General Training Writing Task 1 · semi-formal · request

Letter to manager requesting to present conference findings

You recently attended a conference and you would like to give a presentation in your office about the information you gained by attending the conference.

Write a letter to your manager asking for permission to give a presentation. In your letter:

describe what type of presentation you have in mind
what topics it would cover and how long it would take
who should participate in the presentation and where should it be conducted

Write at least 150 words. You do not need to write any addresses. Begin your letter: Dear ...,

Band 8 sample letter

Dear Mr. Henderson,

I am writing to propose a brief session to share the key insights I gathered at the International Marketing Summit held in London last week. I believe the strategies discussed could significantly benefit our current quarterly projects.

I envisage a structured slide-deck presentation followed by an interactive Q&A session. It would cover emerging digital trends and innovative client retention techniques I learned during the workshops. I anticipate the entire session will take approximately forty-five minutes.

I recommend that the core marketing and creative teams participate, as these departments would gain the most from the new methodologies. I suggest we hold this in the main boardroom, as it is equipped with the necessary audio-visual facilities to display the data effectively.

I would appreciate your feedback on this proposal and your availability to attend. Thank you for considering this opportunity to disseminate knowledge across the team.

Yours sincerely,

Jonathan Smith

151 words. Names and details are invented; write your own.

Why this scores well

This letter achieves Band 8 by addressing all bullet points with specific, logical details while maintaining a consistently professional and polite semi-formal tone. A common Band 6 mistake is failing to provide a specific location or duration, which leaves the request too vague for a manager to approve.

Write to someone you know but not closely, such as a manager, landlord or neighbour, using their title and surname.
Polite and friendly at once: a few contractions are fine, slang is not. Close with Yours sincerely or Kind regards.
State the purpose in the first two sentences; small talk costs words you need for the bullets.

Useful phrases from the letter

insights: deep understanding or important information about a topic
envisage: to imagine or expect something as a possibility
emerging: becoming apparent, important, or prominent recently
methodologies: a system of methods used in a particular area
disseminate: to spread information or knowledge widely
audio-visual: relating to both hearing and sight equipment

Write your own and get a band

Answer this prompt in a timed General Training writing test and get a band for task achievement, coherence, vocabulary and grammar, with the sentences to fix.

Practise IELTS General writing

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Frequently asked questions

Is this letter formal or informal?

Semi-formal. Write to someone you know but not closely, such as a manager, landlord or neighbour, using their title and surname.

How long should an IELTS General Training letter be?

At least 150 words, and 160 to 200 is the comfortable range. Spend about 20 minutes on it and leave 40 for Task 2, which carries twice the marks.