IELTS Recent Mock Tests Volume 3

Published on: 31 Jan 2018
Tests taken: 1,145,752

Answer Keys:

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Part 1: Question 1 - 10

1 67 King’s
2 north
3 Sutcliffe
4 automatic
5 day

6 weather
7 licence/license
8 50
9 30
10 notebook/diary

Part 2: Question 11 - 20

11 1 million
12 tourism
13 southeast/south-east
14 lawyer
15 7/seven

16 A
17 C
18 E
19 D
20 B

Part 3: Question 21 - 30

21 A
22 B
23 A
24 C
25 C

26 E
27 A
28 B
29 D
30 C

Part 4: Question 31 - 40

31 democratic
32 internal website
33 transparency
34 (company’s) income
35 employee first

36 solution
37 promotion
38 ticket
39 vacation
40 ban

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Review & Explanations:

Part 1: Questions 1-10

Questions 1-10

Complete the notes below.

Write ONE WORD AND/OR A NUMBER for each answer.

Driving school
*Example*	*Answer*
Looking for driving lessons given during the:	weekends
Address:	1 Road
Drive:	the city center
Drive:	2 above the city
Teacher’s name:	Allen 3
Popular type of car on roads:	4
Best time to take lessons:	practice during the 5
Safety driving depends on:	good 6
Obtain:	a driving 7
Final test fee:	$ 8
Duration of test:	approximately 9 minutes
More advice:	keep a driving 10

1 Answer: 67 King’s

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

Note:

the words which lead you to the answer are underlined.
the word/number you must write for the answer is marked.
words which you might wrongly think could be the answer are in italics.

The keyword concerned in Q1 must be address.
From the question, we can assume that the answer must involve number and name.
The man says that the address is 67 King’s Road, but the word Road is written in the space. Therefore, the answer must be 67 King’s.
It is quite hard for some learners to know what word is between King and s, that is the symbol apostrophe ( ‘ ). You need to take note this type of symbol to do well in the next test.

2 Answer: north

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

The keyword concerned in Q2 must be city centre and above the city.
From the question, we can assume that the answer must be a direction.
The man had mentioned both two keywords, and the direction that we need appears, so the answer must be north.

3 Answer: Sutcliffe

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

The keyword concerned in Q3 must be teacher’s name.
There are two name mentioned in the audio. Daniel Smith is just the man’s mother’s friend, Allen Sutclife is exactly the name of the teacher. Because Allen is written in the space, Sutcliffe (the word is spelled) is the answer.
A small tip is that the word spelled is sometimes the answer.
The way native speaker spells a name may be strange to us. Double means two, so double F is FF.

4 Answer: automatic

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

The keyword concerned in Q4 must be popular.
The speaker mentioned two types of cars (manual and automatic car), which perplex you.
However, the phrase most cars on the road the men used is superlative and means that is the most popular type of car.Hence, the answer must be automatic, which is the word following this keyword.

5 Answer: day

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

The keyword concerned in Q5 must be best time, take lessons and practice.
The woman said the teacher will give her lessons in the evenings, what it is not the best choice for the keyword best time
After this, the man used the phrase It would be much better, which meshes with the keyword best time. Therefore, the exact answer which is mentioned after this keyword is day.

6 Answer: weather

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

The keyword concerned in Q6 must be safety and good.
The speaker says that it is difficult and dangerous to drive in the wind and rain, which contradicts to the keyword, so the answer is not there.
Sunny and dry are synonyms for good. Hence, the answer is weather.

7 Answer: licence/license

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

The keyword concerned in Q7 must be obtain.
The word got is to obtain, therefore a noun needed for the answer is license.
Be careful with spelling because you may write licence instead of license.

8 Answer: 50

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

The keyword concerned in Q8 must be final test fee.
The symbol $ dollar is written in the blank so the answer must be number.
However, 3 numbers mentioned may confuse you:
$30 is the cost for half hour lesson
$300 is for total cost
$50 is definitely the final test fee so that is the answer.
You may don’t know if it is 15 or 50. Hence, you should remember that 15 is stressed on the second /fif’ti:n/, the number 50 is stress on the first /’fifti/.

