IELTS Essay: Should single adults be encouraged to study and live away from their parents

Nowadays, more and more young unmarried adults are choosing to study and live outside their parents’ homes.  Do you think this trend is positive?

Sample essay

Thanks to urbanization, more and more young and often unmarried adults migrate to cities in search of jobs or a better life style. This trend is largely positive, but it does have a few negative side effects as well.

Let’s start with the positive aspects. When unmarried youngsters live on their own, they learn to become self-reliant. They learn to take care of themselves. They learn to cook, clean and wash. In fact, single men and women living alone in the cities learn all the skills necessary to run a home. They also learn to manage their time and money. They wouldn’t perhaps learn many of these skills if they were living with their parents.

Independence is another plus point. When people live on their own away from their family they get an opportunity to explore and discover themselves. They discover their inherent skills. They learn to cope with challenges. They also learn several social skills.

On the flip side, too much independence can have a negative impact as well especially in the case of single adults who can’t distinguish between right and wrong. The cities are full of traps and young adults are their main targets. In the absence of a guiding voice, many youngsters living alone in the cities can get into bad company. They may also develop bad habits like smoking and drinking because they have no one to fear in the city. They may not develop these habits if they were living with their parents or elder siblings.

After analysing both aspects of the situation it is not hard to see that living on one’s own helps a youngster to grow into a mature and self-sufficient adult. There are some negative aspects as well, but this trend is largely positive and should be encouraged.