Bar Chart · University Students Enrolled in Online Courses
A complete IELTS Academic Writing Task 1 question with a model answer of 206 words, plus a breakdown of the sentence structures, cohesive devices and vocabulary that answer uses. Write your own version first, then compare.
Written by Manish Sharma · CELTA and DELTA qualified · 8 years teaching IELTS
Score my answer to this questionThe question
You have 20 minutes. Write at least 150 words.
The bar chart below shows the percentage of university students who were enrolled in fully online degree courses in four countries in 2015 and 2024. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant. Write at least 150 words. [Chart Data — % of university students enrolled in fully online degrees] Country | 2015 | 2024 USA | 12 | 34 Australia | 9 | 28 UK | 5 | 22 India | 3 | 26
How to approach it
- 01Open with a paraphrased description and the time period covered
- 02Identify the overall direction — rises in every country — in the overview
- 03Highlight the most striking change: India's eightfold growth
- 04Group countries when possible to avoid simply listing four sets of data
- 05Use precise change vocabulary: 'almost tripled', 'rose more than eightfold', 'climbed'
- 06Mention the crossover where India overtook the UK between 2015 and 2024
Model answer
206 words in 4 paragraphs. Read it after you have written your own, not before: the point of a model answer is to show you what you missed, and you cannot miss anything you have not attempted.
The bar chart compares the percentage of university students who were enrolled in fully online degree courses in the USA, Australia, the UK, and India in 2015 and 2024.
Overall, the proportion of students choosing online study rose substantially in every country across the nine-year period. The USA remained the leader in both years, while India saw by far the largest proportional increase, narrowing the gap with the established markets.
In 2015, the USA had the highest share at 12 per cent, followed by Australia on nine per cent. The UK and India lagged behind on five and three per cent respectively, reflecting the relatively new status of online higher education at the time. The four countries were clustered fairly closely together, with only nine percentage points separating the highest from the lowest.
By 2024, all four figures had risen markedly. The USA almost tripled to 34 per cent, while Australia reached 28 per cent. The UK climbed to 22 per cent, and India recorded the steepest growth of all, rising more than eightfold from three to 26 per cent — overtaking the UK in the process. As a result, the four nations were even more tightly grouped by 2024, with only 12 percentage points separating them.
What this answer actually does
Measured from the text above, and compared against the other 38 answers of the same type in this library. These are counts, not band scores: they describe what the writing does, which is the part you can copy.
1.5 fewer than the median answer for this task type
8 words at the shortest, 31 at the longest
1 fewer than the median answer for this task type
carry a subordinate or relative clause
Sentence rhythm
Sentences average 20.6 words and vary by 6.6 words either side of that, running from 8 words to 31. Variation is the point. Grammatical Range and Accuracy rewards a mix of simple and complex sentences, and an answer where every sentence is the same length reads as flat no matter how correct it is. 3 of the 10 sentences here carry a subordinate or relative clause.
The cohesive devices it uses
4 in total, spread across 3 different functions. Range matters more than count: an answer that opens every paragraph with a sequencer signals its structure but never signals a relationship between ideas, and Coherence and Cohesion is marked on both.
while
as a result
overall
Vocabulary and repetition
Ignoring grammar words, 70 per cent of the content words in this answer are distinct, and 55 per cent appear exactly once. Lexical Resource is where repetition costs the most marks, and the usual cause is not a small vocabulary but reaching for the same noun every time the topic is named.
The longest run of words copied straight from the question is 14 words. That is long enough to notice. Copied wording is discounted from your word count, so a run this size is doing less work than it looks like it is doing.
What you are marked on
All four criteria carry equal weight, and your Writing band is their average rounded to the nearest half band.
Task Achievement
Identify the main features of both years with a clear overview and supported comparisons.
Coherence & Cohesion
Organise the response by year and by country group, with clear linking between observations.
Lexical Resource
Use a range of vocabulary for percentages, comparisons, and change.
Grammatical Range & Accuracy
Use past tenses and comparative structures accurately throughout.
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