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IELTS Academic Reading

This module takes 60 minutes and has 3 sections. Each section has from 13 to 14 questions, making 40 questions in total. Questions become more difficult throughout the test. Both General and Academic IELTS Reading tests have 3 sections with 40 questions in total. IELTS Reading test lasts 1 hour.

Time 60 minutes
Questions 40
Sections 3

IELTS Academic Reading marking scheme Each of the 40 questions is worth 1 point. Depending on how many points you gain, you can receive a score from 0 to 9 points for the Reading Section. To determine your IELTS Academic Reading score, the following conversion table applies:

Raw score (out of 40) 39-40 37-38 35-36 33-34 30-32 27-29 23-26 19-22 15-18 13-14 10-12 8-9 6-7 4-5
Band score 9 8.5 8 7.5 7 6.5 6 5.5 5 4.5 4 3.5 3 2.5

Why IELTS Reading is difficult for you and how to get the score you want

  1. You haven’t been reading much English
  2. You need to read more widely
  3. You read too slowly
  4. You can’t identify key information
  5. You aren’t used to the question formats

 Top 5 Tips for IELTS Reading

  1. Timing is key.

You will have just 1 hour to complete 40 questions, so you must use your time wisely. I advise my students to finish each section in 20 minutes. This will give you 16-17 minutes to read and answer the questions and 3-4 minutes to transfer and check your answers. You’ll find more help with time management here.

  1. Read the instructions carefully.

Many strong candidates lose marks in IELTS Reading because they don’t read the instructions properly. Pay close attention to the instructions you’re given to avoid losing easy marks.

  1. Don’t panic.

Some of the questions will be easy, and some will be extremely difficult. (I knew many IELTS teachers who had to check the answers to some questions because they are so challenging!  The wrong thing to do is spend a lot of time on a hard question. If the answer does not present itself, move on to the next one. You can always come back to the difficult questions later.  You must stay calm and keep your nerves under control. Accepting that you are probably not going to get all the questions correct might help you control your nerves and timing on test day! 

  1. It’s really a vocabulary test.

In many ways, IELTS Reading is more of a vocabulary test than a reading test. The reason is that you need a wide range of vocabulary to understand the passages of text given to you. You must also be aware of synonyms and paraphrasing if you wish to identify the information required to answer the questions correctly.

  1. Don’t expect to understand every word.

If you don’t understand a word in the test, you should look at the words and sentences around it for clues about its meaning. Alternatively, you can move on and forget about it. Focus on the words that are related to the question, and don’t worry about the words you don’t understand.

Some others tips to improve your score

The IELTS reading exam requires good comprehension and time management skills. With the right strategies and techniques, you can significantly improve your score. Below we share our IELTS reading tips to help you achieve your desired score and feel more confident on test day.

  1. The answer is always paraphrased in the text provided
  2. Skimming
  3. Scanning
  4. Focus on the ideas, not the words
  5. Test different exam strategies, then choose a winner
  6. Attend regular mock tests.
  7. Find keywords in the text, underline and number
  8. Don’t panic over unknown words. Use context.
  9. Don’t leave any questions unanswered
  10. Improve your reading speed
  11. Develop quick reading habits.
  12. Always choose your material from authorized sources.
  13. Don’t sacrifice retention for speed
  14. Organize your reading time to improve your focus
  15. Improving reading comprehension
  16. Develop active and close reading skills.

Types of questions on IELTS Reading:

  1. multiple choice
  2. True/false/not given
  3. short-answer questions
  4. sentence completion
  5. notes, summary, plan, diagram, table or chart completion
  6. classification
  7. matching paragraphs

  For further practice, go through the following link and get genuine practice questions. https://ielts.idp.com/nepal/prepare/article-academic-reading-free-practice-questions

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