10 excellent ways that can help you get the desired band score in IELTS.

Many candidates who are not able to get the desired band score in IELTS are extremely desperate to know how to get the band score they want. Understanding the needs and challenges of the candidates who are preparing for the IELTS test, we have come up with a list of 10 excellent ways that can help you get the desired band score in IELTS.

  • Know the test format: – We advise candidates who are appearing for the IELTS test for the first time to acquaint themselves with the format of the IELTS test.  This helps you know what to expect in the IELTS test and avoid any surprises.
  • Practice Speaking: – Many students find speaking section to be the most difficult. Therefore, practice speaking English or do IELTS practice tests. Recording yourself and listening is a good way of knowing how you sound and also pinpoint major mistakes. You can listen to the recordings again to check where you repeat words, hesitate or make grammatical errors.
  • Learn to Skim and Scan: – Skimming and scanning can be advantageous to you if you are preparing for IELTS. These techniques will be helpful in the IELTS reading and listening sections. There is a right strategy to do skimming and scanning.  The purpose of the skimming and scanning should be to get an overview of the meaning of the passage and not to miss out essential details.
  • Time management: – Managing time is extremely important in the IELTS test. Since every section in the IELTS exam is time bound, you must learn to manage time for the various tasks effectively. During practice, you will get to know which areas of the IELTS test take more time and which ones take lesser time.  Hence, you can devote more time to the difficult sections and less time to the easiest sections.
  • Learn to Move on:- You may come across a question whose answer may not be known to you. In that case, do not stick to the question. Make a guess, mark the question for review and move on. If you have time at the end, you can come back to check its answer.  Sticking to one question will waste your time and you may not get time to attempt other questions.
  • Spare some time for proofreading:- After you have attempted IELTS writing task, spare some time for proofreading. It will help you identify spelling or grammatical mistakes and correct them. This is necessary to submit error-free and high quality content.  It will help you get extra points in the IELTS writing section.
  • Plan and Organize:- For the IELTS writing part, before you get started with essay writing, always spend some to plan and organize your ideas. You may end up writing incoherent essay by reading the question and writing straight-away. Take some time to think and brainstorm and then plan your thoughts and ideas in coherence to create a beautiful piece of writing.
  • Speak clearly: – In IELTS speaking section, always speak clearly and confidently. Some candidates believe speaking quickly will bring them high scores. This is not the case. You should speak at your natural pace clearly and confidently.  Speaking is more about being understood than fluency.
  • Forget what you know: – There can be chances of coming across a familiar topic or passage. In that case, do not feel tempted to apply your previous knowledge about the topic. Instead, read the passage carefully and attempt questions based on what you read and not what you have known previously.
  • Keep word count in mind: – Always keep word count in mind for IELTS writing task. If you write less than 150 words in Task 1 or less than 250 words in task 2, you will lose marks. Writing more than 150 or 250 words will not result in mark deduction, but if you write more, you will not get time to proofread your content for errors at the end.