IELTS : Reading part 1 (Academic Training) The IELTS Reading part 1, differs slightly depending on whether you are doing the ‘general’ or ‘academic’ version of the test. The instructions are the same for both. There will be 1 hour to do all 3 parts of the academic reading test. Spend approximately 20 minutes on each part. There will 40 questions in total Make sure you read all questions carefully and read through the text twice to be confident of the overall meaning. Typical materials for the IELTS reading ‘academic training’ are academic papers, writing from science journals, newspaper articles and transcripts. Try these reading questions with answers for part 1 : Click here >> READING PASSAGE 1