After Part 1 of the oral exam (find a list of questions here ), Part 2 of the IELTS exam requires candidates to talk for about two minutes on a topic given by the examiner.  This blog post will provide you with a series of questions that could be asked at this stage of the test.  Make sure you've read IELTS Speaking:The Basics so your answers will make it possible for you to score higher.  After the questions, read some tips on how to answer your question for Part 2.

Applying for a job in any field either for the first time or the umpteenth time is always nerve-wracking. Stepping inside that office, with that assessor sitting across a desk or waiting comfortably in an armchair while you've been on tenterhooks since the call was made to appear for the interview, is a crucial moment for any applicant and like any other crucial moment, preparation is required to make those tenterhooks seem less painful. Preparing Getting ready for a job interview means four things:

D o You Know the IELTS Marking Criteria for the Writing Sectio n? When I first started working 20 or so years ago, it was teaching high school graduates who were applying through UCAS to attend a university in Britain and whose mother tongue wasn't English . The IELTS, therefore, was a 'must' for them.  Through my experience dealing with both year-long students, with whom ample time preparing was available, and intensive course candidates who needed to sit the exam in a few weeks time, I learned that writing was the area most were having trouble coming to grips with. This, apparently, seems to be the case with the majority of IELTS candidates around the world as well, as I've been seeing a lot of discussion on forums, social media groups and other online communities in general about the writing section on the IELTS exam lately . The overwhelming question is "How do they [the examiners] grade the writing?" and the usual post is one where an essay...

I've often found that students aren't taught how to write about literary texts. They attend a Literature course either in school or university, but their work is devoid of that little extra something that would make it commendable.  The reason for this is because either they haven't been told what work of this nature requires or because they haven't paid close attention to what their teachers or professors have expressly stated they base marks on.  Whatever the case may be, the following pointers should prove useful. If you're a student, make a checklist of the notes hereinafter and check them off when you reread your finished assignment. If you're a teacher, you can make a handout and go over the points in class at the beginning of the academic year.  Knowing what is expected of you will make your writing more to the point, show your knowledge of