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In IELTS Speaking the topic of studying can come up in a lot of areas and different questions. For example, IELTS Speaking questions about school, jobs, productivity, and so on.
In this topic, you will learn how to talk about your study techniques and school as well as a number of idioms related to this topic.
Table of Contents
IELTS Speaking vocabulary: Studying
Talking about your studies is such an important topic in IELTS. Not only in the introduction where they ask “Do you work or are you a student?”, but also for other closely related topics such as:
- Your school
- A teacher you know
- Skills you have learned
- Concentration
- Education
- A hobby
Here are some useful phrases to talk about your studies in IELTS Speaking
I’m a student at university
I’m a student at the university of London
To talk about your studies you can use either present simple or present continuous
I study French
I am studying French
In addition, you can use the present perfect continuous to say how long you have studied.
I’ve been studying for 2 months
Notice we use FOR to describe a period of time
I’ve been studying since July
Notice we use SINCE to describe a point in time
Finally, you can develop your answer a little by adding which year you are in.
I’m in my first / second / final year
Next, we can talk about whether you like your studies and your ability. You should develop your answer a little and say why you like it (or not)
I like it
because I think
it’s going to be really useful
for my future career
I don’t like it too much
mainly because the teacher we have
is a bit boring
he doesn’t engage us at all
I am good at French
I’m not bad at French
I am bad at Italian
IELTS Speaking vocabulary: Commonly confused words
Moving on, here are three words that are commonly confused when talking about studying at school:
- To memorise
- To remember
- To remind
To memorise = to learn by heart
I am good at memorising names
I have a good memory for names
To remember = to recall
I must remember to call my sister later
I can’t remember your name
To remind (v.) someone to do something = to tell someone not to forget something.
A reminder (n.)
I need to remind you to pick me up at 4pm tomorrow.
I always have to remind my students to hand in their homework on time.
These are not the only group of words that are often confused. Here is another set of words, that commonly get misused.
- To take / sit an exam – students take (=do) exams
- To pass an exam = to do well in an exam (=not fail)
- To give an exam = a teacher gives an exam to the students
For example,
I took my IELTS exam yesterday
I passed my IELTS exam 2 weeks ago, I am so happy!
Finally, a nice word to use to talk about studying is
To cram for an exam = to study hard in a short space of time
At school I used to cram for most of my exams. I was always studying at the last minute
IELTS Speaking vocabulary: Phrasal verbs
Phrasal verbs are extremely common in spoken English, and they can help show of your knowledge and use of vocabulary in the IELTS Speaking test.
l verbs are verbs that are followed by a preposition or an adverb.
For example:
To get up
I get up at 7am in the morning
Many phrasal verbs can be idiomatic, so they have a different meaning than the individual words.
For example:
To look up = to look to the sky
But it can be idiomatic, meaning ‘trying to find a word in a dictionary’.
I looked up a new word in the dictionary
Find out more about phrasal verbs here
https://www.phrasalverbdemon.com/
Here are some less common phrasal verbs you can use to talk about studying.
To buckle down = to do a task with determination
I’ve been procrastinating (=be lazy), but now it’s time for me to buckle down and start studying seriously
I need to buckle down for IELTS
To pick up something new = to learn informally
Where did you learn to cook so well?
I picked it up by watching Youtube videos.
To brush up on = to improve an existing knowledge or skill
I haven’t spoken French for years
I really need
to brush up on it
I need to
brush up on
my Italian
To pore over = To study (books, documents) with a lot of attention
I have been poring over my French course book lately
I have been poring over these reports for my boss.
IELTS listening task: Schools and study
Guess whether these are true or false:
- Keith loved sitting quietly at his desk in school
- He found it tricky to learn things by heart
- He preferred biology to foreign languages
- He would burn the midnight oil, cramming before most exams
- He passed all exams with flying colours.
Now listen and check your guesses.
Let me tell you about my studies at school. (click the arrow below to read the transcription)
I also found it hard to memorise dates, figures and names. The teacher never gave us any good learning strategies. They would just say, here is your list of 20 facts, now go and learn them by heart. However, my academic performance improved, the older I got. When I turned 11, I went to a grammar school, that’s a school that is partly subsidised by the government and takes in students based on their ability. I was especially good at the arts but weaker at sciences. The language teacher forbade us from speaking English in the French class. It was so much fun. Like being a spy, talking in code! Whenever I sat an exam, I did pretty well. I didn’t use to cram too much, I just prepared well in advance. Some students spent hours poring over their books the night before an exam. I never understood that. What was the point? What a terrible way to spend the evening before an exam. Overall, my results were solid, but I never really passed my exams with flying colours (=to pass with a very good score). That said, I did well enough and got into university. I was thrilled to bits. And that is where my education really took off! (=to get better).
He found it tricky to learn things by heart T He preferred biology to foreign languages F He would burn the midnight oil, cramming before most exams F He passed all exams with flying colours F
IELTS Speaking discussion: Study techniques
Here are three study techniques you may want to research and learn more about. These are backed by research and ones that I also personally use.
Mind mapping
Spaced practice
https://www.learningscientists.org/blog/2016/7/21-1
Cornell technique
https://thinkinsights.net/consulting/cornell-method-great-notes/
You can also find out about more proven ways to study via these two links:
https://www.thebestcolleges.org/17-scientifically-proven-ways-to-study-better-this-year/
https://www.edutopia.org/article/5-research-backed-studying-techniques
IELTS Speaking idioms about studying
Run-of-the-mill (adj.) = ordinary, normal
I was a run-of-the-mill student = a normal, average student.
To burn the midnight oil = stay up late at night to study
I used to burn the midnight oil the night before an important exam at university.
To pass with flying colours = to pass with a very good score / mark / grade
I did so well in my driving test, I passed with flying colours!
To be a breeze = to be easy
My biology exam was a breeze, I knew all the answers.
To be a walk in the park = to be easy
My IELTS test was not a walk in the park.
To scrape a pass = to only just pass (almost fail, but actually pass)
The pass mark was 70%, I got 71%, I just managed to scraped a pass.
To go blank = when you can’t think of anything to say
In the middle of my interview, I went blank. What a disaster!
To rack your brains = to try and think of something
I don’t know what to put in my presentation tomorrow, I am racking my brains, but can’t come up with any ideas.
More Free Lessons
If you liked this lesson, leave a comment below!
There are more lessons you can follow in the links below too.
HISTORY in IELTS Speaking. Vocabulary and idioms you need to describe your historical events and influential people.
JOBS in IELTS Speaking. Vocabulary you need to answer questions in Part 1, 2 and 3 for the topic of jobs.
FRIENDS in IELTS Speaking. Listening practice about friends and essential vocabulary to talk about your friends.
