Describe your first day at work or study

IELTS Cue Card Sample 81 – Describe your first day at work or study

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Last Updated: Thursday, 20 February 2020 11:58

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IELTS Speaking Part 2: IELTS Cue Card/ Candidate Task Card.

Describe your first day at work or the place where you study.

You should say:

•   what kind of building it was located in
•   why it was important for you to work/study there
•   how you felt at the end of the first day

and explain if you were pleased or disappointed with the experience.

Model Answer 1:

Experiencing the first day at work, or where one studied for the first time can always be a unique one. I don’t think that I will be able to remember about the experience of studying at a place where I studied for the first time, because it was a long time ago, but I can certainly remember my first day at work of my current job.

I will start with the description of what kind of building it was located in. My first impression of the building was that it was a rather tall building even though it had only 10 storeys. I think I felt like that, probably, because most of the other buildings around it were not more than 5 or 6 storeys. Occupying entire floor, which was no less than 3000 square feet in size, my IT firm was located on the 3rd floor. The building has both the stairs and lift facilities even though I felt that the stairs were just a bit too stiff to climb for a regular person.

The great thing about the building was that each of its floors was fully equipped with fire extinguishing tools, and they all had large windows in order to allow enough natural light and air. Built with a rather simple architectural plan, this building was closed to a busy commercial area, and it was painted with a cream colour. My office was also fully equipped with all kind of modern facilities. However, regardless of the building, it was important for me to work there because I was offered a full-time job there, and a good one in that.  

Anyway, at the end of my first day at work in that building, I felt like it was a perfect facility to work in because the overall working environment there was really nice.  
 
I was pleased with my first-day work experience in that building. It was a modern facility with all kinds of amenities, and it offered a nice working environment, with very limited noise from the activities and commotion outside of the building.

Sample Answer 2:

I am currently working in a company and I still remember the first day of my job. This is my second job and I have worked for the first company for about 2 years. After I finished my graduation I applied in some companies and was interviewed by them. One day I got a call from the HR head of the company that, I have been hired and expected to join them from the next Sunday. I was very excited and happy to get the job.

I did my preparation part to start the office and reached the office 30 minutes earlier. The office was in a 10 story building and the office was on the 6th floor. They had more than 90 employees. This was a modern building with a big yard in front of it.

Then I contacted the HR head and submitted my academic and other relevant documents. The HR asked me to sit on a couch and after 30 minutes or so, he returned. In the meantime, I noticed other employees arrived and went to their work desks. Most of them looked at me and one person asked me if I am waiting for someone. I explained that I was joining from that day and he congratulated me. I was feeling a little bit nervous and noticed that my heart was beating faster! The messenger came to me and offered me a cup of coffee. After the HR head came back, he gave 2-3 forms including the contact papers and asked me to read them all and fill up the forms. I read the papers and filled up the forms and gave them to the HR Manager. He then took me to some of the key employees and introduced me to them. Then he showed me my desk and I sat over there. Since this was the first day of my office, I did not have any particular task. I started feeling easy after I sat on the desk and started using the computer. The computer was pre-configured and I went through the company website and learned lots of new information about their service and product offerings.

I took my lunch in a nearby cafeteria and came back to my desk again. Thus the clock ticked to 5:30 pm and I noticed others were leaving. I asked the HR Manager and left with some of the employees.

I felt very comfortable at the end of the day and the hesitation I had has been removed and I was happy for the reason that the office environment and colleagues were very friendly.

Tips for answering this Cue Card topic:

If you are a student, you should talk about your first-day experience at the college/university you are studying currently. For the job holders, it is expected that they would talk about their first-day experience in their office. The cue card questions added with the cue card question guides you on which topics you should speak about.

For the first question ‘what kind of building was it located in’, you should give details of the area where the university/office was located. Give brief details of the premises and then mention particularly what type of building it was. Mention the following points:

• How many building were there?
• How many levels the building had?
• Which floor you went first and stayed?
• Where your class was located/ office desk was?
• How was the environment?

Now move on to the second question and give your reason for your study or the job. This is a bit tricky question as you would have to be very much convincing here. Mention that, the study/job was very important because you have been waiting a long to have this. The students should mention some important factors about having a higher degree and the job holders should explain that this was a job, s/he was eagerly waiting to start. Education is important to enlighten someone’s mind and to prepare him/ her to become a successful person in life. In today’s world, education is a must and no alternative can fulfil this. For the job holders, the job is the source for their daily bread and a way to implement the theoretical knowledge s/he has learned throughout the academic years. It is also the way to serve other people and to get engaged in work.

For the third question “how did you feel at the end of the first day” mention that it was better than you initially expected! At the beginning of the day, you had anxiety and tension but on the day you found out that it was a good day so far. You found the classmates/ colleagues very friendly and helpful, the work/ study environment was pleasant and you actually enjoyed there a lot.

Also mention that the first day at work/ study place is always a great concern in terms of new people, new environment and everything was fine for you and at the end of the day you felt relieved and happy about the day.  

You have already mentioned your experience of the first day at work/ study in the third question and that’s why you need to draw a summary for the last question “explain if you were pleased or disappointed with the experience.” Unless you have specifically mentioned previously that it was a bad experience and you had lots of troubles, you should mention that it was a pleasant day and you had been delighted with your experience of your first day at work/ study.

Similar Cue Card Topics:

1. Describe your workplace.
2. Describe a college/ university where you studied.
3. Describe some pleasant experience you recently have had.
4. Describe a beautiful building.
5. Describe a positive experience you have.
6. Describe a stressful day you had.
7. Describe a busy day you had.