Every October there are two kinds of IELTS candidates: those who just got a disappointing result from a September test and want a rematch, and those booked for November or December who just opened their books and realized how little time is left. Whichever one you are, here is a four-week sprint plan you can copy directly. No pep talk — just what to do each day.
First, decide what a 4-week sprint should focus on
With limited time, don't spread effort evenly. The three highest-ROI activities:
- A writing feedback loop — writing is where most 6.0 candidates get stuck. You can't spot your own errors by rereading; you need concrete feedback on each draft.
- Speaking volume — the question bank rotates every January, May, and September, so October's bank is fresh and complete. Perfect time to practice against the current questions.
- Full computer-based mock tests — in the CB-IELTS era, reading and listening are about on-screen speed and time allocation, which you can only build through mocks.
Week 1: Baseline + gap analysis (Days 1-7)
- Day 1: Take one full mock test (Listening 30 min + Reading 60 min + Writing 60 min; speaking separately, ~15 min). Don't skip this — without a baseline you're guessing where to push.
- Day 2: Rank the four skills by "gap to target score." Your biggest gap is the main focus for four weeks.
- Days 3-7: 1 hour of targeted practice daily on your weakest skill, 20 minutes of maintenance on the rest. Start writing one Task 2 essay every two days, run it through AI grading immediately, and log every grammar and argument issue the feedback flags into a dedicated error notebook.
Week 2: Writing push (Days 8-14)
- One Task 2 essay plus one Task 1 report every two days, alternating.
- For Task 2, drill "opinion" and "discussion" question types — they cover most prompts.
- For Task 1, do one line graph, one bar chart, and one process diagram; prepare your paraphrased opening sentence and an overview template for each.
- After every essay, two mandatory steps: AI grading for score and sentence-level feedback → rewrite your two worst paragraphs based on that feedback. Reading feedback without rewriting is wasted writing.
Week 3: Speaking + reading speed (Days 15-21)
- Speaking: 30 minutes daily. Record fast answers to current Part 1 high-frequency questions; deliver 2 full Part 2 cue cards daily (2 minutes each); for Part 3, practice the "opinion + reason + example" structure. Then run one AI speaking-examiner session so you get realistic follow-up questions at examiner pace.
- Reading: one timed test (60 min) daily, focusing on True/False/Not Given and matching — the two classic killers. For T/F/NG: consistent with the passage = TRUE, contradicts = FALSE, not mentioned at all = NOT GIVEN. "Not mentioned" is most often mislabeled FALSE.
Week 4: Full mocks + patching (Days 22-28)
- At least 3 full mock tests, one every other day, strictly timed — including finishing both writing tasks inside 60 minutes.
- Same-day review after each mock: classify every error (unknown vocabulary? ran out of time? misread the question?), then patch the top cause the next day.
- Final 3 days: nothing new. Only your error notebook and recurring issues from writing feedback.
- Day before the test: run through current Part 1 questions, then sleep early.
How much time per day?
If you work or study full-time, 1.5-2 hours on weekdays and 3-4 hours on weekend days is realistic. Full-time preppers can double it — but remember: writing and speaking improve through the "write → get feedback → revise" loop. Piling on hours without feedback does nothing.
How to combine the tools
The plan above needs two things self-study rarely has: feedback and realistic simulation.
- AI writing grading: score plus sentence-level suggestions within about 2 minutes of submitting — no more "wrote it and nobody read it";
- AI speaking examiner: start a mock Q&A anytime, no partner needed;
- 159 computer-based practice tests: replicate the real exam interface so on-screen pacing becomes automatic.
All of these are available to try for free at aiieltsmentor.com — nothing to install, sign up and take your first mock today. Four weeks isn't long. Doing the Day 1 mock today already puts you ahead of everyone "planning to start next week."