IELTS writing task 2 - Pros and cons of taking a gap year; give reasons and relevant examples

taking a gap year - opinion essay

In some countries, young people are encouraged to work or travel for a year between finishing high school and starting university studies.
Discuss the advantages and disadvantages for young people who decide to do this.
Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

In some nations, high school graduates are more favored to have a gap year before following higher education. This essay will discuss both sides of this trend.

On the one hand, taking a sabbatical year before university is proved to be beneficial to youngsters in various aspects. Firstly, despite having finished twelve years of compulsory education, there are always a lot of students who still have no clue about their future careers. Therefore, it is advisable to have a year off to engage in a wide range of different activities, from volunteering to picking up part-time jobs, which may help students to discover where their interests lie, what their talents are, and how they should use them to benefit the community. Secondly, a gap year is also regarded as one of the most precious opportunities for teenagers to enjoy their youth. Adolescents can spend this period tightening their bond with their beloved ones, going on long-term trips, as well as doing whatever things they have always been longing for. In this way, they may compensate for the past twelve consecutive years of struggling with their obligation of studying.

On the other hand, gap-year takers must consider several potential drawbacks. Firstly, attending universities one year later might put students at risk of falling behind their friends who go to universities right after high school graduation. Consequently, they are more likely to suffer from peer pressure, which may have a detrimental impact on their mental well-being. Secondly, extended traveling during a gap year can be highly expensive. As a result of this, teenagers will inevitably have to live on a tight budget when they enter university life.

In conclusion, it is always a universal truth that everything has its two sides, and taking a gap year is no exception. Therefore, it is advisable for students to take all the pros and cons into their consideration before deciding whether a gap year is essential to them.

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Note: I would be really grateful to receive feedback and corrections from you!

The prompt restatement is acceptable and serves its purpose of delivering an originally worded version of the original topic. However, the writer's opinion, which is scored along with the prompt restatement cannot be found in the introductory paragraph. There are 2 reasons why this is a problem:

1. It does not offer the discussional foundation for the writer's opinion.
2. It does not provide a summary of topics for the upcoming 2 discussion paragraphs.

Both of these are criteria that will help the examiner give the writer a preliminary score based on task accuracy and opinion clarity. Without it, the writer is clearly missing the writer's opinion requirement in the first paragraph.


Use only general references to an academic study period. Different countries have different study years for the elementary and secondary years. Keep it general to create the idea that you are not referring to any specific study term for students.

The reasoning paragraphs are not balanced in terms of discussion presentation. One would consider the advantages paragraph to be better developed that the disadvantages paragraph. Try to keep a balance within the presentation. Use only 5 sentences at the most to discuss each aspect. Learn to create connected discussions in each paragraph so that the balance can be achieved. It is when the reasons are discussed individually that these imbalance in presentations occur.

As for the concluding summary. It is definitely a conclusion but it is missing the summary of the previous discussion points. It has to present the topic reasons to create the correct reverse paraphrase requirement. That means, the writer has an acceptable, but not well scoring concluding paragraph in this case.