This IELTS speaking test includes questions about:
- friends
- animals
- achievements
- life goals
IELTS Speaking Exam Part 1
Friends:Have you made many friends?
Yes, over the years I’ve made several good friends that I met in different places and at different times, like at school, university and work.
How often do you get together with your friends?
I guess with my best friends, currently, we probably see each other maybe once a week or once every two weeks if we are busy.
Sometimes we all get together, there are five of us, and do something or go out to eat together.
And sometimes maybe only two or three of us meet up if the others are busy.
What do you normally do with your friends?
As I said, sometimes we go out to eat, other times maybe we go out at night to a party or other event.
We’ve also been on several trips together to visit other places, but those happen less frequently, as it can be difficult for everyone to arrange their free time, so we can all go together.
Trips like that tend to be on the weekend or when there is a special holiday and we have time off.
Do you prefer to have a lot of friends or just a few?
I have just a few friends, but they are enough for me. I know a lot of people and am friendly with them, but I wouldn’t call them true friends. For me, being a friend needs time and sharing common interests, experiences, and so on. It’s difficult to do with many people because it involves a lot of time over the years.
Animals:Do you like animals?
Generally, yes, I think they’re great.
Do you have a pet? What is it?
Yes, my family has a dog. We’ve had it since I can remember being a child. He’s very old now, but still healthy and loves to go out for walks.
He’s a German shepherd and has a coat which is grey and white. It’s quite striking the first time you see it, apparently, the pattern is not that common for that type of dog.
Would you like to have a pet? What kind of pet would you like?
At the moment, I live in an apartment where pets are not allowed. Maybe in the future, I will get a dog or maybe even a cat once I settle down.
But at the moment, I really don’t think it would be practical because I’m away quite a lot and wouldn’t be able to take good care of it.
Do you think it is important for children to know about animals?
For sure, it’s important that they learn about nature and the way animals evolve and how some species share some common traits with humans.
And of course, it’s important for them to know which animals are safe and which are dangerous, so yes, it’s very important.
What can children learn from animals?
Children can learn a lot from animals, for example, how they organize themselves, how they survive in the wild, how they hunt, etc.
It’s also possible to see social structures in the animal world which children can relate to their own world.
Many schools have pets which children learn about and take care of, so it can also teach them about responsibility and caring for others.
IELTS Speaking Exam Part 2
Talk about your greatest achievement in life so far
You should say:
- what it is
- how you did it
- if you are proud of it
and explain how your family feels about your achievement.
Sample Answer
My greatest achievement in life was without a doubt, to do my Master of Spanish in Spain. I always dreamed of living in Spain.
I knew that if I was going to be a Spanish teacher at the university and receive the recognition of being a good speaker, an expert in the Spanish language, I would have to do my master’s Degree in Spain. There was no other solution.
Then, when they accepted me into the program and invited me to live and study there, I was speechless.
It was one of the most exciting days of my life. Also, when I finally moved to Spain it was not as I had imagined it.
The simple truth is that I had to work very hard. It was much harder than I had thought. Many times, I studied day and night.
To work I taught English classes in different Spanish companies around Madrid and sometimes in the outskirts of Madrid.
I was paid 12 euros ($ 15 US) an hour, but the problem was that I had to go on a motorcycle (scooter) from one job to another, every day, and I was not paid for the trip.
So, I worked 8 hours, but I spent 4 hours on the bike.
Anyway, I graduated in 2017 and it was the best day of my life!
My family was just as proud as I was when I was accepted to study, but I am also proud of the fact that I went to live in another country and had a very successful experience there, even though it was hard sometimes.
Now, I plan to move abroad permanently to seek other challenging opportunities and further my career as a teacher.
IELTS Speaking Exam Part 3
What do you think are the achievements that people are usually most proud of? Why do you think that is?
Well, in general, they’re usually things like winning an award or prize at school, for younger people.
Then there are the bigger life milestones such as entering university, graduating, finding your first job, maybe getting married and having children, etc.
Also, you have to make a distinction between personal and professional achievements.
Obviously, if you get a promotion at work, or you’re invited to speak at a conference or something like that – it’s a big deal.
But getting married or when your first child arrives, that’s an even bigger achievement.
So, why do people think these things are important – it’s because, ion a personal level, they mark our journey through life, from being a child, an adolescent, to becoming an adult, and eventually a parent.
They mark our progress in life and that’s why such achievements are celebrated and make people feel proud.
What are some of the most important decisions that people make in life?
There are lots; they usually revolve around important points of your life such as where to go to school, what to study, what kind of career you want, where you want to live, and so on.
But. There are also important decisions which are maybe not so personal or life oriented. For example, you might decide to invest in something, or buy life insurance to protect your future family.
These things can turn out to be very important decisions, either in a good way or a bad way, depending on how events turn out later in life.
I guess probably one of the biggest would be who you decide to spend your life with, either who you marry or live with. Again, the result can either be a wonderful journey together or it could end in a disastrous relationship and lots of problems.
But it’s probably the decision which has the biggest immediate and long-term impact on you and your life.
Do you think that the journey is more rewarding than the achieving the goal itself? Why do you think that?
Not necessarily more rewarding, but it can certainly be interesting. It depends on what the goal is, doesn’t it? I mean, for example, if you had a goal to save $10,000 then the journey, as you say, might be quite boring, each month you put some money aside until you have the total of $10,000.
But the feeling of achievement when you finally have the $10,000 in cash in your hands would probably be very exciting!
But if the goal is to travel the world and see certain places and things, then the actual journey would probably be more interesting and satisfying than when you have finished traveling and you look back and say, I did it.
How important is it to have clear goals?
It’s a personal thing; not everyone is goal oriented.
But if you want to achieve a goal, you first have to define the goal, in clear terms.
That’s a mistake many people make. It’s not enough to say you want to be better or have more money, etc. You have to be specific; better how? How much more money?
Only then can you really plan how to achieve your goal.
What are some of the reasons why people fail to achieve their goals?
I think, as I said before, not being clear about the actual goal can make it difficult to achieve.
Another reason is that some people think it’s a goal but in reality, it’s just an idea or a dream, it’s not that important to them.
Or they might get distracted by other more urgent things and lose sight of their plan.
The best way to achieve a goal is to first define it, then quantify it, so you know when you have achieved it, and then work out a step-by-step plan to do it.
If you follow the steps you will eventually achieve it. But you have to really want to do it – not just think it would be nice to do it.