I’ve lost count of how many times a student has told me, “IELTS is easy. I speak English daily.”
And I’ve lost count of how many times the score didn’t match that confidence.
IELTS is a strange exam. It’s not difficult in the way maths or science is difficult. And that’s exactly why Indian students struggle with it. We underestimate it. We assume effort equals score. We assume speaking English automatically means IELTS English.
It doesn’t.
Most low or average scores don’t come from lack of intelligence. They come from small, repeated mistakes that students don’t even realise they’re making.
These are the common ones I see again and again.
The Biggest Mistake : Treating IELTS Like an English Test
This is where almost everything goes wrong.
IELTS is not checking how well you know English in daily life. It’s checking how well you understand instructions, patterns, and expectations.
Indian students often write beautifully long answers – but off-topic. Or they speak confidently – but don’t actually answer the question asked. Or they use complex words – but misuse them slightly.
The exam doesn’t reward effort. It rewards accuracy.
Once students understand that IELTS is a format-driven exam, not a personality test, scores usually improve.
Writing Task 2 : Talking around the question instead of answering it
This is probably the most painful one.
Students write 250–300 words. Grammar is decent. Vocabulary looks impressive. And yet the score stays stuck at 6 or 6.5.
Why?
Because the essay doesn’t clearly answer the question.
Indian students love explaining everything. Background. History. Philosophy. Moral lessons. But IELTS wants a direct response. Opinion questions need opinions. Discussion questions need balance. Problem-solution questions need… solutions.
When students finally learn to pause and ask, “What exactly is the examiner asking me?”, their writing changes immediately.
Memorised Answers Don’t Work the Way Students Think They Do
This is a hard truth.
Memorised introductions, conclusions, and speaking answers feel safe. They give confidence. But examiners recognise them instantly.
In Writing, memorised lines often sound unnatural or slightly off-context. In Speaking, they break the flow of conversation.
I’ve seen students panic when the speaking question changes slightly and their memorised answer no longer fits. The hesitation costs more marks than imperfect grammar ever would.
IELTS prefers honest, simple, natural responses over rehearsed perfection.
Listening Mistakes Happen Because Students Don’t Move On
This one is very Indian in nature – we hate missing answers.
In the Listening test, if students miss one word, they freeze. They mentally replay it. Meanwhile, the recording moves on.
By the time they recover, they’ve missed two more answers.
High scorers understand something important: you will miss something. Everyone does. The skill is moving on instantly.
IELTS listening is as much about emotional control as it is about attention.
Reading : Understanding the Passage, Not the Question
Many students read the passage like a novel. Slowly. Carefully. Line by line.
That’s a mistake.
IELTS reading isn’t testing deep understanding of content. It’s testing how well you can locate information quickly.
Students lose time because they try to understand everything instead of scanning for what’s needed. By the time they reach the final passage, panic sets in.
Once students learn to read the question first and hunt for answers, reading scores usually jump without extra vocabulary study.
Speaking : Trying to Sound “advanced” Instead of Natural
This one is subtle but common.
Students think higher bands mean complex vocabulary and long sentences. So they force words they don’t fully control. The result? Hesitation, correction, broken fluency.
IELTS speaking is not about sounding like a professor. It’s about sounding comfortable.
Simple words, clear ideas, steady flow – these score better than complicated sentences delivered with uncertainty.
Some of the highest speaking scores I’ve seen came from students who spoke plainly but confidently.
Ignoring Timing During Practice
This mistake shows up on test day.
Students practise without a timer. They feel confident at home. Then, in the exam, time pressure hits hard.
Writing Task 2 eats into Task 1 time. Reading passages feel longer. Speaking answers get rushed.
Timing is not a last-week concern. It’s part of preparation from day one.
IELTS punishes slow perfection more than fast clarity.
Believing One Bad Mock Means One Bad Future
This is emotional, but real.
Students take one mock test. Score lower than expected. Panic. Confidence drops. Preparation becomes fear-driven.
Mocks are diagnostic tools, not predictions.
One bad score usually highlights weak areas – it doesn’t define ability. Students who treat mocks as feedback improve faster than those who treat them as judgement.
Final Thoughts
IELTS doesn’t test how smart you are. It tests how well you follow instructions under pressure.
Once Indian students stop fighting the exam and start understanding it, scores usually fall into place. Not magically. Not overnight. But steadily.
And that steady improvement is what actually works.
Students Also Ask
Because many underestimate the exam format and overestimate general English ability. IELTS rewards precision, not effort alone.
Yes, especially in Writing and Speaking. Examiners can identify memorised content easily, which affects scores.
Writing, particularly Task 2, because students often miss the core question while writing lengthy responses.
Yes. Without understanding exam structure and timing, even fluent speakers can score lower than expected.
It depends on starting level, but focused preparation with regular timed practice matters more than duration.
Yes, once they fix specific mistakes related to structure, timing, and clarity rather than general English.
