Work
Describe a time when you worked in a team.
You should say:
- what the activity was
- who you worked with you
- how easy or difficult it was
- And explain how you felt about being part of this team.
Model Answer
I’d like to talk about a team project that I was involved in during my “British and American culture” class at the Foreign Trade University in Hanoi. There were six of us on the team, and our task was to identify the differences in the travelling habits of British and American tourists. Our objective was to produce a report and give a presentation.
So the first thing we did was split into two groups of three. We had to conduct a survey, so three of us spent some time designing a questionnaire while the other three prepared an outline for the report. One of the difficulties we encountered was finding enough people for the survey because we needed 50 British and 50 Americans. But thanks to Facebook, we were able to reach enough people from those countries who were willing to help us out and fill in the online survey. In the end, I think it was a successful project because we were able to figure out the main travelling patterns of people from the US and the UK. Our group presentation also went really well.
It was really a memorable experience for all of us and I felt a real sense of accomplishment when we handed in our report and delivered our presentation. But what I was most proud of was how well our team worked together. There were still some minor tiffs between some of the team members, but overall I think each member showed a good level of responsibility and teamwork.
Vocabulary Highlights
- involved in – a part of
- travelling habits – the common places that people go or common things they do on holiday
- conduct a survey – to organise and get answers for a set of questions to find out information
- questionnaire – a list of questions
- figure out – to understand or to calculate
- a memorable experience – an experience that you will remember for a long time
- a real sense of accomplishment – the feeling when you achieve a goal or something important
- delivered our presentation – to give or show something
- tiff – a small argument
Describe a place where you want to work.
You should say:
- where it is
- what kind of work you would like to do
- when you would like to work there
- And explain why you want to work in this place.
Model Answer
Well, the place that I have always wanted to work but have yet had the chance to visit is Tokyo, the capital city of Japan.
I have been dreaming to work in this city ever since I learned about it from a travel and lifestyle channel. And even though it is considered as a major cosmopolitan city, I’m always amazed at its ability to preserve the cultural aspect of Japan. The existence of such marvellous temples in the centre of the city, or the sight of Japanese women wearing kimonos just seems quite amazing to me. Apart from this, the city where I live, Hanoi, is currently suffering from a serious air pollution problem, so it would be a nice break to be able to find a job in one of the cleaner countries in the world.
Recently, there have been many agencies and organizations that help to assist undergraduates or newly-graduated students to find employment in Japan, and so if everything goes according to plan, in about 6 months I will start working as a marketing intern for an English centre located in Ginza, which is one of the busiest streets in Tokyo. Fingers crossed that everything goes according to plan and I am able to enter a completely new phase in my life.
Vocabulary Highlights
- cosmopolitan – containing people or things from many different parts of the world
- cultural aspect – to do with the ideas, beliefs, traditions and behaviour of a society
- marvellous – extremely good
- kimonos – traditional Japanese clothing
- undergraduates – students who have not yet graduated from university yet
- goes according to plan – follows the plan
- fingers crossed – a phrase that is used to wish for good luck
- enter a completely new phase in my life – to start a new big change in your life eg. a new job or move to a new city