to show your English.
- You can wear anything you want. This is not a job interview. Clothing does not affect your score. Aim to be comfortable.
- Use a range of grammar tenses in your test.
- American or British English pronunciation can be used. A mixed accent is also fine. The key is to make sure your words are easy to understand.
- Ask the examiner to repeat the question if you need it. See this lesson about asking the examiner questions.
- If the examiner interrupts you, don’t worry about it. It’s a normal part of the speaking test. Just focus on the next question.
- The examiner will provide a pen and paper to prepare your talk for part 2. The examiner will not look at your plans and will only mark your talk. It is fine to look at your notes and at the cue card during your talk, but also try to make eye contact.
- May people are worried they won’t understand the cue card. Don’t be. The cue card is always written in simple English and topics are common topics. Review Misunderstanding the Cue Card page if you are concerned.
IELTS Exam Tips: One Week Before
- Full IELTS Practice Tests
- Make sure you have completed at least one or two complete IELTS practice tests before your real test. See my useful websites page for links to free IELTS practice tests.
- Review common topics for IELTS speaking and IELTS Writing.
- If you are worried about your test, consider booking two tests. You can choose to use the certificate with the highest overall score.
The exam tips above are summarised from the official IELTS sites:
Always check with official sources in case of any changes in rules.
Good luck with your test! Liz 🙂
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