How to Write an Essay for the IELTS Academic Writing Test

The IELTS Academic Writing Test is regarded as the toughest test out of the four sections of the IELTS test. In the Writing Test. There are two tasks to do - Task1 and Task2. Candidates should first collect some free study materials from the Internet, and follow the instructions and tips given there about how to write an essay. But this is not a skill to develop without expert help, because apart from writing the essay in the correct format, the candidates need to know how to write error-free complex sentences, using a wide range of vocabulary appropriately. Execution of grammatical skill is a big factor. The essay writing job falls in Task 2, and candidates need to write in minimum 250 words, with hardly any spelling mistakes while chasing for a high Band Score. 

1. A candidate should study at least a 'High Standard Essay Book' for gathering adequate knowledge on how to compose a top quality, perfectly structured essay.
2. The candidates should always follow the basic structures of an essay, which are relevant to the IELTS writing test.
3. A candidate appearing in the IELTS Test should be well aware of the fact that he would get a maximum time of 40 minutes to write down the essay and to check for errors, as there is no extra time given.
4. After getting permission to open the question paper, a candidate should first skim the question and take not more than 5 minutes for thinking about the construction of the essay.
5. The essay is to be written by the candidate keeping in mind that there are three key constituents of an essay, (1) Introduction. (2) The body of the essay. and (3) Conclusion.
6. A candidate should keep the 'Introduction' part short but descriptive, he should present in brief the topic of the essay and narrate what he is going to write about.
7. The body should not contain more than 2 paragraphs. Each paragraph should contain one central idea and a few sentences supporting the idea.
8. As the topic of the essay is supposed to contain one idea in favor and one in against it. For example, 'An advantage and a disadvantage' or 'A benefit and a drawback.' A candidate should write 'advantage or benefit' in one paragraph and 'disadvantage or drawback' in another paragraph. The use of complex sentences should be extremely explicit.
9. In the 'Conclusion' part a candidate must not write more than two or three sentences. The best idea is to state his opinion in the concluding part. Means, according to him the advantages are to be counted, or he thinks the disadvantages are of high concern and nullify the advantages.
10. Usually, the essay topics are asked in the way: Do you agree or disagree? or State the advantages and disadvantages or cause and effect. The candidate should stay prepared for different types of essays as well.
11. A candidate should be aware of the fact that his essay would carry marks for him considering the factors: (1) Task Response, (2) Coherence, (3) Cohesion and (4) Range and accuracy of grammatical application. Negligence of paying attention to any of the points above might result in losing 25% marks. At the same time, a candidate should keep in mind that time is a key factor and to be handled with expertise.
12. Maintaining all the criteria one is asked for writing an essay in a foreign language is not just anybody's job, it really takes rigorous practice maintaining time and of course the need of expert's help.
13. Though a candidate is asked to write in 'Minimum' 250 words, there is a hidden point. A candidate is not at liberty to write in as many words as possible for him. The maximum desired length of the essay should be in 270 to 280 words. Writing in too many words (50 words or more) would cause losing marks.
14. A candidate should keep in mind that he should write exactly what he is asked for. As for example: "Watching TV for long hours might be harmful to the children in a number of ways". Do you agree or disagree? Here a candidate is asked to write 'Whether it is harmful to children in a number of ways or not.' If a candidate discusses 'Watching TV for long hours is harmful' as a general point, skipping the actual point 'Harmful for the children in a number of ways', he would certainly lose marks.
15. A candidate is not allowed to copy a full sentence from the question and write it unchanged in his answer.
16. A candidate would be judged on, how well he can link the sentences and thoughts.
17. Linking of paragraphs properly matters a lot, and it works as a stumbling block and made candidates lose marks.
18. While 'Lexical Resource' is something to be admired, a candidate need not write 'bombastic/complicated and rarely used words. It certainly would not impress the examiner at all. For example, if you write the word 'Ingeminated' in place of 'Repeated,' you won't expected to earn any extra credit for that, as it is almost an unknown word.
19. Repeated use of the same word is undesired; instead, a candidate should use synonymous words, this would impress the examiner, from the point of view of 'Range of vocabulary'.
20. If a candidate cannot use complete a sentence properly, while 'Sentence completion is the task,' he would lose marks.

A lot more little points related to the topic can be discussed. But these are the keys to success in writing a well-composed essay for the IELTS writing test. No need to cram the points. You can make the most of the IELTS writing test if you take your preparation with ultimate seriousness, take an expert's help or take admission in a reputed IELTS coaching center and practice and following all the do's and dont's of the IELTS essays and study good essay book (s). The main purpose of including essay writing is to check the student's depth in the English language, his range of vocabulary, how expressive he is and how skilful he is in writing a perfectly structured essay with a clear opinion. How good you can write an essay is of high importance for your score. Your ultimate efficiency in writing English would be tested through the essay you write.

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