What kinds of materials should I read to prepare for the IELTS exam?

With the competition for work here in the Philippines, most professionals seek for better employment overseas. There are thousands of job vacancies in English speaking countries that provide better salary packages and a much brighter career growth. With these presented, a lot of Filipinos start preparing their requirements to find work in countries like Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and even in the United States of America.


Since these are English speaking countries, it is just natural for these future employers to seek candidates who are good at English – people who can be very productive and efficient at work. Having this said, most companies and institutions require an English proficiency examination certificate like the IELTS or the International English Language Testing System examination. Because it is considered as a major requirement, applicants start preparing for the exam. What kind of materials should people be reading for the IELTS?


For starters, candidates for the examination need to know what the IELTS is. In knowing the test, it involves understanding the different tasks in each section. Further, candidates have to understand the two different kinds of modules for the test: the Academic and the General Training. The reading and writing sections of the exam are both different in these modules; hence, information on what type of test to be taken is necessary.

Reading materials for the IELTS helps one prepare for the test. Here are reading materials candidates can start reading:


• Newspapers are a very good source of reading material. There are lot of stories – both fiction and nonfiction – to be read. The vocabulary used in newspaper articles is also very helpful in broadening one’s word bank.

• Magazines are not only entertaining but informative as well. Most magazine articles are not written in a very formal tone. Some reading passages in the IELTS reading are from magazine articles; hence, knowing how the flow of these articles looks like is a good advantage.

• Journals can be pretty boring but very helpful for the IELTS. There are thousands of journals available online. Choose some to read on and be familiar with how information is presented in the journals.

• Advertisements may look unimportant but there are passages from the IELTS that are from real advertisements in newspapers. Study how details are presented in these advertisements. They can be very tricky actually with what kind of product or service certain advertising is offering.

• Online blogs are good reads. You can find a lot of information and entertaining stuff to get involved in.


Though reading seems a very boring activity, it is a good way in learning vocabulary and different expressions for the IELTS test. Remember that learning is not easy; sometimes, you have to do the most tedious stuff to gain knowledge.

For more IELTS tips: www.ieltsexamstips.com