You have recently started work in a new company. Write a letter to an English-speaking friend. In your letter: - explain why you changed jobs - describe your new job - tell him/her your other news
Sample Response
Dear James, I hope this letter finds you and your family well. I'm sorry that I couldn't write to you for the last couple of months. I'm writing to let you know that I've recently changed my job, and I love the new job. As you know, I had been working for over a decade in the field of strategic planning for an after-sale automotive company. Unfortunately, my office shifted to another city last January. Afterwards, travelling to and from the office became quite tough due to the distance and notorious traffic congestion. I often had to spend more than 4 hours commuting, and I had barely any time for my family. Thus, I was forced to change my job. I took a job with another company in the same industry, and so far I love my job. It has better remuneration, a more suitable environment and friendly management. I hardly need 20 minutes to reach the office. Moreover, my new duties, which include managing a support team of 18 employees, is something I enjoy a lot becasue the team members are very pleasant and talented. By the way, I almost forgot, my wife would be travelling to Canada to attend a seminar and she asked me to invite you to a family party next month. Please come and let's enjoy our time together with fun and laughter. Take care. Warm wishes, Behzad
IELTS Writing Correction
- 1. Use the present perfect Original: couldn't write to you for the last couple of months Suggested revision: haven't been able to write to you for the last couple of months Why it matters: The period extends to the present, so the present perfect is appropriate.
- 2. Use the industry term Original: after-sale automotive company Suggested revision: automotive after-sales company Why it matters: After-sales is the standard compound modifier, and the adjective order is natural.
- 3. Use the correct verb Original: shifted Suggested revision: relocated Why it matters: Relocated is the natural verb for an office moving to another city.
- 4. Use neutral traffic wording Original: notorious Suggested revision: heavy Why it matters: Heavy describes the degree of congestion more naturally than notorious.
- 5. Match the friendly register Original: remuneration Suggested revision: pay Why it matters: Better pay sounds more natural in an informal letter to a friend.
- 6. Express the duration clearly Original: hardly need 20 minutes Suggested revision: need less than 20 minutes Why it matters: Hardly need does not naturally express travel time.
- 7. Use the future form Original: would Suggested revision: will Why it matters: Will be travelling describes the stated future plan directly.
- 8. Avoid repeating job Original: changed my job, and I love the new job Suggested revision: changed jobs, and I love my new role Why it matters: The revision removes repetition while preserving the friendly tone.
- 9. Use a concise commute term Original: travelling Suggested revision: commuting Why it matters: Commuting precisely describes regular travel between home and work.
- 10. Use clearer wording Original: became quite tough Suggested revision: became very difficult Why it matters: Very difficult states the practical problem more directly.
- 11. Use natural career wording Original: I took a job Suggested revision: I accepted a position Why it matters: Accepted a position is a natural expression for starting a new role.
- 12. Reduce repeated wording Original: so far I love my job Suggested revision: so far I am enjoying the role Why it matters: The revision avoids repeating love and job from the introduction.
Suggested Rewrites
- couldn't write to you for the last couple of months haven't been able to write to you for the last couple of months
- after-sale automotive company automotive after-sales company
- shifted relocated
- notorious heavy
- remuneration pay
- hardly need 20 minutes need less than 20 minutes
Why this response received Band 7.5
The letter explains the lengthy commute convincingly, describes the advantages and responsibilities of the new role, and adds relevant family news in a friendly voice. Its main limitation is that the response is presented as one block and repeats the writer’s enjoyment of the job, with a few noticeable language slips. The priority is to use one paragraph for each bullet point and edit agreement, tense, spelling, and sentence boundaries.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Achievement
All three bullet points are fully and relevantly developed, and the informal purpose and relationship with the friend remain clear throughout.
Make the final invitation slightly more specific by stating the party date or asking the friend to confirm attendance.
Coherence and Cohesion
The reasons, new role, and family news progress logically, but single-block formatting and repeated comments about loving the job reduce polish.
Give each bullet point its own paragraph and remove the repeated statement about enjoying the new job.
Lexical Resource
The response shows a good range of work, commuting, and social vocabulary, although a few choices are overly formal or imprecise for a friend.
Prefer natural phrases such as “after-sales automotive company,” “the office relocated,” “better pay,” and “a welcoming management team.”
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
A range of complex forms is used successfully, with localized errors in agreement, future tense, spelling, and comma boundaries.
Correct “my duties are,” “because,” and “my wife will be travelling,” and separate the sentence beginning “By the way” correctly.
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IELTS General Training Writing Task 1
You have recently started work in a new company. Write a letter to an English-speaking friend. In your letter:
- explain why you changed jobs
- describe your new job
- tell him/her your other news
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.