User-written IELTS example
Writing Academic Task 2 Band 7.0 Example
Original task prompt, user essay, band score, and related examples in the same report workspace.
Illustrative target band for this original model answer.
Plan your answer
Try your own response before reading the samples.
Ideas to explore
- Publicly funded professional training may create a reasonable expectation that graduates contribute to local services, especially where skilled workers are scarce.
- Freedom to work abroad can support career development and may bring expertise back through return migration or international collaboration.
- A choice between a defined period of service and proportionate repayment can balance public investment with individual mobility.
Suggested structure
- Introduce the disagreement and state a qualified position.
- Explain the argument for requiring local service, linking public funding to shortages and taxpayer benefit.
- Present the case for freedom of movement, including professional opportunity and possible benefits to the home country.
- Give your own balanced solution and explain why it is fair.
- Conclude by restating the principle that retention is better supported by good opportunities than by excessive restrictions.
Useful vocabulary & examples
- public investment
- Government or taxpayer spending intended to benefit the public.
A period of local service could help ensure that public investment in medical training benefits the community.
- skilled-worker shortages
- A lack of qualified people available to fill important jobs.
Skilled-worker shortages may worsen if many newly trained professionals leave immediately.
- a proportionate share
- A fair amount that reflects the size or level of something.
Graduates could repay a proportionate share of heavily subsidised training costs.
- freedom of movement
- The ability to choose where to live or work without unreasonable restrictions.
A balanced policy should recognise professionals’ freedom of movement.
Task Prompt
User Essay Analysis
Review the public answer with report-style highlights.
Should domestically trained specialists in areas such as medicine and engineering be obliged to pursue their careers in their homeland or should they be given the choice of working abroad? In this essay, I shall discuss both sides of this controversial issue before going on to state why I tend to agree with the need for a limited period of service when training has been publicly funded.
One reason for requiring local work is that training can involve considerable public support. Universities and hospitals provide facilities, teaching and practical experience. A country that helps to train specialists may then depend on them to deliver essential services. If many leave immediately, there may be fewer qualified people available to meet local needs. A short period of service can therefore give the community a return on its investment.
Those who favour freedom of choice point out that professionals also have personal and career responsibilities. Someone may wish to join family abroad or gain experience in a speciality that is not available locally. Restricting movement for an indefinite period could make the profession less attractive. Working internationally can also lead to useful exchanges of knowledge, so migration does not always mean that a country's investment has no wider benefit.
I favour a limited local service requirement when it is explained before a person accepts publicly funded training. For example, a scholarship can clearly state that the recipient must work locally for an agreed period after qualifying. This allows applicants to make an informed choice. It would be unfair to impose a new obligation after graduation or demand that professionals remain permanently.
Such arrangements should also be supported by acceptable pay, safe working conditions and opportunities to develop professionally. A compulsory period alone will not persuade someone to build a long-term career in a place where those conditions are poor.
In conclusion, both public needs and individual freedom deserve consideration. I support transparent, time-limited commitments connected to funded training, followed by freedom to work elsewhere. The country of training should not automatically be confused with a person's homeland.
Targeted Improvement Tips
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