9 Answer: 30

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

The keyword concerned in Q9 must be duration of the test.
The word minutes is written in the space so the answer must be number.
However, like Q8, 4 numbers mentioned may confuse you:
40 minutes is the length of test in the past.
20 minutes and 10 minutes are fragments of the test so they are not the total length of time.
30 minutes is definitely the total cost so that is the answer.

10 Answer: notebook/diary

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

The keyword concerned in Q10 must be advice.
The woman asked “Do you have any more advice?”, which orients you to the answer.
Notebook might be your answer, but the later word diary is the best choice for answer.

Part 1

Part 2: Questions 11-20

Questions 11-15

Complete the sentences below.

Write ONE WORD AND/OR A NUMBER for each answer.

Mount Rushmore

The government finally paid $ 11 to complete the heads of four United States Presidents.

The purpose of the construction of the president’s heads is to develop 12

The carvings face 13 to experience maximum exposure to sunlight.

In 1885, the mountain was renamed after a 14

It took 15 years to finish the project.

11 Answer: 1 million

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

Q11:

The government finally paid $_______ to complete the heads of four United States Presidents.

The kind of information need is money. The symbol $ (dollar) is written in the blank so the answer must be number.
The phrase sculp the heads in the audio matches with complete the heads in the question.
It is noticeable that there is only a price mentioned in the talk, therefore 1 million is the answer. Because the requirement is ONE WORD AND/OR A NUMBER, you should write the word million instead of 1,000,000, which quite waste a lot of time.

12 Answer: tourism

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

Q12:

The purpose of the construction of the president’s heads is to develop ______.

The keyword concerned in Q12 is ones above.
The construction of the president’s heads is paraphrased as sculpture in the audio.
Instead of waiting for the word purpose, we should deliberately think about its synonyms and find the possible thing which is suitable for development. In this question, the speaker uses phrase as a way to develop indicating benefit, which is the information we needed.
Hence, the answer is tourism.

13 Answer: southeast/south-east

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

Q13:

The carvings face ______ to experience maximum exposure to sunlight.

You may find it hard to predict what type of information needed in this question. A direction needs to point out.
The keyword fits word by word in both question and audio, and there is only a direction in this speech
For this reason, south-east is the answer.

14 Answer: lawyer

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

In 1885, the mountain was renamed after a_______.

The year 1885 helps you locate when the answer comes.
You may confuse whether the name Chales E. Rushmore or the whole phrase a prominent New York lawyer. However, you need to notice that article “a” is before the space and the requirement is ONE WORD only.
For that reason, the answer is simply lawyer.

15 Answer: 7/seven

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

Q15:

It took ______ years to finish the project.

Unarguably, a number needs filling in this blank.

There are two number mentioned: forty and seven. Any misunderstanding could lead to uncorrect answer:
Forty years indicates when the mountain was renamed, but not finishes the project.
Combining with keyword, seven years exposes to be the time need to complete the project.
Hence, the answer is seven.

Questions 16 -20

Label the map below.

Write the correct letter, A-E, next to questions 16-20.

RAT 3 listening-2.png

16 information centre

17 refreshment centre

18 gift shop

19 workshop

20 visitor centre

16 Answer: A

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

Q16:

There is only one location on the left. Hence, A is where information centre is located

17 Answer: C

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

Q17:

The refreshment centre is said to be in front of the speakers. You may don’t know it is exactly C or E, which are both right in front the arrow.
But then, the speak says that the gift shop is just right not far up the trail.
Hence, we can claim the the refreshment centre (Q17) is inarguably C.

18 Answer: E

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

Q18:

Following question 17, we can easily find the answer for question 18. The gift shop in the map is located at E
19 Answer: D

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

Q19:

E is giftshop, so the building behind it (worskshop) must be D
20 Answer: B
Listen from here Locate Explain Report
Q20:

Look at the map, B is nearly the highest that we need to walk up.

