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Build your IELTS Readiness Pack

The capstone project for IELTS Preparation — a free Business course. Pass it and you earn a certificate anyone can verify.

Start the course free Download the project workbook

The project unlocks once you complete the lessons. The workbook is free to download now so you can see exactly what is expected.

What you will submit

One pasted submission with clear headings containing: your route and target bands with the official source and date checked, diagnostic raw scores plus a five-item error log, your full Task 1 and Task 2 with word counts, a working link to your Speaking Part 2 recording with a five-sentence transcript and three targets, your four-criterion self-assessment with evidence quoted from your own essay, and a dated five-week study plan ending in a booking window with the confirmed fee.

What to do, step by step

  1. Confirm your route and test type first. Write two or three sentences naming what you are preparing for (a specific university course, a work registration body, or a PR route), whether it needs Academic or General Training, and whether it must be IELTS for UKVI. State the target band per skill and name the official page you checked it on (for example the university's entry-requirements page or the immigration authority's site) with the date you checked it.
  2. Sit a timed diagnostic. Using a free official practice test from ielts.org or the British Council 'Take IELTS' pages, complete one full Listening test and one full Reading test of the correct type, back to back, phone off, audio played once with no pausing, and Reading strictly within 60 minutes. Mark yourself honestly and report both raw scores out of 40, your indicative bands (state that these are indicative only), plus a short error log of at least five wrong answers with the cause of each (didn't hear it, spelling, distractor, word-limit rule broken, ran out of time, reasoned from outside knowledge).
  3. Write both Writing tasks under exam timing, in the mode you will sit (handwritten and then typed up, or typed if computer-delivered). Task 1: 20 minutes, at least 150 words — an Academic chart or process description if you are taking Academic, or a letter answering all three bullet points if you are taking General Training. Task 2: 40 minutes, at least 250 words, on any real past-style question. Paste both in full and state the word count of each.
  4. Record a Speaking Part 2. Pick a real cue card, take exactly one minute of notes, then speak for one to two minutes into your phone recorder. Upload the file to Google Drive (or any free host), set the link to 'anyone with the link can view', and paste the link. Also transcribe your first five sentences word for word and list three specific pronunciation or fluency targets you heard in yourself (for example: dropped -ed endings, stalled for three seconds after each question, 'th' becoming 'd').
  5. Self-mark your Task 2 essay against the four public band descriptors (free PDF on ielts.org): Task Response, Coherence and Cohesion, Lexical Resource, and Grammatical Range and Accuracy. Give a band for each and one sentence of concrete evidence quoted from your own essay for each score — no vague praise.
  6. Build a five-week study plan as a simple dated table: week, date range, the four sessions in that week, and what each session covers. It must put the most hours into your weakest paper from the diagnostic, include at least two full timed mocks with dates, and end with your intended test-booking window plus the fee you confirmed on the official site and the date you checked it.

Files to work with

Project workbook (fill in, then submit)The whole brief, an evidence checklist, the grading rubric as a self-check and the link-sharing steps in one file. Opens in Word, Google Docs or WPS.Word · 7 KB

How it is graded

CriterionWeight
Correct test type and target bands identified for a real, named route, with the official source and date checked; diagnostic sat under genuine timed conditions with honest raw scores reported and bands labelled as indicative20%
Task 1 meets the word count and the requirements of its type (Academic: paraphrased intro, an 'Overall' overview, grouped data with figures, no reasons or opinions; General Training: correct register, all three bullets covered, matching greeting and sign-off)25%
Task 2 answers the exact question asked, holds a clear position, uses four organised paragraphs with developed ideas and specific examples, and meets the 250-word minimum25%
Speaking link works and shows a 1-2 minute unbroken Part 2 answer covering the cue-card bullets, with an accurate five-sentence transcript and three specific, self-observed pronunciation or fluency targets15%
Self-assessment quotes concrete evidence from the learner's own writing for each of the four criteria, and the five-week plan is dated, realistic in hours, includes two mocks, and weights time toward the weakest paper15%

You need 65% overall to pass. A failed submission comes back with feedback and can be revised and resubmitted.

Before you submit: make your link public

If your work lives in Google Drive or Google Docs, open Share → General access and change “Restricted” to “Anyone with the link” (Viewer). Then paste the link into a private browser window: if it opens without sign-in, you are ready. A private link cannot be graded — it is the single most common reason a good project fails.

Frequently asked questions

Do I have to finish IELTS Preparation before submitting the project?

Yes. The submission screen opens once every lesson in IELTS Preparation is marked complete. The lessons are where the methods, the Nigerian context and the worked examples the project depends on are taught.

How is the project graded?

An examiner scores each rubric criterion from 0 to 100 and weights them as shown on this page; you need 65% overall to pass. Most submissions are graded within minutes and you get written feedback on what was strong and what to improve.

Can I resubmit if I fail?

Yes. A failed project comes back with feedback; revise the weak parts and resubmit. A passed project is final — the certificate is issued and cannot be re-rolled.

What do I actually submit?

A write-up of what you did (under 5,000 characters). You can mention a public link to supporting files in the write-up. The free project workbook on this page walks you through all 6 steps.

Is the certificate real?

Yes. Passing this project issues a certificate with a unique verification code. Anyone — an employer, a client, a school — can open the verification page and see that the certificate is genuine and which project earned it.

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