What good IELTS study material looks like
Photocopied packs passed between friends, PDFs shared in group chats, half-finished notebooks from a class three years ago: most students in the valley collect a pile like this. Some of it is excellent. Some of it uses an outdated format, has wrong answer keys or teaches tricks that no longer work.
Good IELTS material has a few clear qualities:
- It matches the current test format, including the computer-delivered version if that is what you are sitting.
- It explains answers, not just lists them. You should be able to see which line of the passage or recording gives each answer.
- It is organised by skill, so you can find "Matching Headings" or "Task 1 process diagrams" when you need them.
- It is honest about scoring. No "secret formula" for band 8.
What good study notes look like
Your own notes matter more than any printed guide. Useful IELTS study notes are short and personal:
- A mistakes page for each module: what you got wrong and why.
- A vocabulary list by topic: environment, health, education, technology, cities, work. Include a sample sentence for each word.
- A spelling list of words you have misspelt in Listening.
- A Task 2 planning page: one structure for each essay type, written in your own words.
- A Speaking page with a few true stories you can adapt to many cue cards, such as a trip to Nagarkot, a memorable Dashain or a teacher who helped you.
Keep them to a few pages and reread them on the way to college or work; a phone photo of each page is enough for a quick look during a jam at Kalanki or Koteshwor. Notes you never read again are not notes.
Our Study Notes and free tools
With Full Access, Study Notes gives you strategy chapters for each module: how to approach each question type, how to plan essays, and how to use preparation time in Speaking. English Improvement covers grammar and vocabulary, and flashcards use spaced repetition so words return just as you are about to forget them. The Mistake Notebook collects every wrong Listening and Reading answer for you, which saves a lot of copying, and a personal study plan sets out what to do each week until your test date.
Several tools are free, with no card:
- A complete sample mock test with all four sections.
- Free sample Listening and Reading sets.
- Daily Vocabulary: five new words a day.
- Band Score Calculator for working out overall bands.
- Quick Wrap: a last-minute checklist for the days before your test.
- Our weekly IELTS tips blog.
Full Access unlocks 15 mocks, 88 Listening sets, 52 Reading sets and more for $12 for 2 months, paid once.
Using Cambridge IELTS practice books alongside our tests
Many students also use the official Cambridge IELTS practice books, which are widely available in Kathmandu bookshops. They are a valuable source of authentic test material. Our tests follow the same official format, so the two work well together:
- Use the books on paper if you are sitting the paper-based test, or for a change of format.
- Use our computer-style tests for timed practice on screen, instant scoring and automatic mistake tracking.
- Do not repeat the same test too often. Once you remember the answers, a test stops measuring your level.
- Save some material for the final fortnight, so you have fresh tests when it matters most.
A weekly study routine for a Kathmandu student
Here is a routine that fits a college or office week in the valley. Adjust the days to match your own day off.
- Day 1: one timed Reading passage, then review every mistake.
- Day 2: one Listening section with headphones, then add misspelt words to your list.
- Day 3: one Task 2 essay; read the AI feedback that evening.
- Day 4: Speaking prompts aloud for 20 minutes, then a vocabulary review on the commute.
- Day 5: one Task 1 (chart, process or letter) and a short grammar exercise.
- Day 6: full mock test, or a Cambridge test, under exam conditions.
- Day 7: rest, plus five minutes of Daily Vocabulary.
Leave some slack for power cuts, internet drops, college exams and festivals. A routine you keep through Tihar beats a perfect one you abandon after a week.
Register free to start with the sample mock, Daily Vocabulary and free IELTS practice material, then add our Study Notes when you are ready.