For that reason, visitor centre is located in B.

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Part 2

Part 3: Questions 21-30

Questions 21-25

Choose the correct letter, A, B or C.

Why does the student want to study Tourism?

A good future
B good pay
C parents’ will

Answer: A

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

Q21:

Why does the student want to study Tourism?

Three alternatives are all mentioned in the audio. Any misunderstading may guide you to wrong answer.
B – good pay. The speaker says “I will not be able to get a well-paid job with a degree in Tourism ”, which means she won’t have much money if doing this job. So B is not the answer.
C – parent’s will. Her parents concerned, so it is not her parent’s will either. Therefore, the answer C is eliminated
A – good future. She says “I will enjoy my life is if I enjoy my career. Happiness is far more important than money”. It means tourism would uplift her life, which matches with the alternative. For that reason, The answer is A

What kind of skill will the student gain in the course?

A time-management
B financial planning
C note-taking

Answer: B

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

Q22:

What kind of skill will the student gain in the course?

A – time management. This is just the man’s advice for the woman to take a sideline course, but is not something involved in the course.
C – note-taking. There is no information about it.
B – financial planning. The man says “A large part of the Tourism course is dedicated to teaching students how to manage finances, a skill that you can apply to your everyday life as well”, indicating that the course involves this skills. For that reason, the answer is B

The student has the ability of

A independence.
B communication
C coping well with statistics.

Answer: A

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

Q23:

The student has the ability of ___

Three alternatives are all mentioned in the audio. Any misunderstading leads to incorrect answer.
B – communication skills. It is just an example for a skill which some students have natural talents that really help them to succeed in the course. Hence, this is not the woman’s ability.
The man’s question “Do you have any strengths?” orients us to the correct answer because strengths mean ability.
C – coping well with statistics. The woman says that she is good at math, but she finds statistics quite difficult , contradicting to the alternative coping well with statistics. Hence, C is also not the correct answer
A – independence. She says “I have always been very capable and selfsufficient. I have a lot of confidence in my abilities and will take the initiative in situations without needing to depend on anyone else for their help”. The talk and the alternative match each other. For that reason, the answer is A.

The teacher believes that the industry of tourism is

A shrinking
B seeing a bright future.
C growing popular.

Answer: C

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

Q24:

The teacher believes that the industry of tourism is

A – shrinking. This is just thoughts of a lot of people who are uneducated on the subject, not including the teacher, because after that, he says the truth is quite the opposite. Therefore, A is not the answer
B – seeing a bright future. This information is Not given
C – growing popular. This is true because the tourism industry is said to grown significantly as people have developed an ever - increasing interest in culture and travel. For that reason, The answer is C

How does the student compare the university course with polytechnics?

A There are summer schools.
B The course is structured in modules.
C The price is reasonable.

Answer: C

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

Q25:

How does the student compare the university course with polytechnics?

A – There are summer schools. This is just the student’s consideration, not the comparison between university course and polytechnics.
B – The course is structured in modules. The speaker says “I was interested in studying the course in modules. However, the university doesn’t offer that option”, so B is also eliminated
C – The price is reasonable. The two phrases the price is reasonable and the course is quite affordable have the same meaning, so the answer is C

Questions 26-30

What feature do the speakers identify for each of the following courses?

Choose FIVE answers from the box and write the correct letters, A-G, next to questions 26-30.

	Features
A	limited value
B	useful
C	relevant to career
D	flexible admission
E	intensive
F	improving leadership
G	self-control and time management

Courses

26 Travel and Business

27 Japanese

28 Medical Care

29 Computer

30 Public Relations

26 Answer: E

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

Q26:

This course is difficult and demands a lot of time, so it is intensive. Therefore, the answer is E

27 Answer: A

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

Q27:

The speaker says this course is interesting and teaches valuable skills, but then, he says it could be of some help, but not that much. For that reason, the answer must be A – limited value

28 Answer: B

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

Q28:

Medical Care

The question What about Medical Care? helps you locate the answer.
After interpreting, the speaker says that is useful. Hence, the answer is apparently B

29 Answer: D

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

Q29:

Computer

The answer is D – flexible admission because the speaker says that computing is relaxed about skills that applicants must possess if they are worried about the entry requirements.

