IELTS Speaking Test Part 2: Describe A Major Decision That You Have Taken In Your Life

IELTS Speaking Test PART 2 Sample Question and Answer

by Jane Lawson at DailyStep.com

Question: Describe a major decision you have taken in your life.

You should say:

• what the decision was
• what other choices were available to you
• why you made the decision you did
• and explain if you think the decision was a good one.

Answer:  One major decision that I’ve taken in my life was to study Law at University.

This meant moving to a new town where the university was located and spending three years studying a subject that was completely new to me. 

There were several other choices that I could have taken at the time.

For a while I found it hard to make up my mind. I considered taking a degree in English, as this was always my favourite subject at school and I always got A grades in English exams.

Another option open to me was to apply for a degree course in French.

At one point I even considered trying to get in to university to study Physics, as this was another subject I loved. 

Eventually, the decision I reached was to take a law degree, the reason being  that I thought this would  open more doors to me in the future.

I had no wish to be a lawyer, but I thought that the breadth of knowledge I would gain would set me in good stead as a journalist, which is what I wanted to be at the time.

I was also interested in understanding more about how our legal system works.

As to whether or not this was a good decision, I think it was definitely the right choice for me.

I found studying law fascinating, and then went on to work as a journalist and researcher for some years. I also had a sideline in teaching legal English to lawyers, and eventually found that I much preferred teaching English  to journalism.

Gradually I took on more teaching work until I eventually dropped the journalism altogether.

So that original decision to study law caused a chain of events that took me to where I am now. 

This sample answer took around 2 minutes, which is the maximum time you need to speak for in the IELTS Speaking Test Part 2. Now, try it yourself!