Task 1 · pie chart · 18 samples

The charts below show the main reasons why students chose a particular university in the UK, in 1997 and 2007.

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Plan your answer

Try your own response before reading the samples.

Ideas to explore

  • Compare the leading reason across both years: suitable degree courses ranked first, rising slightly from 35% to 37%.
  • Highlight the largest increase: choosing a university close to the parental home went from 10% to 22%.
  • Contrast the sharpest decline with the smaller fall: sports and social activities dropped from 19% to 6%, while quality of resources moved from 21% to 17%.

Suggested structure

  1. Paraphrase the chart topic and identify both years.
  2. Give an overview of the top reason and the most notable increases and decreases.
  3. Describe the 1987 figures, grouping the largest and smallest categories.
  4. Compare the 2007 figures with 1987, using exact percentages and clear change language.
Useful vocabulary & examples
accounted for
made up a particular percentage or share

Suitable degree courses accounted for 35% of responses in 1987.

rose slightly
increased by a small amount

The share choosing suitable degree courses rose slightly to 37%.

increased considerably
grew by a noticeable amount

The proportion choosing a university close to home increased considerably, from 10% to 22%.

fell substantially
decreased by a large amount

Good sports and social activities fell substantially, from 19% to 6%.

Sample answers

AI-completed learning example

181 words · Illustrative target band

The charts illustrate how many school leavers chose to study at a certain university in the UK between 1987 and 2007. Overall, there was an increase in the proportion of young people choosing to study at this school because it provided suitable courses and it was close to their homes, while the figures for those who chose it for other reasons changed in different directions. The share selecting the university for qua…

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AI-completed learning example

195 words · Illustrative target band

The charts illustrate the proportions of why students choose a particular university in UK between the years of 1987 and 2007 Overall, it can be seen that, suitable degree courses accounted were the main reason for students in both years, whereas the lowest percentage were for close to parental home; however, it has become crucial to note that the reasons changed considerably over the period. In 1987, suitable degree…

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AI-completed learning example

183 words · Illustrative target band

Two pie charts give information about the proportion of reasons for learners selecting a particular UK university in two separate years (1987–2007). Overall, the percentage of the main reasons for suitable degree courses, close to the parental home, and quality of teaching exhibited an upward trend, while the opposite was true for quality of resources, and good sports and social activities also declined. Suitable deg…

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