30 Answer: C

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

Q30:

Once again, the question helps you locate the information (How about Public Relations? )
Works like approaching clients and developing associations with them are related to tourism. Hence, the answer is D – relevant to career

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Part 3

Part 4: Questions 31-40

Questions 31-40

Complete the notes below.

Write NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS for each answer.

Company Outsourcing

Case study - TCP Technologies:

• Manager: Manjeet Khanna

• Main target: to create a 31 environment

Grading for staff:

• Every month grades are published on an 32

• The cultural openness increased the quantity of incoming contracted opportunities.

• The cultural openness improved the level of 33 of the company.

• The increased rate of staff satisfaction has led to growth of 32% in the 34

Recent interview:

• A company is not one entity comprised of components, but a living organism composed of cells.

• Manjeet’s motto is 35

Benefits of management style:

• The rate of staff turnover has been reduced.

• A 36 can be from any other company.

• Grades are not used for 37

Features of managing style:

• Personally, the manager wrote emails to respond to the complaints.

• The complaint form known as a 38 has access to all employees online.

• The manager can receive any complaints concerning air conditioning, food quality and 39 entitlement.

• A 40 on the anonymous complaint was introduced in the new system.

31 Answer: democratic

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

Q31:

Manager: Manjeet Khanna. Main target: to create a _______ environment

A long speech may make you neglect. The name of the manager Manjeet Khanna helps you know that it is nearly to the speech of Q31
The speaker explain the workplace as workplace where each individual member has the opportunity to contribute their opinion to the operations of the company. This phrase is simply shorten as democratic at the end. Additionally, an adjective is needed in the space so democratic is the answer

32 Answer: internal website

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

Q32:

Every month grades are published on an _________

The keywords concerned are every month and grade.
A location as a singular noun is required, so after comparing all the keywords, the answer must be internal website.

33 Answer: transparency

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

Q33:

The cultural openness increased the quantity of incoming contracted opportunities.

The cultural openness improved the level of _________ the company.

The previous statement of Q33 (increased the quantity of incoming contracted opportunities) appears, so the answer of Q33 must follow it.
The phrase had not before been apparent means improve, so the subject of that sentence is the answer.
For that reason, the answer is transparency.

34 Answer: (company’s) income

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

Q34:

The increased rate of staff satisfaction has led to growth of 32% in the ______

The keywords are increased rate of staff satisfaction and percentage 32%.
Because of the requirement which is NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS and consideration, the answer is company’s income.

35 Answer: employee first

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

Q35:

A company is not one entity comprised of components, but a living organism composed of cells.

Manjeet’s motto is ____

The previous statement of Q35 appears (A company must see itself not as one entity comprised of nameless components, but instead as a living organism composed of cells), the speech about Q35 follows that.
The keyword concerned in the question is motto.
The answer is obviously employee first.

36 Answer: solution

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

Q36:

A _________ from any other company.

From the question, we can assume that A singular noun is needed to fill in the space.
The phrase can come from any other company appears, the answer is solution.

37 Answer: promotion

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

Q37:

Grades are not used for ______

The keywords concerned are grade and is not used for.
Measuring system is grade, cannot be used as means is not just for. Hence, the noun promotion following that phrase is the answer.

38 Answer: ticket

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

Q38:

The complaint form known as a _______ access to all employees online.

Access to all employees online is keyword.
The article “a” helps us know that a singular noun is needed. After comparing all the keywords, the answer is ticket.

39 Answer: vacation

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

Q39:

The manager can receive any complaints concerning air conditioning, food quality and ______

entitlement.

