Academic Writing Task 1 · pie chart

Weekly journal article reading habits of university students and staff

The pie charts below illustrate the number of journal articles read per week by all students, PhD students, and junior lecturers at an Australian university.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant. Write at least 150 words.

Number of journal articles read by all students (%)
  • 1 to 5: 67%
  • 6 to 11: 21%
  • 12+: 12%
View the data
CategoryValue (%)
1 to 567
6 to 1121
12+12
Number of journal articles read by PhD students (%)
  • 1 to 5: 5%
  • 6 to 11: 15%
  • 12+: 80%
View the data
CategoryValue (%)
1 to 55
6 to 1115
12+80
Number of journal articles read by junior lecturers (%)
  • 1 to 5: 1%
  • 6 to 11: 75%
  • 12+: 24%
View the data
CategoryValue (%)
1 to 51
6 to 1175
12+24

Chart redrawn by BandLadder from the data in the original IELTS practice task. Many IELTS practice tasks come from the Cambridge IELTS series (Cambridge University Press & Assessment); all rights in the original tasks remain with their owners.

Band 8 sample answer

The three pie charts illustrate the weekly frequency of journal article reading among all students, PhD students, and junior lecturers at an Australian university. Overall, it is clear that reading habits vary significantly across these groups, with PhD students and junior lecturers demonstrating much higher engagement with academic literature than the general student population.

For all students, the vast majority (67%) read between 1 and 5 articles per week. Only 21% read 6 to 11 articles, while a minority of 12% read 12 or more. In stark contrast, PhD students show a strong preference for high-volume reading; 80% of this group read 12 or more articles weekly. Only 15% read between 6 and 11, and a negligible 5% read between 1 and 5.

Junior lecturers occupy a middle ground regarding high-volume reading but are the most consistent group in the moderate category. Three-quarters (75%) of junior lecturers read between 6 and 11 articles per week, while 24% read 12 or more. Only 1% of this group read between 1 and 5 articles, making them the least likely to read the lowest number of journals.

184 words. Every figure in the answer comes from the chart above.

How to write about pie charts

illustrate
to show or demonstrate something using visual aids
vast majority
a very large proportion of a total group
stark contrast
a very clear and obvious difference between things
negligible
so small or unimportant that it is ignored
middle ground
a position between two extreme or different options
high-volume
involving a large quantity or amount of something

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Frequently asked questions

What should the overview say?

PhD students and junior lecturers read significantly more articles per week than the general student body, with the majority of the former group reading 12 or more articles and the latter group primarily reading between 6 and 11.

How long should an IELTS Task 1 answer be?

At least 150 words; 170 to 200 is the safe range. Spend about 20 minutes on it and leave 40 for Task 2, which carries twice the marks.

How do I describe pie charts?

Name the largest and smallest shares in the overview. Use proportion language: a quarter, just under half, the majority. With two pies, compare the same slice across both.

More pie charts