Top 10 most common IELTS writing task 2 topics

Top 10 Most Common IELTS Writing
Task 2 Topics
By Christopher Pell 38 Comments

The post will give you the 10 most common IELTS Writing Task 2 topics.

IELTS Writing Topics
A question my students keep asking, again and again, is ‘What are the most
common IELTS writing part 2 topics?’ They are worried that they won’t be familiar
with the topic and will not have any relevant ideas. This is especially true for students
from ‘developing’ countries, because most of the questions are ‘first world’ problems
and issues. Let’s turn that disadvantage into an advantage.


To answer the question I have asked my students over the last few years to send me
the topics on their exams.
A big thank you, to those students, who were kind enough to send me their
questions. I have built up a huge amount of questions and I think it is about time to
analyse them.
Are the same Writing Task 2 topics repeated?
The answer is yes and no. There are a huge amount of topics that come up in writing
task 2. At last count there were around 50 different topics (based on collecting data
over the last few years) and if you would like all 50, please let me know, but I’m more
concerned about the topics that come up again and again. If you have time to
familiarise yourself with over 50 topics then please do, but I think must people have
to be smart with their time and it therefore makes more sense to prioritise the most
common topics.
I try to encourage my students to be efficient when it comes to learning. However, I
don’t agree with the saying ‘Work smart, not hard’ as this implies you can do very
little work and still achieve your goals. My motto is work hard and smart.

IELTS Essay Topics 2015
There are 10 general topics that come up more often than all of the rest put together.
They are:
•

Health

•

Environment

•

Education

•

Development

•

Globalisation

•

Public Transport

•

Criminal Justice

•

Youth Crime

•

Technology

•

Government Spending

So what can I do with this information?
Now you know the common topics there are 3 things you can do:

1. Develop a vocabulary list for each topic
Having relevant vocabulary for each topic will give you a big advantage. Many
students fail to provide relevant vocabulary and their band score suffers.
When looking at new vocabulary try to guess the meaning from context first and then
look up the meaning to make sure your idea matches the actual meaning. Also, be
sure to look at the word within a sentence to be aware of the way it relates to other
words.
When recording vocabulary do it in a way that will help YOU remember it. Everyone
learns in a different way and everyone learns vocabulary in a different way. Some


people like to draw pictures beside the word, some people like to write synonyms or
antonyms, others prefer to write a few sentences and some people like to use the

phonemic chart to write the word that way. Whatever works for you, do it.
It is also very important to review words regularly. This is the most effective way to
remember the words. So many people learn lots of words and a week later they can’t
remember them. I would recommend reviewing them one day after learning them for
the first time, then one week later and then finally one month later. After that they
should be firmly stuck in your head for good.
I am developing a vocabulary list for each of the topics above which you can
access here.

2. Practice reading and listening within these topics
To do well on your IELTS test you should practice at home. Even just 60 minutes per
day can make a big difference. This will not only improve all four skills but familiarise
you with the common topics at the same time. Why waste time listening or reading
something, if it is about something that probably won’t come up on the test? Unless
of course you are listening or reading for pleasure, in that case, be my guest.
If you are reading an English newspaper, look for articles on the common topics and
highlight any good vocabulary.
If you like listening to the radio or podcasts, find ones on the common topics.
Please check out my 25 online language learning tools for lots of ways you can
study at home for free.

3. Study within the common topics
This method is so effective that some of the best IELTS schools are starting to adopt
this approach. If you are going to study or practice anything then do it within the
context of one of the common topics. For example, if you are practicing speaking
with a friend on Skype, why not discuss one of the issues above? If you are


practicing writing essays, find a question about one of the most popular or repeated
IELTS topics.

This method allows you to practice both the skills and learn about these crucial
topics.
They also come up quite a lot in the speaking test.
Can I just focus on these topics and get a high band score?
Obviously, there is much more to achieving a high score than just focusing on the
repeated topics but this will allow you to study and prepare in a smarter and more
efficient way, giving you a huge advantage.
However, I would like to add that it is also important to study things you have a
passion for. If you are genuinely interested in a topic then it is much easier to study
and you are less likely to quit. Please also make time to read, listen, talk and write
about your passion. If you love football, read about your team everyday on
www.goal.com. Love fashion?- find some fashionista blogs. Have a passion for
photography?- why not blog about it? Have a passion for astrophysics? Listen to star
talk radio.

Update- September 2015
I looked at 15 Writing Task 2 papers over July, August and September of 2015 to see
if the same common topics were coming up. Here are the topics:
1.

Traditional Culture

2.

Government Spending

3.

Technology

4.

Technology

5.

Education


6.

Health

7.

Technology

8.

Traditional Culture

9.

Education

10.

Health

11.

International Aid

12.

The Environment

13.

Economics

14.

Education

15.

Health

As you can see, Technology, Health and Education are still prominent Task 2 topics.
It was interesting to see Traditional Culture popping up twice in such a short period
of time, but that doesn’t mean that it will definitely feature again soon.
I still think that Technology, Health, Education and the Environment are important
topics and will feature regularly in the future. Reading within these topics will help
you and you will also pick up other vocabulary just by reading about them.
The important thing is to read actively. When you see a word you don’t know, note it
down and find out the meaning, collocation and synonyms. Soon you will have a
notebook full of new words and you review them regualelry until they become part of
your vocabulary.

Next Steps


I would recommend looking at our IELTS task 2 page for lots more lessons,
tips and sample task 2 answers.
Need help writing essays? Check out our ESSAY CORRECTION SERVICE.
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Facebook. There are also daily practice activities on our Facebook page.
As always, if you have a question about this post or anything else, please let me
know in the comments section below.
For more help check out the IELTS Preparation Ultimate Guide.