The keywords are air conditioning, food quality.
After two keywords are mentioned, the next thing is the answer. And the word attached to entitlement is the answer. Hence, vacation is the answer

40 Answer: ban

Listen from here Locate Explain Report

Q40:

A _____ on the anonymous complaint was introduced in the new system.

The keywords are anonymous complaints, the new system, was introduced
From the question, we can assume that the answer for Q40 must be a noun.
Keywords are mentioned, the new system has put has the same meaning as was introduced in new system. Hence, the answer is ban

Part 4

Change Audio Sources

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SECTION 1

OLIVIA: Hi Zach! I heard you passed your driving test! Congratulations!

ZACH: Thanks Olivia! I passed just last week. It feels great to be independent and driving on my own!

OLIVIA: I really want to take driving lessons, but I haven’t been able to find a driving school that will give lessons during the weekends so that I don’t have to miss any classes at college.

ZACH: The driving school that I used was brilliant and really flexible with their teaching hours. It’s really close to school. The address is 67 King’s Road - that’s 67-KING-apostrophe-S Road.

OLIVIA: Oh that’s perfect! I don’t like the idea of driving around busy streets. Did your teacher make you drive in urban areas or did he mainly teach you on roads in the countryside?

ZACH: My teacher said that I had to learn on both in order to become a good and experienced driver. We would start in the city centre and then drive north above the city.

OLIVIA: He sounds like a good teacher. Would you mind giving me his contact details so I can ask him for lessons?

ZACH: Of course! My mother’s friend Daniel Smith referred me to him. His name is Allen Sutcliffe.

OLIVIA: Could you spell the surname please?

ZACH: S-U-T-C-L-I-double F-E.

OLIVIA: Thanks for helping me out, I’ll give him a call tomorrow. I don’t know if I should learn in a manual or automatic car. How do I decide?

ZACH: I wasn’t sure which type of car to learn in either. In the end I chose to learn in a manual car because once you’ve learnt how to drive manually you can drive automatic as well. Most cars on the road are automatic nowadays.

OLIVIA: OK, I think I’ll learn with a manual car too then. Hopefully the teacher will be able to give me lessons in the evenings after school!

ZACH: It would be much better if you take the lessons during the day. It will be far easier for you to learn when there is enough daylight to clearly see everything going on around you. But you need to be an experienced driver to drive safely at night.

OLIVIA: How frustrating! I was hoping I wouldn’t have to take lessons during the weekends! You’re right though, safety comes first!

ZACH: Speaking of safety, you should wait until summer to start learning! It’s really difficult and dangerous to drive in the wind and rain as a learner so you should definitely wait until the weather is sunny and dry.

OLIVIA: OK, that’s perfect, actually! It will give me some time to save up some money to pay for the lessons.

ZACH: Tell me about it! I had to work for months before I had enough money saved up! It was worth all the work when I finally got my driving license though!

OLIVIA: The whole process is so expensive! How much did it cost you in the end?

ZACH: Well, each half hour lesson cost $30 and then the final test cost $50. In total it cost me about $300.

OLIVIA: Gosh, it’s pretty expensive! How did you find the test? Was it really difficult?

ZACH: No, it wasn’t too bad, and the man was really calm and friendly. I knew that I would have to perform two parking manoeuvres during the test, so I practised them a lot beforehand and that really helped! The test used to last 40 minutes, but it changed a bit. For the first 20 minutes of the test he gave me directions and I had to just drive around and then the last 10 minutes was for demonstrating the manoeuvres, so the test is 30 minutes in total.

OLIVIA: OK, great, I’ll remember that! Do you have any more advice?

ZACH: It’s really good to practise driving a lot outside of driving lessons as well. Whenever my parents were running errands on the weekends I would offer to drive them. My driving teacher also told me to buy a notebook to write down everything that I’ve learnt in it like a diary.

OLIVIA: Haha, that sounds boring, but I’ll do it if it helps.

