Part 2 cue cardSkills and success

Describe an important decision you have made

Every bullet is past except the outcome, which usually reaches into the present ("it has turned out well"). The marks are in "what made it difficult": weigh both sides, including what you risked losing, rather than just saying "it was hard".

1 minute to prepare
Up to 2 minutes
Samples at Band 6, 7 and 8
Updated 20 October 2026

Describe an important decision you have made.

You should say:

what the decision was
when you made it
what made it difficult
and explain how it turned out

Rehearse the long turn

1 minute to prepare · 2 minutes to speak

Sit this card with the AI examinerThen the Part 3 discussion, and a full report

A 60-second plan

what the decision wasswitched from law to architecture
when you made itsecond year, Arequipa, aged nineteen
what made it difficultfather's law practice; lost a year; fees
and explain how it turned outfourth year, competition win, Dad came round

Sample answers

234 words · about 2:02 spoken at a Band 6 pace

The most important decision I have made was to change my degree from law to architecture. I was in my second year of law at university in Arequipa, and I wasn't happy at all.

I made the decision about three years ago, when I was nineteen. During that year I noticed that I spent all my free time drawing the old buildings in the city centre, which are made from white volcanic stone, instead of read my law books. One day in a lecture about contracts I realised I was drawing a church in my notebook, and I thought, I can't do this for forty more years.

It was difficult because of several reasons. My father is a lawyer and he has his own office, and since I was a child he expected that I will work with him. When I told him, he was very disappointed and he didn't talk to me during almost two weeks. Also I lost one year, because most of my courses didn't count for architecture, and the fees was more expensive.

In the end it turned out very well. Now I'm in my fourth year and I really love what I study. Last year my team won a student competition for design a new market. My father came to the exhibition, and I could see he was proud. Now he even asks my opinion about renovating his office.

The mistakes that keep it at Band 6

instead of read my law books should be instead of reading my law books
because of several reasons should be for several reasons
he expected that I will work should be he had expected that I would work
during almost two weeks should be for almost two weeks
the fees was more expensive should be the fees were higher
for design a new market should be for designing a new market

Why this is Band 6, not Band 7

Fluency and coherence: Willing to speak at length, and there is one vivid moment ("I realised I was drawing a church in my notebook"). It stays at Band 6 because the difficulties are listed with "Also" rather than weighed against each other, and the outcome is summarised quickly.
Vocabulary: Topic vocabulary is adequate ("degree", "volcanic stone", "exhibition", "renovating"), but some choices are inaccurate: "the fees was more expensive" uses the wrong adjective for fees, and "because of several reasons" is not the usual expression. Band 7 would describe the father's reaction more precisely.
Grammar: A mix of structures with frequent errors in the more complex ones: "he expected that I will work with him" breaks the sequence of tenses, "instead of read" and "for design a new market" need gerunds, and "during almost two weeks" uses the wrong preposition for a period. That is Band 6.

Pronunciation is the fourth criterion; it is judged from your voice, so a written sample cannot show it.

269 words · about 2:04 spoken at a Band 7 pace

The biggest decision I've made so far was switching from law to architecture halfway through my degree. I'd started law at a university in Arequipa mainly because it seemed the obvious thing to do, and by my second year I was pretty miserable.

It was about three years ago, when I was nineteen. I'd noticed that whenever I had a free hour, I'd end up sketching the colonial buildings in the historic centre, built from a white volcanic stone called sillar. The turning point came in a contract law lecture, when I looked down and realised I'd drawn an entire church facade in the margins of my notes. I thought I couldn't spend the next forty years like that.

What made it so hard was mainly my father. He's a lawyer with his own practice, and he'd always taken it for granted that I'd join him one day. When I told him, he barely spoke to me for a fortnight, which was awful. On top of that, very few of my credits transferred, so I lost a year, and the architecture fees were higher, not to mention the cost of materials.

Looking back, it's turned out far better than I expected. I'm in my fourth year now and I genuinely look forward to going to class. Last year my team won a student competition to redesign local market, and my dad turned up at the exhibition without telling me. He didn't say much, but he's been asking for my opinion on his office renovation ever since, which I think is his way of saying I made the right call.

The slips

to redesign local market should be to redesign a local market

Why this is Band 7, not Band 8

Fluency and coherence: Speaks at length without effort, and the decision is anchored in a clear moment ("The turning point came in a contract law lecture"). Not Band 8 because the difficulties are still added one after another ("On top of that", "not to mention") rather than weighed against what the speaker wanted.
Vocabulary: Less common and idiomatic items used naturally: "taken it for granted", "barely spoke to me for a fortnight", "made the right call", "The turning point". Band 8 would sustain this precision; "pretty miserable" and "awful" are more everyday.
Grammar: A good range used mostly accurately: the past perfect for earlier states ("I'd noticed", "he'd always taken it for granted"), would for a past habit, the present perfect continuous ("he's been asking"). One slip, "to redesign local market", which drops an article; that is Band 7.

Pronunciation is the fourth criterion; it is judged from your voice, so a written sample cannot show it.

293 words · about 2:01 spoken at a Band 8 pace

The decision that comes to mind is leaving law to start again in architecture, which I did in the middle of my degree. I'd drifted into law at university in Arequipa largely because it was expected of me, and by my second year I was going through the motions, getting decent grades and feeling nothing at all.

That was three years ago, when I was nineteen. For months I'd been spending every spare hour wandering the historic centre with a sketchbook, drawing the colonial churches carved out of sillar, the pale volcanic stone the city's built from. The moment of truth came in a contract law seminar, when I glanced down and found I'd sketched an entire baroque doorway across two pages of notes without registering a word the lecturer had said.

The hard part was that it wasn't just my future at stake. My father runs his own law practice and had quietly assumed for twenty years that I'd take it over, so to him it felt less like a change of course than a rejection. He hardly said a word to me for two weeks. There was a practical cost as well: almost none of my credits carried over, so I had to swallow losing a year, and architecture is considerably more expensive once you factor in materials and printing.

As it turned out, it's been the best thing I've ever done. I'm now in my fourth year and I can't imagine doing anything else. Last spring my team won a student competition to redesign a neighbourhood market, and my father slipped into the exhibition unannounced. He didn't make a speech about it, but these days he asks my advice on renovating his office, and from him, that's practically an apology.

Why this is Band 8, not Band 9

Fluency and coherence: Fluent and coherent: the difficulty is weighed rather than listed ("less like a change of course than a rejection"), and the outcome closes on a precise, understated line ("that's practically an apology"). Short of Band 9 because the transition "There was a practical cost as well" is functional rather than smooth.
Vocabulary: Wide and idiomatic: "drifted into law", "going through the motions", "The moment of truth", "swallow losing a year", "once you factor in". The gap to Band 9 is the odd safe phrase, such as "the best thing I've ever done".
Grammar: Flexible and accurate: the past perfect continuous ("I'd been spending every spare hour"), a comparative structure ("less like a change of course than a rejection"), a participle clause ("without registering a word the lecturer had said"). No errors.

Pronunciation is the fourth criterion; it is judged from your voice, so a written sample cannot show it.

Rounding-off questions

Do people find it hard to make decisions?: Many do, especially young people, because there are so many options now and everyone else's choices are visible online. The fear of choosing wrongly can be worse than the decision itself.
Is it better to decide quickly or slowly?: It depends on what's at stake. Small choices are best made quickly, but for something like a degree or a job, taking time to gather information and talk to people usually pays off.