Thus, you have a goal IELTS score in mind and some helpful IELTS study tools. The following question you can ask is,
How many hours a week should I spend studying for the IELTS?
It might be beneficial to think of your IELTS study hours in terms of weekly time spent while you create an IELTS study schedule. You already know how much time you spend each week on things like your job and school. Determine how much IELTS preparation time you can fit alongside your other obligations by looking at your current weekly time commitments.
You don’t want to commit more IELTS study hours each week than you can handle. However, you must also ensure that you adequately study for the IELTS each week. You won’t stay “in practice” if you study for too little time each week. Very little English education won’t allow you to develop your abilities meaningfully. I recommend studying for the IELTS for a minimum of five hours each week, ideally 10–15 hours. Frequent and intensive practice is the most effective technique for improving linguistic abilities.
Speaking of consistent practice, it’s advisable to spread out your IELTS study time across more than just one or two days of the week. Another way to avoid practicing is to put too many days between sessions. This brings up the following “major question” for today.
How many IELTS study hours a day?
As you can see above, I advise spending at least five hours a week studying for the IELTS. Additionally, if you can only devote the minimum amount of time—five hours—to studying, it’s better to spread it across four or five days each week and save at least an hour for your studies each day.
I recommend at least an hour for each IELTS study session because they always start with a warm-up. As it may take you 10 minutes or longer to fully “dig in” to a new skill that you start working on during your study time, you may start a session at a slower speed.
The most effective IELTS study sessions frequently last between one and a half and three hours. This gives you plenty of uninterrupted time to study thoroughly for the exam. Of course, not everyone has the time to study for 90 minutes or more each day. It might be challenging to squeeze in that much study time if you are in college or have a full-time job. Nevertheless, you should schedule these important, longer study sessions. Try to set aside some time on the weekends if your usual job or school day doesn’t let you study for the IELTS for 90 minutes or more.
If you have the time to study for the “recommended” number of hours per week (10–15, as described above), designate one day for intensive study. If you can dedicate 10 hours a week to studying, you might study for five hours on Saturday and Sunday and one hour a day during the week. And with a fifteen-hour workweek, you could study for two hours each weekday and then review for five hours on the weekends.
The tip
There are several possible weekly or daily study regimens. Some fortunate IELTS test takers can dedicate even more than 15 hours a week to studying for the exam when they have no obligations such as employment or school. No matter how little time you may have, adhere to the following guidelines for IELTS study: spend at least five hours a week studying, attend classes at least four days a week, and schedule at least one 1.5-hour study session. By adhering to these guidelines, you’ll have the time and the consistent pace of work necessary to continue practicing and improving.