ZACH: I found it really useful! Before my test I read through everything I had written down and it reminded me of a lot of things that I had forgotten about! It’s really helpful for the theory test as well because there’s so much information to remember for it.

OLIVIA: That’s great, Zach! Thanks for your help!

ZACH: No problem, see you at school!

OLIVIA: Bye!

SECTION 2

Good morning, everybody and welcome to Mount Rushmore! To start your visit I’m just going to give you a brief account of the history of the memorial before letting you roam about on your own. I won’t keep you long. OK?

Mount Rushmore is South Dakota’s top tourist attraction and features the heads of four United States Presidents - George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln. Each head is 18 metres tall, which is taller than the heights of eleven people combined! The sculptor initially wanted to depict the presidents from head to waist, but due to a lack of funding the construction had to stop before this vision could be realised. In total it cost the government $1 million to sculpt the heads at Mount Rushmore.

Before the construction of the presidents’ heads, the mountain was just bare rock and forest attracting only a few hikers a year. The new carving at Mount Rushmore has become an iconic symbol of presidential greatness and has appeared in works of fiction and other popular works. The sculpture has also worked perfectly as a way to develop tourism, which was its intended purpose, and now attracts over two million people a year.

The original plan was to carve the Presidents’ faces into the granite pillars known as ‘The Needles’, however the sculptor soon realised that these rocks were too eroded and delicate to support such a large sculpture. Instead he chose to locate the carving at Mount Rushmore due to its grand appearance and brightly lit rock faces that experience maximum exposure to sunlight throughout the day as a result of the south-east orientation. Upon seeing Mount Rushmore, the sculptor declared ‘America will march along that skyline.’

The name of Mount Rushmore also has an interesting history. The location was originally known as the Six Grandfathers, however during an expedition in 1885 the mountain was renamed after Charles E. Rushmore, a prominent New York lawyer who joked that his annual treks to the mountain had earned him the right to have it named after him. Forty years after the mountain was renamed, Charles E. Rushmore donated $5,000 towards the sculpting of the president’s heads -the largest single contribution. In 1927 the construction work started and seven years later was complete with no fatalities.

So that’s the history for you. If you’d like any more information, please feel free to ask me questions, or you can soak up the information from our fantastic guide book.

Now I’m going to give you a plan of the site and I’d just like to point out where everything is so that you can explore everything for yourself. We’re currently standing at the entrance, which is marked with the arrow on the map. If you follow the trail up to our left, you will find the information centre. There’s a great photo booth there where you can have your photograph taken with Mount Rushmore in the background for a fee of only $10 - what a great souvenir! In front of us is the refreshment centre where you can help yourselves to coffee, locally grown tea and a delicious selection of cold drinks and biscuits. Be sure to stay hydrated as it can get really hot up here! To our right not far up the trail is the gift shop. Here we sell copies of the guide book and it’s also the perfect place to pick up some small souvenirs for yourself, your family and friends. Now further up the trail behind the gift shop is a big stone building with a workshop. This is where all of our souvenirs are made by hand, which you can purchase in the gift shop like I said before. Some are even carved from pieces of rock taken from Mount Rushmore itself! If you carry on walking up the trail past the workshop you’ll find our state of the art visitor centre where you can find maps of the walking trails here at Mount Rushmore. Now for the real treat! After you have walked past the visitor centre, you can follow the trail up to the left, which will take you to our wooden shelter. From here you will have the best view of Mount Rushmore that there is - an experience not be forgotten!

Right, if anyone wants a guided tour then I’m starting at the information centre. If you’d like to follow me, this way please.

SECTION 3

CHARLOTTE: Excuse me, Dr Twain. May I speak with you for a minute?

DR TWAIN: Of course, please come in.

CHARLOTTE: I’m Charlotte York. I’m considering taking your course in Tourism.

DR TWAIN: Right. Well, Charlotte, how can I help you?

CHARLOTTE: I have been considering studying Tourism, however, it is such an important decision that I would like to seek some advice about it first. Would you mind answering some of my questions?

