Vietnamese man, 25, achieves perfect IELTS by learning a new word every day

A 25-year-old man from northern Vietnam attained a flawless IELTS 9.0 score after a seven-year period of self-directed study, highlighting his daily word-list practice, improvement in grammar and vocabulary, and consistent refinements in speaking and writing skills.

Phung Tien Thanh, 25, a native of Vinh Phuc Province, attributes his mastery of English, honed through daily self-practice since 12th grade, learning one to two new words every day, to his flawless IELTS score.

Thanh received the results of his IELTS Listening section on the evening of December 25, after a day of anxious waiting. This was a retake for Thanh, who had scored 8.0 just a few days prior to this.

The joy Thanh felt after achieving a perfect score of 9.0 in Listening was immense. Added to her 9.0 marks in Reading and Speaking as well as 8.0 in Writing, her overall score increased from 8.5 to a perfect 9.0. The official IELTS website reports that in 2023, approximately 1% of candidates in Vietnam achieved scores of 8.5 or higher.

“I’m extremely happy and satisfied with my results,” Thanh said.

As a former student in an elite high school program for math and science, Thanh primarily focused on mathematics during his academic years. However, it wasn’t until his final year, when he filed an application to the Foreign Trade University, that he began intensifying his studies of English to meet the university’s admission prerequisites.

After being accepted into the International Business program at FTU, Thanh further explored the value of the English language, realizing its importance both academically and recreationally. In his final year at university, he started teaching English to high school students, a task he still undertakes today.

She had thought about taking the IELTS last year but really started studying for it at the beginning of this year.


Vocabulary: The key to unlocking all skills.

Thanh feels that expanding vocabulary was essential for enhancing all skills, especially Reading. Since attending university, he has adopted a habit of learning words whenever he encounters them for the second time.

Although learning just one additional word may seem minimal, mastering a vocabulary of around 100–200 words will allow you to notice a considerable improvement in your reading skills, and texts will become significantly easier to grasp, he noted.

All thanks to my diligent vocabulary practice, no reading test can intimidate me with unfamiliar words.

For listening, Thanh focused on enhancing his reflexes in understanding spoken English swiftly. He pointed out that attaining this skill requires a long period of practice to master. Thanh has consistently listened to English content that interests him across different domains, including science, history, law, general knowledge, and everyday life.

Having a solid foundation, Thanh didn’t need to acquire new knowledge in Listening and Reading during his preparation, instead, he focused on refining his test-taking strategies. For instance, he often found himself struggling with True/False/Not Given questions. To address this, he compiled collections of tricky scenarios in Excel and noted effective approaches for making the right choice.

Thanh started improving his English speaking skills by talking to himself every day on his way to school during his 12th-grade year. In his first year at university, he became friends with an international student, which helped him practice English conversation on a regular basis.

In preparation for IELTS, Thanh focused on enhancing his pronunciation, verb patterns, and speaking skills. He noted that examiners may ask extra questions beyond the provided prompts to assess his fluency and response abilities.

For writing, Thanh dedicated a significant amount of time during the 10 months of his rigorous preparation. He emphasized the significance of brainstorming, as insufficient planning frequently results in poor ideas or running out of time.

“I don’t practice writing with isolated topics but think about themes instead,” Thanh explained. For instance, when writing about transportation, he studied reports on traffic congestion worldwide and examined policies implemented by successful countries as examples.

This approach not only prepared him for exams but also broadened his knowledge. Thanh, who previously had only a vague understanding of climate change, gained a better understanding of its causes and consequences through his studies.

I derive joy from acquiring new knowledge and understanding,” he said. “Environmental studies is also a subject that holds significant appeal to me.

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