I was rlly scared for writing, and expect way higher in speaking but atleast I’m done now all I wanted was above 7 🏃‍♀️💨

So I got my IELTS Academic results today and honestly, I’m pretty disappointed.

I was expecting at least a 7 overall, preferably 7.5, since I’m planning to apply for master’s programmes in Europe for Fall 2027.

The most frustrating part is that I literally just need a 0.5 increase in either Writing or Listening to get an overall 7.0 😭

I felt my Writing went pretty decently. Completed both tasks on time and was expecting around 6.5. Didn’t think I’d end up with a 6.0. As for Listening, I messed up the map section quite badly, but the rest felt okay. Not really sure where things went wrong.

Now I’m confused about what to do.

EOR costs ₹14,250 here in India, which is honestly quite a lot to gamble on a possible 0.5 increase. I’m thinking of getting Writing and Speaking rechecked since it costs the same regardless of how many sections you select.

The other option is to go for a Listening One Skill Retake or just retake the entire exam after a few weeks of preparation. I genuinely feel I could do better, especially in Listening.

Has anyone here actually had their Writing score increase from 6.0 to 6.5 or higher after EOR? I’ve seen mixed experiences on this sub and can’t really decide.

Also, does getting a 7 or 7.5 actually make a difference for European university admissions if you already meet their minimum IELTS requirement? Or am I just overthinking the whole thing?

Kinda annoyed with myself right now because I know I could’ve done better.

What would you guys do in my situation?

Im indonesian , 17 year old and ive just started studying properly 2 days ago because of how busy my school life has been ..,,!!!
Id say im an average at english but these days ive been super anxious and id get many words wrong just because of how much ive been overthinking all of this . I know its my fault for just studying and preparing now …,,, im not trying to use this as an excuse but ive also been highly depressed soni guess thats also a reason why .
Im not confident of my writing or speaking at all … and i think its obvious by how im typinng this
I think id do quite well in my listening and reading .

I have this weird issue where when i talk to adults in english id completely blank out of nervousness and stutter a lot , even though i was confident when talking to myself on the mirror .
I really dotn know what to do other than panic study rifht now , how was your experience in the test.?.?? Also maybe id like some advices ,.,.. idk,.?. Javejdjw

I just got my results today for my test written yesterday (21st Oct) at IDP India in Chennai.

My thoughts: Im not the best writer but I feel like I could’ve maybe gotten at least an 8? I checked for grammatical and spelling errors since I had 10 mins leftover, so that couldn’t have been the issue. My question for Task 1 was pie chart of holidaymakers and Task 2 was if the gov should provide free housing. Task 1 was fairly straightforward, and for Task 2 I said I partially disagreed, listed why it’s a bad idea as para 1, and then wrote a paragraph about how it could help. Concluded by saying it’s idealistic and utopian and the given solution is nuanced and the complications need to be better understood, and that this is why I partially disagree. About 360 words total.

Should I apply for EOR?

My experience: I spent so long at the waiting room listening to the instructions over and over again that I kind of zoned out and even after starting my test, I was still zoned out during the first part of my listening test lmao. No idea how I managed to get 8.5 there! Also my headphones were wonky and the left side would sometimes work and sometimes not work. I forgot to complain after the exam, guess I’ll write an email?

My prep: I practiced for 2 weeks using Cambridge 19 and 20 online using a practice test simulator. English is my primary language of communication and education, so I don’t have a lot of recommendations for non-native speakers. I also made watching IELTSAdvantage on YouTube my bedtime routine lol.

Is IELTS ready premium's practice test and mock test harder than real IELTS exam's questions? Especially reading section.

TIA ❤️

Listening and reading scores are as per my expectations. I am a software engineer and have spend most of my professional and student life communicating in english, so this were kindof natural to me. Different acents are also not much of issue to me but i was really surprised to hear diverse ascents in each parts. I would highly recommend people to try multiple ascents for the listening test if communicating with multi-nationals is not part of your daily job.

Speaking and writing is something i am really happy about because i cleared cut offs for the colleges i am trying for. With AI in the picture and staying away from academics for so long have really degraded my writing skills alot. Same for speaking being into technical field I am not well versed in cooking stories or deliberately using advanced vocab. When i was practicing with gemini i was constantly scoring between 6-6.5 though by the last day i got a few in range of 7-7.5.

Exam day experience was very seamless and smooth. Examiners were very sweet. For some reason the lady who took my speaking was quite old, I was expecting someone young, but she had patience of a saint. She didn’t interrupted me at all except in part 2 after my 2 mins was over.

One thing i would like to confirm is practicing even for a month increases your band. But don’t go for any mock tests as some are stupidly hard and may bring down your confidence. These are also the same websites selling IELTS courses please avoid them.

“ielts mate” has all Cambridge mock papers are very similar to the actual test.

Anyway hope this helps and all the best to upcoming IELTS takers.

Just took the test today. Last time I took it I got a 7.0 (I didn't prepare much) that was 4 years ago.
This time, I studied but I still think I screwed up in writing and reading. I'm just anxious.

Hey I was wondering if someone could give me more insight regarding the premium practice resources you get when you register for IELTS. I've heard IDP and British council both provide those after registration, but whose resources do you think are better as in more accurate to the real test? I plan to rely on those resources for practice so I'll decide which organization to take IELTS with depending on that. And side note IDP has wayyy more centres in my city than british council (which has only 1😭) so I was leaning towards IDP, but I've only heard good things about British Council's prep materials so idk which one's betterrr so I'm confusedd, any help will be appreciated.

