Too much material, too little direction
Ask around any campus in Delhi and you will be offered PDFs, photocopied notes, WhatsApp forwards and lists of "important topics". Some are helpful. Many are outdated, copied from each other or full of phrases that examiners are tired of reading.
Good IELTS study material in Delhi, or anywhere else, should do three things: teach you how each part of the test works, give you realistic practice in the correct format, and show you what to do differently next time.
What good IELTS notes look like
Useful notes are short, specific and personal. They are not a printed book of sample essays to memorise.
- Strategy notes explain how to approach each question type: for example, how to decide between FALSE and NOT GIVEN, or how to write a Task 1 overview.
- Error notes record your own repeated mistakes, such as missing plurals in Listening or comma splices in Writing.
- Vocabulary notes group words by topic and show them in a real sentence, with the correct preposition and collocation.
- Topic idea notes for Speaking and Task 2: two or three real examples from your life, studies or work in Delhi that you can adapt to many questions.
- Timing notes record how long you actually take on each Reading passage or Writing task.
Our IELTS study notes and tools
IELTS Learning's Study Notes are strategy chapters for each module, written to be read in short sittings, which makes them good metro reading between Rajiv Chowk and your stop. Alongside them you get:
- Mistake Notebook: every wrong answer from your practice sets and mocks, saved automatically. This becomes your most valuable set of notes.
- English Improvement: grammar and vocabulary lessons for students who want to strengthen the basics.
- Vocabulary flashcards with spaced repetition, so words come back just before you forget them.
- Personal study plan: a schedule based on your test date and target.
- Quick Wrap: a last-minute checklist for the days before the test.
These are part of Full Access, ₹999 for 2 months, along with 15 full mocks and all the practice sets.
Free IELTS practice material you can use today
You do not need to pay anything to start. Without a card you can use:
- a complete free sample mock test, all four sections;
- free sample Listening and Reading practice sets;
- Daily Vocabulary, five new words a day;
- the Band Score Calculator;
- the Quick Wrap tips;
- our weekly IELTS tips on the blog.
Using Cambridge IELTS books alongside our tests
Many students also use the official Cambridge IELTS practice books, which contain past-format tests. They are a sensible addition, and our tests follow the same official format, so the two work well together. A simple way to combine them:
- Use Cambridge tests on paper if you will sit the paper-based IELTS, and our screens if you will sit the computer-delivered version. Practise mainly in the format you will face.
- Save a few Cambridge tests for the final weeks, so you always have fresh material for full mocks.
- Log every mistake from the books in a notebook, the same way our Mistake Notebook does automatically, and review both together.
- For Writing and Speaking, books give you questions but cannot assess your answers. Use our AI feedback or a teacher session for that.
Studying in Delhi: making material work for you
Delhi students often study in shared rooms, in a PG near North Campus or Laxmi Nagar, or at home with family around. Choose IELTS study material that fits those conditions. Short chapters and flashcards work on the go, while mocks and Listening need a quiet slot. If you share a laptop with siblings, fix your mock slots in advance so nobody needs it halfway through a test. University libraries can be a good place for timed Reading and Writing practice if home is noisy.
A weekly study routine
This routine takes about seven to eight hours a week and works around college or a job:
- Monday: one Reading set, then a Study Notes chapter on the question type you got wrong most.
- Tuesday: one Task 2 essay, timed at 40 minutes.
- Wednesday: one Listening set with headphones, then review spellings.
- Thursday: Speaking practice, two Part 2 cue cards with the timer, and read your transcripts.
- Friday: one Task 1 response, plus 15 minutes on flashcards.
- Saturday: a full mock or a Cambridge test under timed conditions.
- Sunday: clear your Mistake Notebook and plan the week ahead.
Daily Vocabulary fits into any day.
Create your free account to start with the free sample mock and Study Notes previews.