Are you taking the IELTS exam soon? Writing is an important aspect of the test: be sure you know these writing tips for the IELTS essay.

Writing Tips for the IELTS Essay

Choose a position, and stick with it

In the IELTS essay, you are typically asked to choose a position. Sometimes, it is very easy for you to choose a side and argue your opinion; other times, perhaps you do not feel strongly either way. It is OK to agree, to disagree, or to not be able to decide because you see valid points with an affirmative and negative position. Regardless of what you choose, do not begin writing until you have decided your opinion. The rest of your paper will be spent arguing one way or another, and it is incredibly important that you establish what you believe before you begin the writing process.

While we are on the subject of beginning the writing process: don’t forget to outline! Students often think that outlining is a waste of time, but in fact, outlining saves time. Outlining a paper allows you to see the strengths and weaknesses of your argument before you begin writing, which ensures that you will have a strong and clearly-organized paper.

Write a clear thesis

The next step is to decide how to express your opinion in one clearly defined sentence (your thesis). The thesis should be clear, should include all parts of your argument, and should not include the original words from the prompt.

Take a look at the following prompt, and then look at the examples of strong and weak thesis statements:

Prompt: “The most important lessons are learned outside of the classroom.” To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement?

Thesis 1: I think that the most important lessons are learned outside of the classroom because that is where we learn about life and not about books.

Thesis 2: The learning process outside of an academic setting provides us with life lessons that cannot be learned from textbooks, such as how to be a good friend and listener, how to humbly accept defeat in competitive situations, and how to master skills that improve our lives and make us more well-rounded individuals.

Organize your essay into paragraphs

All IELTS essays should have an introduction, a body, and a conclusion. The body should be organized into several paragraphs: depending on the essay and how you organize your argument, the body typically includes two or three paragraphs.

Use topic sentences and supporting details

Each paragraph should include a clear topic sentence. The topic sentence should tell the reader exactly what your argument for the paragraph is: try to imagine that the reader can read only this sentence and know what the paragraph will include. As a general rule, place the topic sentence at the beginning of the paragraph.

Supporting details do exactly what their name says: they support! All supporting details should be ideas which give weight to the topic sentence. Look at the example below of a body paragraph:

Prompt: “The most important lessons are learned outside of the classroom.” To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement?

Thesis 2: The learning process outside of an academic setting provides us with life lessons that cannot be learned from textbooks, such as how to be a good friend and listener, how to humbly accept defeat in competitive situations, and how to master skills that improve our lives and make us more well-rounded individuals.

Body Paragraph: One of the most important lessons in life which is typically learned outside of the classroom is how to win and lose, and sports provide excellent opportunities to experience both. Through team sports, we learn how to work with a team toward a common goal; in both team sports and individual sports, like singles tennis, we learn to be accountable for our actions. In all sports, we learn that life is full of victories and defeats: each game teaches us how to accept winning and losing with grace. I experienced this at a young age: although I was always a great student in the classroom and always received excellent marks, I finally learned defeat when I joined a local soccer team. Suddenly, I was not the “best,” which I was accustomed to being when in the classroom: on the field, I was not the fastest, the most skilled, or the most confident. I had to learn to accept my own personal “defeat” while on the field; additionally, I had to learn to accept the winning and losing that comes along with being on a competitive team. Although I of course experienced failures in the academic classroom, this experience on the soccer field was vital in understanding the concept of not being the best. It also taught me how to simply enjoy an action without focusing on the win, but on the action of being on a team.

Don’t forget linking words

The example paragraph above has many examples of linking words that add style to the paragraph. Below, they are in bold.

One of the most important lessons in life which is typically learned outside of the classroom is how to win and lose, and sports provide excellent opportunities to experience both. Through team sports, we learn how to work with a team toward a common goal; in both team sports and individual sports, like singles tennis, we learn to be accountable for our actions. In all sports, we learn that life is full of victories and defeats: each game teaches us how to accept winning and losing with grace. I experienced this at a young age: although I was always a great student in the classroom and always received excellent marks, I finally learned defeat when I joined a local soccer team. Suddenly, I was not the “best,” which I was accustomed to being when in the classroom: on the field, I was not the fastest, the most skilled, or the most confident. I had to learn to accept my own personal “defeat” while on the field; additionally, I had to learn to accept the winning and losing that comes along with being on a competitive team. While I of course experienced failures in the academic classroom, this experience on the soccer field was vital in understanding the concept of not being the best. It also taught me how to simply enjoy an action without focusing on the win, but on the action of being on a team.

Know what the test graders are looking for

IELTS scorers are looking the following:

Task Achievement. Did you answer all parts of the prompt? Effectively? Remember that a common mistake students make is getting off track and writing about things which are not included in the prompt. Proper outlining will help you avoid this problem. In addition, did you clearly develop your response by using examples and supporting details?
Coherence and Cohesion. Is your essay organized into paragraphs? Does the essay flow and make sense?
Lexical Resource. Are you using linking words, and appropriate vocabulary? Is your spelling correct? Is your tone formal, and have you avoided using contractions?
Grammatical Range and Accuracy. Are your sentences grammatically correct, and do you use varied and more complicated sentence structures?

Writing Tips for the IELTS Essay

CISL San Diego is proud to offer intensive classes for students planning to take the IELTS examination. The exam, often called the UK equivalent of the TOEFL exam, is quickly becoming a popular test in the United States. Many universities accept an IELTS score with foreign student applications (for many years, most universities only accepted the TOEFL) and many companies also rely upon the IELTS score for an indicator of the applicant’s English abilities.

For more information on the IELTS test, check out these articles:

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