How to get IELTS band 7 when you are stuck at 6.5

Band 7 is the most common target we hear about at AIL. It is the level for Proficient English, many registration bodies and a lot of postgraduate courses. It is also where many candidates get stuck: two or three tests in a row at 6.5.

Why 6.5 is a plateau

At 6.5 your English is good. The marks you are losing are usually not about level; they come from habits:

• In Listening and Reading, a handful of careless errors: spelling, plurals, word limits, False vs Not Given.
• In Writing, ideas stated but not developed, and frequent small grammar errors.
• In Speaking, short answers and hesitation when you search for a word.

None of these are fixed by "studying more English". They are fixed by practising the specific habit.

First, work out where you are

Write down your last scores, or sit a full practice test. Then use the rounding rules. For example, Listening 7.0, Reading 7.0, Writing 6.0, Speaking 6.5 gives an overall 6.75, which rounds up to 7.0. If you need 7 overall, a half band in Speaking may be enough. If you need 7 in each, Writing is the one to work on. See how band scores are calculated.

Listening: four more answers

Band 7 is usually 30 out of 40; 6.5 is 26 to 29. That's one to four more correct answers.

• Keep a log of every wrong answer and label it: spelling, plural, word limit, distractor, lost place.
• Most people find one label covers half their mistakes. Fix that one first.
• Practise Part 4 lectures in full. See Listening tips.

Reading: three more answers (Academic) or two (GT)

Academic Reading 7.0 is usually 30 out of 40. General Training is 34.

• If you leave blanks, it's a timing problem. Follow a 60-minute plan.
• If you finish but make errors, look at question types. True/False/Not Given and matching headings usually account for most of them.

Writing: the hardest half band

Writing is where most people stay at 6 or 6.5. The band 7 descriptors ask for three things that 6.5 essays usually lack:

1. Developed ideas. Every main idea needs an explanation and a specific example. Fewer ideas, explained properly, beat many ideas listed.
2. Frequent error-free sentences. Count your sentences without any mistake. If it's under half, accuracy is your fastest gain. Keep a list of your own repeated errors (often articles, plurals and verb forms) and check for those specifically.
3. Natural linking. Fewer "Moreover" and "Furthermore", more referencing ("This approach…", "Such policies…").

For Task 1, check you always have a clear overview. For GT, check every bullet point is fully covered.

Speaking: longer, more natural answers

• In Part 1, answer and then extend with a reason or example: two to four sentences.
• In Part 2, speak for the full two minutes. Use a story structure.
• In Part 3, give an opinion, a reason, and either an example or another viewpoint.
• Learn to paraphrase when you don't know a word, instead of stopping.
• Record yourself. Listening back is uncomfortable and very effective.

How long it takes

From a steady 6.5 to 7 is commonly four to eight weeks of focused practice, if you are working on the right things. Taking the test again without changing how you prepare usually gives the same result.

Track the change

Sit a full practice test at the start, then one every week or two. If a skill is not moving after two weeks, change the approach for that skill rather than doing more of the same. The AIL practice tests give a criterion-by-criterion breakdown for Writing and Speaking, which shows exactly which of the four criteria is still at 6.