IELTS Speaking : Job
Written by Rad Danesh
Sunday, 27 May 2007
Have a look at the phrases and sentences below and practise using-them with a partner. Then with the help of your partner answer the follow-up questions to test yourself. Remember that these questions are only sample questions designed to promote your spoken English ability in those areas and facilitate the task and may not necessarily be the questions being asked in the actual test.
What you do
1. I'm a / an (+ job).
e.g. a nurse / an accountant / a builder
2. I work in (+ place or general area).
e.g. a hospital / an office marketing / social
3. I work for (+ name / place of the company).
e.g. Union Bank / IBM / Fiat / an international bank
What your job involves
4. I'm in charge of
e.g. a big company
5. I'm responsible for
e.g. some workers in that department
6. I have to deal with
e.g. any complaints / overseas clients, mainly
7. I run
e.g. the company / a restaurant
8. I manage
e.g. a shop in downtown
Daily duties / routines
9. I have to go / attend (fml)
e.g. (to) a lot of meetings / conferences
10. I visit / see / meet
e.g. patients / clients
11. I advise
e.g. people / clients and give them help...
12. It involves
e.g. writing letters / filling in forms / doing a lot of paperwork / using computers a lot of the time
Getting a jop
13. It's not easy to get / find work
e.g. in big cities / round these parts
14. I'd love to do
e.g. marketing / this kind of work
15. It's difficult to make a living as a / an
e.g. freelance writer
16. I've been offered a job
e.g. in that company / in London
17. I've applied for a job
e.g. in a local company / in the accounts department
Working hours
18. I have a nine-to-five job / I work nine-to-five
(regular working hours in Britain)
19. I do / work shift work.
(nights one week, days next)
20. I am on flexi-time.
(flexible working hours)
21. I have to do / work overtime.
(work extra hours)
22. I only work part-time / take a part-time job.
(part of a day or a few days a week)
23. I am a workaholic. I work full-time.
(work too much)
24. I took early retirement.
(retire at 55 in Britain)
25. I am on / take sick leave.
(a period spent away from work, etc. because of illness)
26. I am on / take maternity leave.
(expecting a baby)
27. I gave up work
e.g. in order to study
28. I was laid off (infml)
e.g. when the factory went bust
29. I was made redundant.
(no longer needed and therefore out of work)
30. I was dismissed (fml)
e.g. for refusing to obey orders
31. I was fired (infml)
e.g. for always being late
32. I am on / off duty.
(to be working / not working)
Other useful phrases
33. We usually take a break
e.g. for lunch / for ten minutes
34. We normally knock off work (infml)
e.g. about 5:30 p.m. and go off to a resataurant nearby
35. I get some rest.
(a period of time when you relax after working)
36. I was rather inexperienced
e.g. for that kind of work
37. I have a lot of experience
e.g. in this area / of this kind of problem
38. I am sufficiently qualified
e.g. for this position
39. This is a job requiring
(a period of time when you relax after working)
40. I try to be hardworking.
(work hard)
41. I'm quite competent
e.g. at my job
42. I try to work efficiently.
(work quickly without making mistakes and wasting time)
43. Efficiency is very important
e.g. in my job
44. A lot of people do voluntary work.
(you want to do it and you're not paid)
45. I was promoted.
(get a higher position)
46. It is a demanding job.
(needing a lot of effort, care, skill)
47. I fill in for / stand in for / cover for
e.g. her while she is off sick
48. I am acting
e.g. as a manager for the next couple of months
49. I will take the place of
e.g. our manager when he leaves
50. Ithis morning shift takes over from
e.g. the night shift t 9 a.m.
51. It is greate teamwork
e.g. that helps get the job done on time
52. We teamed up
e.g. with another group to finish our project
53. We cooperate
e.g. with a German firm on this project
54. I was employed
e.g. as a secretary for a couple of months
55. I do casual work.
(not regular, usually paid hourly)
56. I'v got a temporary job
e.g. working in a newspaper office
57. This factory has 200 employees.
(a person who is employed)
58. The staff
e.g. are so polite and friendly
59. They promoted
e.g. me to office manager
60. I'm on leave
e.g. at the moment because...
61. The post has been vacant
e.g. for some time
62. I turned it down.
(to refuse one's offer)
Payment
63. I am paid
e.g. every months and this pay goes directly into my bank account monthly
64. My salary
e.g. is 20.000$ a year
65. I earn
e.g. 200$ a week as a hairdresser
66. With many jobs you get holiday pay and sick pay.
(when you're off duty or ill)
67. I'm going to a pay rise.
(my pay goes up)
68. My average income
e.g. has risen 2% this year
69. I'm poorely paid / badly paid / don't earn much.
(I'm paid very little money)
70. I have a high income / earn a lot / am well-paid.
(I'm paid a lot of money)
71. My take-home pay / net income is 150$.
(money left after deductions)
72. My gross income is more than that.
(before deductions)
IELTS Speaking : Job
Written by Rad Danesh
Sunday, 27 May 2007
Have a look at...
Written by Rad Danesh
Saturday, 11 August 2007
Traveling
Do you like traveling?
Do you like travel alone or with your friends?
Have you traveled to other places? Where are they?
What do you usually do when you first arrive in a new place?
What are the benefits of traveling?
Why do so many people like traveling nowadays?
Friends
Do you have many friends? Are they casual acquaintances or close friends?
Do you prefer to stay with your family or with your friends?
Do you prefer one or two close friends or many friends?
Can you talk about your best friend?
How to make friends?
What do you usually do with your friends?
Is the time you spend with your friends as much as that you spend with your family?
Music
Do you like music?
What are the benefits of listening to music?
What kind of music do you like best?
Why do you like this kind of music?
Transportation
Can you say something about the transportation in your hometown?
What is the common means of transport in your country?
Do traffic jams often occur in your hometown or in the city where you live?
How to solve the problem?
What changes in transportation have taken place in the past several years in your country?
Building
Can you tell me an interesting building in your hometown?
Can you tell me an interesting building in Guangzhou?
IELTS Speaking : Suggested Questions : Part 1
Written by Rad Danesh
Saturday, 11 August 2007
Warm-up
1. Could you show me your identification card please?
2. Could you tell me your full name please?
3. What shall I call you?
4. Does your name have any special meaning?
5. Why do so many people change their names?
6. Is your name important to you?
Hometown or birth place
1. Where do you come from?
2. Where do you live?
3. Can you tell me something about your hometown?
4. Can you tell me some famous landscapes or scenic spots in your hometown?
5. Can you tell me some history of your hometown?
Personal background and information
1. Are you a student or do you have a job?
2. What do you like most about your study?
3. What kind of job do you prefer after graduation?
4. What is your major?
5. What do you do for living?
6. Could you tell me a typical day of yours?
7. How do you get your job?
8. Are you satisfied with your job?
9. What do you like most about your job?
10. What kind of job do you prefer in the future?
Hobby or inclination
1. What do you usually do in your spare time?
2. Do you prefer to stay alone or with your friends?
3. What do you usually do on weekends and weekdays?
4. What do you usually do when you go out?
5. What do you usually do with your friends?
6. Do you like reading?
7. What kind of books do you like best?
8. Do you like English? Why or why not?
9. What do you think of the importance of English?
10. What are good hobbies and bad hobbies? Why?
Future plan
1. Why do you take the IELTS test?
2. What are you planning to do in the next five years?
3. What are you planning to do in the next ten years?
4. What is the first thing you will do when you arrive at the new place?