Describe an important decision you made
You should say:
- what the decision was
- when you made it
- how you made the decision
- and explain why it was important
Part 3 discussion questions
After your talk, the examiner asks more abstract questions on decision-making. Practise giving a direct answer, a reason and an example.
- 1Who do young people usually ask for advice when making decisions?
- 2Is it better to make decisions quickly or to take plenty of time?
- 3Why do some people find it difficult to make choices?
- 4Should important decisions be made by individuals or by groups?
- 5Does having too many choices make people less satisfied?
How to plan your answer in one minute
- Note one or two words for each bullet point; you can glance at them while you speak.
- Open with the main idea, then take the bullets in order so the examiner can follow you.
- Keep the last bullet (the "explain" part) for detail: this is where you show range.
- Keep talking until the examiner stops you; two full minutes shows fluency.
Notes for your minute of preparation
- What: stay in my home town for college, or move to a big city 600 km away to study engineering.
- When: last year, right after my Class 12 results.
- How: wrote pros and cons including costs, talked to a senior from my school, visited the campus; my parents left the choice to me.
- Why important: better links with employers, and my first big decision on my own; living alone taught me independence.
Model talk
261 words · about 2 minutes spoken
The decision I’d like to describe is whether to stay in my home town for college or move to a much bigger city, about six hundred kilometres away, to study engineering.
I made the decision last year, just after my Class 12 results came out. I had two offers: one from a decent college in my home town, where I could have carried on living with my family, and one from a better-known college in the city.
I didn’t make the decision quickly. First, I wrote down the advantages and disadvantages of each option, including the costs, because living in a hostel and travelling home would be expensive for my parents. Then I talked to a senior student from my school who was already studying at the city college, and she told me honestly about the workload and what life was like there. My parents and I also visited the campus, which helped a lot, because once I saw the labs and met some of the teachers, I felt excited rather than nervous. In the end, my parents left the final choice to me, and I decided to move.
It was important for two reasons. Obviously, it affects my future career, because the college has much better links with employers. But it was also the first big decision I made for myself. Living alone has taught me how to manage money, cook simple meals and solve problems without running to my parents. Looking back, I’m really glad I chose the harder option, even though the first few months were quite lonely.
Written by Acedmi to show what a high-band talk sounds like. It is not an official IELTS sample, and your own ideas can be different.
Useful vocabulary
- weigh up
- Think carefully about the good and bad sides.
- “I weighed up both options for weeks.”
- pros and cons
- Advantages and disadvantages.
- “I wrote down the pros and cons.”
- carry on
- Continue.
- “I could have carried on living at home.”
- workload
- The amount of work you have to do.
- “She told me honestly about the workload.”
- leave the choice to
- Let someone else decide.
- “My parents left the choice to me.”
- make up my mind
- Decide.
- “It took me a month to make up my mind.”
- independent
- Able to manage without help.
- “Living alone made me more independent.”
- looking back
- Thinking now about the past.
- “Looking back, I made the right choice.”
Common mistakes
- Saying what you decided but not how. The card asks how you made the decision, so describe the steps.
- A one-line ending such as "it was important for my future". Give two clear reasons.
- Avoiding past conditionals. Phrases like "I could have stayed" show a higher grammar range.