The charts below show the main reasons for study among students of different age groups and the amount of support they received from employers.
Sample Response
The bar chart delineates the percentage of studentsratio of pupils who continue their education for career advancement or out of personal interestfor the benefit of their career and from passion based on their age groups. The second bar chartline graph reveals the percentage of students receiving supportthe ratio of support those students get from their employerscompanies as a form of financial support and time off. Overall, young students’ main reason for studyingmain focus for education is career advancementtheir job while it is mainly personal interestmostly passion when they grow older.
To illustrate, eight out of teneight of ten people under 26 years old continue their educationcontinue education for their career. Only 10% of them study for personal interestdo it from passion. Interestingly, the older the studentsthe higher the age, the more eager they become to study for personal interest, not for professional reasons. Seven out of ten people who are at least 50 years old study for interest. Finally, these two factors equally motivate people aged 40–49people from 40-49 years old to further their learning.
The second chartdiagram shows that employees under 30young employees who are less than 30 years old receive more supportget more backing from their employers while workers aged 30–39 receive the least supportthe least support is expected for workers between 30 to 39 years old. However, it is interesting to notice that employers are more supportive ofmore sympathetic to workers over 40 years old than they are to employees in their thirties.
Why this response received Band 6.5
The response is clearly organised and accurately captures the strong age-related reversal in reasons for study. Its main limitation is incomplete coverage of employer support: the trend is described broadly, but no figures are supplied and the overall summary ignores this chart. Prioritise a fuller overview of both visuals and support the second chart's key pattern with selected percentages, while refining several imprecise word choices.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Achievement
A clear overview and accurate comparisons cover the study-reasons chart well, but employer support receives only a general trend description without supporting figures.
Include the fall and partial recovery in employer support in the overview and substantiate it with selected percentages such as about 65%, 35%, and 45%.
Coherence and Cohesion
The response progresses logically from an overview to the two visuals, with clear paragraphing and generally natural connections.
Make the second body paragraph more fully developed so the two charts receive balanced and equally coherent coverage.
Lexical Resource
Vocabulary is varied and generally clear, although choices such as pupils, ratio, from passion, and sympathetic are imprecise for the data.
Use conventional chart language such as students, percentage, personal interest, and employer support to improve precision and formality.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
A good range of complex structures is used with mostly accurate control, and the few errors do not impede meaning.
Refine age-range and comparison constructions, for example people aged 40 to 49 and workers aged 30 to 39.
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IELTS Academic Writing Task 1
The charts below show the main reasons for study among students of different age groups and the amount of support they received from employers.
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.