Universities should accept equal numbers of male and female students in every subject. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
Sample Response
In my opinion, men and women should have the same educational opportunities. However, I do not agree with the idea of accepting equal proportions of each gender in every university subject.
Having the same number of men and women on all degree courses is simply unrealistic. Student numbers on any course depend on the applications that the institution receives. If a university decided to fill courses with equal numbers of males and females, it would need enough applicants of each gender. In reality, many courses are more popular with one gender than the other, and it would not be practical to aim for equal proportions. For example, nursing courses tend to attract more female applicants, and it would be difficult to fill these courses if fifty per cent of the places needed to go to males.
Apart from the practical concerns expressed above, I also believe that it would be unfair to base admission to university courses on gender. Universities should continue to select the best candidates for each course according to their qualifications. In this way, both men and women have the same opportunities, and applicants know that they will be successful if they work hard to achieve good grades at school. If a female student is the best candidate for a place on a course, it is surely wrong to reject her in favor of a male student with lower grades or fewer qualifications.
In conclusion, the selection of university students should be based on merit, and it would be both impractical and unfair to change to a selection procedure based on gender.
IELTS Writing Correction
- 1. Use concise wording Original: the same educational opportunities Suggested revision: equal educational opportunities Why it matters: The replacement expresses equal access more directly and precisely.
- 2. Clarify admissions wording Original: accepting equal proportions of each gender Suggested revision: admitting equal proportions of men and women Why it matters: Universities admit students, so this verb makes the intended policy clearer.
- 3. Improve preposition choice Original: on Suggested revision: across Why it matters: Across is more natural when referring collectively to the full range of courses.
- 4. Use precise collocation Original: fill courses with equal numbers Suggested revision: enrol equal numbers on courses Why it matters: Enrol describes the university action more precisely than fill in this context.
- 5. Focus on applicants Original: more popular with one gender than the other Suggested revision: more attractive to applicants of one gender than the other Why it matters: This wording connects course popularity directly to the applicant imbalance being discussed.
- 6. Use formal admissions language Original: fifty per cent of the places needed to go to males Suggested revision: fifty per cent of the places had to be allocated to male applicants Why it matters: Allocated to male applicants is more precise and formal than places going to males.
- 7. Strengthen the transition Original: Apart from the practical concerns expressed above Suggested revision: Beyond these practical concerns Why it matters: The shorter transition links the new fairness argument directly to the preceding paragraph.
- 8. Clarify the decision Original: base admission to university courses on gender Suggested revision: base university admissions decisions on gender Why it matters: Admissions decisions names the selection process more precisely.
- 9. Clarify the reference Original: In this way, both men and women Suggested revision: By selecting candidates on merit, both men and women Why it matters: The explicit reference makes the connection to the preceding selection principle immediately clear.
- 10. Specify the outcome Original: they will be successful if they work hard Suggested revision: their applications will succeed if they work hard Why it matters: Naming the applications avoids the vague meaning of successful.
- 11. Use direct phrasing Original: change to a selection procedure based on gender Suggested revision: adopt a selection procedure based on gender Why it matters: Adopt states the proposed institutional change more directly.
- 12. Sentence rewrite Original: Student numbers on any course depend on the applications that the institution receives. Suggested revision: The gender balance on any course depends on the composition of the applications an institution receives. Why it matters: The rewrite identifies the relevant issue as gender balance rather than the total number of students.
Suggested Rewrites
- the same educational opportunities equal educational opportunities
- accepting equal proportions of each gender admitting equal proportions of men and women
- on across
- fill courses with equal numbers enrol equal numbers on courses
- more popular with one gender than the other more attractive to applicants of one gender than the other
- fifty per cent of the places needed to go to males fifty per cent of the places had to be allocated to male applicants
Why this response received Band 9.0
The response presents a clear, fully sustained position and develops two convincing reasons with relevant explanation and a well-chosen example. Its main limitation is that the practical argument could acknowledge more explicitly how admissions policies might operate when applicant pools are uneven, although this does not weaken the central case. The highest-priority refinement is to add one brief qualification that anticipates a plausible counterargument and further strengthens the reasoning.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Response
The position is explicit throughout, and both the practical and fairness arguments are fully developed with relevant support.
Add a concise qualification about possible institutional responses to uneven applicant pools to make the case even more nuanced.
Coherence and Cohesion
The essay progresses seamlessly from the position to two distinct supporting arguments and a precise conclusion.
Maintain this controlled progression while varying the opening of supporting paragraphs in future responses.
Lexical Resource
Vocabulary is broad, precise, and natural, with effective topic-specific choices such as qualifications, applicants, and selection procedure.
Continue refining semantic precision by distinguishing equal access, equal opportunity, and equal representation where useful.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
A wide range of complex structures is used accurately and flexibly throughout the response.
Preserve this level of control while experimenting with occasional concise sentence structures for added rhetorical contrast.
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IELTS Writing Task 2
Universities should accept equal numbers of male and female students in every subject. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.