People attend colleges or universities for many different reasons (for example, new experiences, career preparation, increased knowledge etc.). Why do you think people attend colleges or universities?
Sample Response
College and university play an integral part in student's life for various personal and professional reasons. Whether it can the continuation of higher studies to get the desired job or for creating a network with friends at social level through college life, it is important to get admitted in these institutions. College life offers great experiences where people continue their career prospects upon a particular field where there is a diverse list of options to choose from. Nowadays, compared to the past, we have more options because of which there has been a surge in competition level as well. For instance, for a commerce background student, there were limited options like being chartered accountant or company secretary etc. Whereas today we have lot more options including these to sustain at fast pace world. As students, we make ourselves much more matured through this phase of life. Students at their college level want to experience a fun part as well like making new friends, bunking classes, pulling each other’s leg and etc. It is a kind of life which people want to experience before they get into the adult phase of their life. For example, most students tend to make their girlfriends at the college. Whether it can be a vogue or a kind of peer pressure to have one as they cannot resist themselves when they see others are having one. Not only this, people even get jealous of their pals when they find a beautiful woman with someone else and wish they could also have one. Thirdly, college life brings us a plethora of new experiences during this phase of life. It is during this period we learn how to balance our life both on professional and personal front as well. We also learn how to accept our failures and work on it. In addition to this, we try to find a hidden talent in terms of career perspective as well. To sum up, college life plays a significant role towards the building up of next phase of life. As it focuses on career prospects, increased knowledge and various factors to look on, it is important for each individual to spend time in a college or university.
IELTS Writing Correction
- 1. Use plural nouns Original: College and university Suggested revision: Colleges and universities Why it matters: Plural forms are needed when referring to these institutions generally.
- 2. Fix plural possession Original: student's life Suggested revision: students' lives Why it matters: The sentence refers generally to multiple students and their lives.
- 3. Correct the collocation Original: continue their career prospects upon Suggested revision: pursue careers in Why it matters: People pursue careers in a field; they do not continue prospects upon one.
- 4. Natural noun phrase Original: competition level Suggested revision: level of competition Why it matters: This is the more idiomatic way to describe the degree of competition.
- 5. Clarify the modifier Original: a commerce background student Suggested revision: a student with a commerce background Why it matters: The prepositional structure expresses the student's background clearly.
- 6. Add article and form Original: being chartered accountant Suggested revision: becoming a chartered accountant Why it matters: The profession needs an article, and becoming correctly describes a career option.
- 7. Use adjective form Original: matured Suggested revision: mature Why it matters: Mature is the adjective needed after make, while matured is a participle.
- 8. Use natural phrasing Original: experience a fun part as well like Suggested revision: enjoy social experiences such as Why it matters: The revision introduces the examples with a clear and idiomatic expression.
- 9. Fix idiom and ending Original: pulling each other’s leg and etc. Suggested revision: pulling one another's legs Why it matters: The plural idiom fits multiple students, and et cetera should not follow and.
- 10. Use concise wording Original: adult phase of their life Suggested revision: adulthood Why it matters: Adulthood expresses this life stage directly and naturally.
- 11. Correct the collocation Original: make their girlfriends Suggested revision: find girlfriends Why it matters: English uses find rather than make when referring to entering a relationship.
- 12. Remove the article Original: at the college Suggested revision: at college Why it matters: No article is used when college refers generally to the stage or institution attended.
Suggested Rewrites
- College and university Colleges and universities
- student's life students' lives
- continue their career prospects upon pursue careers in
- competition level level of competition
- a commerce background student a student with a commerce background
- being chartered accountant becoming a chartered accountant
Why this response received Band 5.5
The response identifies several valid reasons for university attendance, including career preparation, social experience, maturity, and life skills, and it shows a reasonably broad vocabulary. Its main weakness is uneven relevance and development: the extended discussion of girlfriends and jealousy distracts from the task, while the single-paragraph presentation and frequent grammatical errors reduce clarity. Organise each major reason into a focused paragraph and support it with a concise, relevant example.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Response
Several relevant reasons are identified and partly explained, but development is uneven and a substantial social example becomes tangential.
Select two or three central reasons and develop each with a directly relevant explanation and credible example.
Coherence and Cohesion
The main topics can be followed, but the single long paragraph, abrupt shifts, and weak sequencing undermine overall progression.
Separate the introduction, each main reason, and the conclusion into distinct paragraphs with clear topic sentences.
Lexical Resource
The response attempts a reasonably broad vocabulary, but frequent inaccurate collocations and word-form choices limit precision and naturalness.
Use familiar academic expressions accurately and revise combinations such as career prospects in a field and a fast-paced world.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
Some complex structures are attempted, but frequent errors with articles, agreement, prepositions, and clause formation reduce control.
Build shorter complete sentences first, then check each clause for a clear subject, finite verb, and correct agreement.
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IELTS Writing Task 2
People attend colleges or universities for many different reasons (for example, new experiences, career preparation, increased knowledge etc.). Why do you think people attend colleges or universities?
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.