DR TWAIN: Absolutely, fire away!

CHARLOTTE: Well I have been discussing courses with my parents and they are concerned that I will not be able to get a well-paid job with a degree in Tourism. The reason that I want to study the course is that I have a great interest in the subject and I think I would really enjoy it. I believe the only way that I will enjoy my life is if I enjoy my career. Happiness is far more important than money, don’t you think?

DR TWAIN: Absolutely. I would much rather be happy and poor rather than rich and miserable. Money cannot buy you happiness.

CHARLOTTE: I’m glad you agree.

DR TWAIN: You needn’t worry about money, Charlotte. A large part of the Tourism course is dedicated to teaching students how to manage finances, a skill that you can apply to your everyday life as well. I would also recommend that you take a sideline course in time management, as this can be incredibly useful in efficiently planning your workload. Efficiency is the key to success!

CHARLOTTE: I’ll remember that.

DR TWAIN: Now I have found that some students have natural talents that really help them to succeed in the course. Communication skills, for example, can be very beneficial. Do you have any strengths?

CHARLOTTE: Maths was always my favourite subject at school so I really enjoy solving mathematical problems, however I find statistics quite difficult. I have always been very capable and selfsufficient. I have a lot of confidence in my abilities and will take the initiative in situations without needing to depend on anyone else for their help.

DR TWAIN: That’s a really great quality to have and will be particularly useful if you choose to study Tourism.

CHARLOTTE: That’s great.

DR TWAIN: I would recommend that you spend some of your time researching the course. A lot of people who are uneducated on the subject claim that Tourism is a shrinking industry and that it will become irrelevant in the future. If you study the published research however, you will see that the truth is quite the opposite. The industry has, in fact, grown significantly as people have developed an ever-increasing interest in culture and travel. Have you compared the university course with a polytechnic?

CHARLOTTE: Yes, I have. I was interested in studying the course in modules. However, the university doesn’t offer that option. I don’t have enough funds to be able to attend an expensive university, so I was relieved to see that the course is quite affordable. I also considered attending a summer school instead of university to save money and so that I could work during the rest of the year, but I really wanted the university experience.

DR TWAIN: I think that university would suit you well.

DR TWAIN: Now, what about the courses? Are you interested in any of the

other subjects on offer?

MELANI E: I have looked at a few. I was interested in Travel and Business as it sounds similar to Tourism.

DR TWAIN: That is really worth learning, however, be aware that it is difficult and will demand a lot of your time.

MELANIE: OK, that’s good to know.

DR TWAIN: You might find that Japanese is an interesting course and it will teach you valuable skills in speaking the language. Personally, it’s not bad and could be of some help, but not that much.

MELANIE: OK, Japanese, got that.. .What about Medical Care?

DR TWAIN: Well, if you have time, the course will teach you a lot about curing diseases and illnesses, or dealing with injuries outside, although it’s not essential.

CHARLOTTE: So, OK, if it’s useful, I’ll take it.

DR TWAIN: If you enjoy using technology and are worried about fulfilling the entry requirements, computing is very relaxed about the skills that applicants must possess.

CHARLOTTE: I’m terrible with computers so I’m not sure that I would enjoy that course. How about Public Relations?

DR TWAIN: Yes, I would recommend that course. It would be related to entering the Tourism industry as it will educate you on how to approach clients and develop associations with them.

CHARLOTTE: That’s great! Thank you so much for your help!

SECTION 4

Welcome class to your very first lecture in this series on Business in the Modern World conducted by myself, Dr Toby Bennett. Today we will be looking into the practice of company outsourcing, using TCP Technologies as a case study. Now, for those of you who are unfamiliar with this practice, I will give you a summative definition: company outsourcing involves the contracting of various business activities by one company to another. This practice will sometimes occur from a western company to a party based in a third world country, the rationale being to make significant financial savings on lower international labour rates and to potentially increase quality.

