IELTS speaking sample test

The IELTS speaking test takes about 15 minutes. It has three parts: an interview, a short speech and a discussion.

Here are some tips to obtain band 8 or above in the speaking module.

Part 1 (Interview)

Examiner: Hello, my name is ……………………………….. Can you tell me your name, please?

Candidate: My name is ……………………………………..

Examiner: Can you show me your ID, please? It is for security purposes.

Candidate: Oh Sure. (Shows his ID card to the examiner)

Examiner: Thank you. Now I would like to ask you a few general questions about yourself. Where do you live now?

Candidate: I live in Bangalore. It is a large city in south India. It is actually the capital of the IT industry in India.

Examiner: Where you born there?

Candidate: No I was born in Kochi, another large city in south India. Kochi is a port city situated on the western coast of India. I moved to Bangalore after I finished my studies.

Examiner: Do you live on your own or with your family?

Candidate: I live with my uncle and his family. They have a nice home in Bangalore. I have been living with them ever since I moved to this city. My parents and brother still live in Kochi.

Examiner: How often do you visit your family?

Candidate: I visit them whenever I get an opportunity. I’m sort of home-sick, you know. Fortunately for me, Kochi is well-connected to Bangalore so it really is not all that difficult.

Examiner: Are you working?

Candidate: Yes, I am working as a probationary officer at a nationalized bank.

Examiner: Sounds great. Thank you.

Part 2 (Speech)

Examiner: In this part, you have to talk about a topic for one minute. I will give you a topic card with three or four questions. Your speech should answer all of these questions. You can take up to 60 seconds to prepare notes before you speak. Here is the topic card, and here is a pencil and a sheet of paper. Now I would like you to talk about a person who has inspired you the most.

Candidate makes notes

Examiner: Now you have one minute to talk about the topic. I will tell you when to stop.

Candidate: The person who has inspired me the most is Mahatma Gandhi. Part of the reason could be the fact that I am Indian and I have heard about him right since my childhood. We are taught about Gandhiji and his ideologies right from primary school.

A lot of people may have problems with his ideologies and I know at least some people even in India still believe that he was very dogmatic. I don’t quite think so. He had great faith in his principles and stuck to them no matter what. How many leaders of our times show such unflinching loyalty to their principles?

Of course, the world has changed a lot since his days and some of his principles may have lost their value. For example, Gandhiji was not a supporter of capitalism. In fact he was against the accumulation of wealth in a few hands. But now the whole world including India has embraced capitalism. It was perhaps unavoidable but I don’t think that Gandhiji would be happy about this, if he were alive today.

That said, his principles of truth, non-violence and tolerance are still very significant and can solve many of the problems plaguing the world. In my opinion, the world still has a lot to learn from Mahatma Gandhi. Being a follower of Mahatma Gandhi is not about subscribing to certain beliefs. In fact, it is all about being true to one’s inner self.

Part 3 (Discussion)

Examiner: Now in this part I would like to ask you a few more general questions about the topic you have just talked about. Mahatma Gandhi was perhaps the most famous Indian ever lived. Does he still have a large number of followers in India?

Candidate: Well, the truth is that there are very few people who follow his principles wholeheartedly. A lot of people, especially politicians, claim to be his followers, but most of them have selfish motives.

Examiner: Gandhi played a very significant role in India’s freedom struggle. Do you believe that India would have achieved independence without Gandhi?

Candidate: Well, I don’t know. Gandhiji played a very significant role in India’s freedom struggle, but it is wrong to assume that he was the only freedom fighter. There were a large number of them and I don’t want to underestimate their role by saying that India wouldn’t have won independence without Mahatma Gandhi.

Examiner: Gandhi and his principles are gaining popularity in the western world. What do you think about this?

Candidate: Gandhian principles are based on truth and tolerance. These are values that people all over the world can relate to. That probably explains why Gandhiji’s principles are gaining popularity in the western world.

Examiner: Thank you! That is the end of the test.