Peter Gbajie is a young man from Nigeria. He took the IELTS test earlier this year and received an Overall Band Score of 8.5. This great score also secured him the first place in our IELTS Results Competition, and when we asked Peter how others can achieve the same success, he said a lot of preparation and a little bit of faith go a long way!
“I think the best advice I can give to anyone who wants to pass IELTS is to take it very seriously and prepare very well, irrespective of the person’s level of English proficiency.
IELTS is truly a tricky/technical exam and does not only test your proficiency, but also your level of concentration, intelligence and confidence. For the prep, I’d recommend at least 2-3 hours dedicated to IELTS each day.
As for me, I prepared for 2 months, and I had a partner who is also very proficient and serious like me. We met twice a week, but we also studied individually on the other days.
You could start with reading and listening only, do as many practice questions as possible and when you feel your confidence level is high on those two, then integrate writing and speaking.
I wrote on every conceivable topic while minding the time and spoke and recorded myself on my phone as many times as possible. The key word here is “PRACTICE”.
In addition, I found www.IELTS-Blog.com, ieltsbuddy (website) and Liz (You Tube videos) very useful. Furthermore, Cambridge Official Guide to IELTS in my opinion is a must for every ambitious candidate.
‘Target Band 7’ is highly recommended as well.
Good luck to all candidates and do remember to pray as well, because with God all things are possible.”