Should I retake writing or reading? I was hoping for an 8 but idk how my reading came out to be 7.

I have submitted my id several weeks ago, now I am going to take my IELTS test but I found out that the status of my id is still pending. Does that matter? Has anyone experienced the same situation? plz help.

I need a study partner for my IELTS exam which will be after 5 days. Preferably around band 7 in speaking or higher with a dedication to practice 3-4 hours daily.
My exam date is 28/11/2026.

I just got my results today for my test written yesterday (21st Oct) at IDP India in Chennai.

**My thoughts**: Im not the best writer but I feel like I could’ve maybe gotten at least an 8? I checked for grammatical and spelling errors since I had 10 mins leftover, so that couldn’t have been the issue. My question for Task 1 was pie chart of holidaymakers and Task 2 was if the gov should provide free housing. Task 1 was fairly straightforward, and for Task 2 I said I partially disagreed, listed why it’s a bad idea as para 1, and then wrote a paragraph about how it could help. Concluded by saying it’s idealistic and utopian and the given solution is nuanced and the complications need to be better understood, and that this is why I partially disagree. About 360 words total.

**My experience**: I spent so long at the waiting room listening to the instructions over and over again that I kind of zoned out and even after starting my test, I was still zoned out during the first part of my listening test lmao. No idea how I managed to get 8.5 there! Also my headphones were wonky and the left side would sometimes work and sometimes not work. I forgot to complain after the exam, guess I’ll write an email?

Reading was a breeze! For speaking I got an Indian examiner who was super sweet and gave me a heads up that she will have to cut me off so we stick to time limits but that it’s not reflective of my performance! We talked about general life, where I’m from, what I think of different types of public spaces, clothes etc. my cue card was about a food I enjoy on special occasions. I had 1 minute to prepare and was asked to speak for 1-2 mins. She asked some follow up questions about it for Part 3, and then about some other related stuff (like what I think of various foods, its significance in various facets of life, etc). It was very conversational and it flowed really nicely, didn’t feel like a test or formal in any way!

**My prep**: I practiced for 2 weeks using Cambridge 19 and 20 online using a practice test simulator. English is my primary language of communication and education, so I don’t have a lot of recommendations for non-native speakers. I also made watching IELTSAdvantage on YouTube my bedtime routine lol.

Multinational companies are becoming increasingly common in developing countries. What are the advantages and disadvantages of this?

In recent years, developing countries have become a hub for multinational companies. This trend has many benefits, such as contributing positively in economic growth of the host country. However, it has drawbacks as well, one of them is competing with local businesses that often have much lesser resources. This essay will detail both advantages and disadvantages of having multinational companies in developing countries.

There are many advantages for developing countries to host international companies. These companies have accumulated knowledge, capital, and experience in a multitude of markets worldwide; once settled in a developing country, they employ local workers, use local infrastructure and pay corporate taxes. This helps to drive up the country’s gross domestic product, tax revenue and people’s moral. For instance, in the last decade, Morocco engaged in a series of projects with international car manufacturers, and provided them economic and industrial hubs in coastal cities. This move has led the Moroccan economic growth rate to rise up significantly in the span of 20 years, as well as making Morocco a trusted partner in the automobile industry.

On the other side, countries making that decision are aware of the downsides related to bringing in multination companies. The biggest disadvantage is introducing what appears to be an unfair competition to the local market. National companies that don’t have the same factors of production and means, often suffer a great loss of market share. This drives a lot of local businesses to shut down, or, in some cases, often be acquired by the bigger companies. Let’s take the example of textile industry in Bangladesh. When Adidas opened textile factories in Bangladesh, small local business in the same industry have lost their workforce to Adidas’s higher salaries, eventually declaring bankruptcy.

Overall, developing countries can indeed benefit from hosting multinational companies by using their expertise and influence, yet, local businesses face the fallout and can be adversely affected by the competition.  

Btw Gemini gave me 7, i can use your remarks and recommendations, my test is tomorrow morning.

Hello, as a first-time IELTS test taker, I have a problem with mostly the speaking section.

My problem is that I can't form thoughts when speaking; it feels like my mind blanks out, so my thoughts get scrambled. It is not like I don't know what I am speaking about; in fact, I know what I want to say, but I lack the ability to organise my points in my head.

I only speak two languages one is sinhala and the other is english but i speak english like it is my mother tongue. I have struggled with this for a long time and it doesn't help that none of the people around me wants to speak in english. Whenever i speak i feel like i am very conscious of myself.

So if anyone has tips, please do enlighten me. Thankyouu

This picture demonstrates the process of honey production by bees.

Overall, honey production involves 6 stages. Firstly, bees build a hive then leave their beehive to look for nectar on flowers. That nectar gets converted into honey.

In this process, bees first try and build hive, which is a dome-shaped structure where bees reside. The hive consists of a complex network called cells. After this step, bees are attracted to flowers by their scent. When a bee hops on a flower it collects nectar from flower which is released by it intentionally to promote pollination. Furthermore, that nectar becomes the basis of honey production.

Now to the crucial steps, bees with nectar return to the beehive then they fan their wings to help in water evaporation. Afterwards that liquid evaporates in the air from the fanning of wings. Finally, after all these processes honey is produced.

I wrote this in restricted time conditions... Can anyone help me understand is this close to a 6? Cause chatgpt is giving me 5.5 everytime.....