A C1 Advanced report presents information to a reader who needs it in order to decide something: what a trip achieved, how a facility is used, what a survey found. The writing is neutral and organised, and the opinion, if any, comes at the end and is clearly labelled as a recommendation.
The reader has a decision to make. Knowing what that decision is tells you which findings matter and what the final recommendation should be about.
Three headings drawn from the prompt, plus an introduction and a conclusion, is the whole structure. Doing this first makes it almost impossible to leave a bullet unanswered.
‘This report is based on a survey of forty members and sets out their views on the new opening hours.’ Purpose and evidence in one sentence.
Keep the body factual. If something was unpopular, say how many people said so, not how bad it is. Your evaluation belongs in the final section where the reader expects it.
‘A large majority’, ‘roughly a third’, ‘a small minority’. These are accurate, easy to write correctly and do not commit you to figures you then have to keep consistent.
If a section is covering catering and parking, it needs to be two sections. Headings promise the reader what a section contains, and a section that breaks that promise is harder to follow.
The reader should be able to trace it back. A recommendation that appears from nowhere reads as an opinion and loses the coherence marks the rest of the report earned.
On the final read, look for words such as ‘terrible’, ‘ridiculous’ or ‘nobody likes’. Replace each with a neutral statement of what was found. This single pass often lifts a report a band.
Not thisThe canteen is awful and everybody hates it.
ThisA large majority of respondents were dissatisfied with the canteen.
A report reports. Emotive generalisation costs both register marks and credibility with the reader.
Not this87.4 per cent of the 233 students surveyed replied.
ThisAlmost nine out of ten of those surveyed replied.
Invented precision is hard to sustain and easy to contradict later. Proportions in words are safer and read better.
Not thisWriting the report as a continuous essay with no headings.
ThisUsing headings drawn from the prompt.
Headings are expected in this genre and they make coverage of the bullets visible at a glance.
Not thisI think the club should definitely buy new equipment because it is old.
ThisIt is recommended that the equipment be replaced, since half the members reported difficulties with it.
The recommendation should rest on a finding stated earlier, and the register should stay formal.
Not thisPutting recommendations in every section.
ThisKeeping recommendations for the final section.
Mixing findings and recommendations makes it impossible for the reader to see what the evidence was. Separation is the point of the genre.
Not thisThe survey was made last month.
ThisThe survey was carried out last month.
‘Carry out’ collocates with survey, study, research and test. ‘Make’ does not, and collocation errors stand out in a formal register.
40 original questions. The first 10 are open to everyone. Answers are checked in your browser and never sent to us, so you can share this page with a class as it is.
2Complete the sentence.
3Complete the sentence.
6Complete the sentence.
7Complete the sentence.
9Write the headings for a report on a work placement scheme.
One good answer
Purpose and scope; The placements offered; Students’ experience; Employers’ feedback; Conclusions and recommendations. Each heading corresponds to material the reader needs before deciding whether to run the scheme again, and the last keeps evaluation separate from findings.
10Complete the sentence.
12Complete the sentence.
13Complete the sentence.
16Complete the sentence.
17Complete the sentence.
18Turn this finding into a recommendation: ‘Half of those surveyed said the room was too cold.’
One good answer
Since half of those surveyed found the room too cold, it is recommended that the heating be checked before the next series of classes. The recommendation names the finding it rests on, uses an impersonal form, and asks for one specific action rather than a general improvement.
20Complete the sentence.
23Complete the sentence.
24Complete the sentence.
26Complete the sentence.
29Complete the sentence.
30Write the opening paragraph of a report on a college library, in two sentences.
One good answer
This report sets out how the library is currently used and considers whether the opening hours meet students’ needs. It is based on a short survey completed by sixty students and on a week of entry records supplied by the library staff.
31Complete the sentence.
33Complete the sentence.
38Write a finding and the recommendation that follows from it, in two sentences.
One good answer
Almost half of those surveyed said that they had been unable to book a study room during the examination period. It is therefore recommended that the booking window be extended to two weeks in the weeks before examinations, so that demand is spread more evenly.
Note
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They are expected, and they help you as much as the reader. Take them from the prompt bullets, keep them to three or four words, and do not put a heading over a single sentence.
Yes, in the final section and clearly signposted as a conclusion or recommendation. What breaks the genre is opinion smuggled into the body as if it were a finding.
Use proportions: a large majority, roughly half, a small number of respondents, one in five. They read as accurate, they are impossible to contradict, and they avoid the arithmetic slips that come with invented percentages.
Mostly. ‘It was found that’ and ‘respondents reported’ suit the body; a single ‘I visited both sites’ in the introduction is fine where you are the source of the information.
Around 220 to 260 words, headings included. That is enough for an introduction, three short sections and a conclusion, which is why keeping sections to one idea each matters so much here.