Ielts Writing Task 2: Argument Essay with Sample Answer

Task 2 Question

It is sometimes argued that too many students go to university, while others claim that a university education should be a universal right.

Discuss both sides of the argument and give your own opinion.

Model Answer

In some advanced countries, it is not unusual for more than 50% of young adults to attend college or university. Critics, however, claim that many university courses are worthless and young people would be better off gaining skills in the workplace. In this essay, I will examine both sides of this argument and try to reach a conclusion.

There are several reasons why university has become a popular choice for young people. First, growing prosperity in many parts of the world has increased the number of families with money to invest in their children’s future. At the same time, falling birthrates mean that one- or two-child families have become common, increasing the level of investment in each child. It is hardly surprising, therefore, that young people are willing to let their families support them until the age of 21 or 22. Furthermore, millions of new jobs have been created in knowledge industries, and these jobs are typically open only to university graduates.

However, it often appears that graduates end up in occupations unrelated to their university studies. It is not uncommon for an English literature major to end up working in sales, or an engineering graduate to retrain as a teacher, for example. Some critics have suggested that young people are just delaying their entry into the workplace, rather than developing professional skills. A more serious problem is that the high cost of a university education will mean that many families are reluctant to have more than one child, exacerbating the falling birthrates in certain countries.

In conclusion, while it can be argued that too much emphasis is placed on a university education, my own opinion is that the university years are a crucial time for personal development. If people enter the workplace aged 18, their future options may be severely restricted. Attending university allows them time to learn more about themselves and make a more appropriate choice of career.

Informal & Formal Vocabulary for ielts

The informal words below are best avoided in Academic IELTS. The neutral words are ‘fine’ for the Speaking module, but you really should learn the formal equivalents if you want to score highly in the Academic Writing module.

Informal (Avoid)	Neutral (Spoken)	Formal (Written)
Stuff	Things	Items, Possessions
Folks	Family	Relatives
Kids (younger)	Babies, Children	Infants, Offspring
Kids (older)	Teenagers	Adolescents, Youths
Guy	Man	Male
Old people	Elderly people	Senior citizens, Retirees
-	Boss, Manager	Supervisor, Superior
Cops	Police	Law enforcement
Crooks	Criminals	Offenders, Lawbreakers
OK, Alright	Fine	Acceptable, Satisfactory
Great, Awesome	Good	Preferable, Desirable
Rubbish, Useless	Bad, Poor	Unsatisfactory, Unacceptable
-	Nice, Polite	Considerate, Agreeable
-	Kind, Friendly	Sociable, Neighbourly
Nasty, Cheeky (person)	Rude, Impolite	Abusive, Disagreeable
Stupid, Crazy, Dumb (idea)	-	Misguided, Questionable
Stupid, Crazy, Dumb (person)	-	Misguided, Mistaken
-	Happy (person)	Satisfied, Delighted
-	Happy (situation)	Satisfying, Delightful
-	Sad (person)	Regretful, Distressed
-	Sad (situation)	Regrettable, Distressing
Sick of, Fed up with	Tired of	Dissatisfied with
-	Poor (country)	Developing, Poverty-stricken
-	Poor (person)	In poverty, Underprivileged
-	Rich (country)	Wealthy, Developed
-	Rich (person)	Wealthy, Privileged

Contractions such as don’t are fine in IELTS Speaking but it is better to use do not in the Academic Writing module. Casual forms such as gonna and dunno should only ever be used in the Speaking test and NEVER in Writing.