Now, our case study for today is TCP Technologies - a party located in India that receives outsourced tasks from western companies. The manager of TCP Technologies is a man called Manjeet Khanna who has personally developed a series of aims and philosophies by which the company is expected to operate. He claims that the most important of these philosophies is to create a workplace where each individual member has the opportunity to contribute their opinion to the operations of the company. That is to say that he found it important to develop a democratic environment.

As a means of ensuring quality from every individual at TCP Technologies, a grading system has been developed that encourages an ethos of hard work and recognises accomplishment. This grading of individuals is based upon a series of factors such as turnover, hours worked and efficiency. Every month Khanna publishes the grades on an internal website where staff can access not only their own grades, but also compare it to others. A spirit of playful competitiveness has developed through this method, which has resulted in increased efficiency and turnover across the company.

Khanna also saw it as essential to develop a culturally diverse group of employees as a means of presenting a multi-faceted image that would appeal to a host of potential employees from across the globe. This cultural openness has not only increased the quantity of incoming contracted opportunities by 7%, but has also benefitted the company itself significantly. A level of transparency now exists that had not before been apparent. According to questionnaires carried out recently, these newly introduced measures have significantly increased the rate of staff satisfaction, which has subsequently led to an increase of 32% in the company’s income.

These figures are truly admirable and serve as a testament to the measures that Khanna has introduced to the workplace at TCP Technologies. In a recent interview published by the Economist, he declared, ‘The figures speak for themselves - my system works!’ When asked if he had any advice for companies on methods they could employ to streamline workflow and increase turnover, he replied, “It’s simple, really. A company must see itself not as one entity comprised of nameless components, but instead as a living organism composed of cells, each one essential to the functioning of the whole. I suggest that the motto by which your management operates will be ‘employee first’.”

Many benefits have been reaped from the aforementioned changes in management style, such as a significant decrease in staff turnover. This improvement alone has solved many problems that had before stunted the growth of the company. A lot of these improvements came from the realisation that the solution does not have to be produced internally, but can come from any other company. The grading system also immeasurably enhanced the dynamics of the company. The fact that this measuring system is solely produced for staff members and inaccessible by management means that it cannot be used as a judging criterion for promotion. It has proven itself a relaxed and informal means of stimulating workflow.

When asked about specific features of his managing style, Khanna mentioned that it is important for him to respond personally to any complaints filed by staff members. Having found the existing complaints process slow and ineffective, he introduced a new online system that created a direct line of communication between Khanna and all employees of the company. The complaint form, dubbed by Khanna as a ticket, eradicates the middleman, is easily accessible to all employees online and has an interface that can be instinctively navigated. Any staff-related complaint, such as those relating to air conditioning and food quality, can be submitted directly to Khanna via this online system. Entitlement to vacation is also a popular issue discussed through this forum. The main benefit of using this system is that staff must include their personal details on the ticket before they are able to submit it. In the past, anonymous complaints had been at the root of much confusion and caused many wasted work hours, so the new system has put a ban on this form of complaint.

That wraps up the lecture for today. Please remember that attendance is mandatory... (fade out)

IELTS Recent Mock Tests Volume 3

Part 1: Question 1 - 10

Part 2: Question 11 - 20

Part 3: Question 21 - 30

Part 4: Question 31 - 40

Questions 1-10

Driving school

Questions 11-15

Mount Rushmore

Questions 16 -20

Questions 21-25

Questions 26-30

Questions 31-40

Company Outsourcing

SECTION 1

SECTION 2

SECTION 3

SECTION 4

Comments:

About us

Our mission

IELTS Recent Mock Tests Volume 3

Part 1: Question 1 - 10

Part 2: Question 11 - 20

Part 3: Question 21 - 30

Part 4: Question 31 - 40

Share your score

Questions 1-10

Driving school

Questions 11-15

Mount Rushmore

Questions 16 -20

Questions 21-25

Questions 26-30

Questions 31-40

Company Outsourcing

SECTION 1

SECTION 2

SECTION 3

SECTION 4

Comments:

About us

Our mission