IELTS Writing Task 1: Bar Chart 3

Model answer The bar chart shows [blank_start]the number of[blank_end] foreign students studying in four English-speaking countries in the years 2004 and 2012, [blank_start]while[blank_end] the table shows foreign students as [blank_start]a percentage of[blank_end] total student numbers in the countries. We can see that [blank_start]the overall trend[blank_end] is an increase in both the number and percentage of international students in most countries. [blank_start]Starting with the number of[blank_end] students, the USA had the most foreign students, rising from [blank_start]approximately[blank_end] 179,000 in 2004 to around 245,000 in 2012. [blank_start]The figures[blank_end] for Australia and the UK were similar, [blank_start]increasing[blank_end] from around 120,000 to almost 200,000. Canada had a [blank_start]significantly lower number[blank_end] of overseas students than the other countries, with about 41,000 in 2004 and approximately 61,000 in 2012. [blank_start]Next[blank_end], if we look at the percentage of foreign students, we can see that percentages increased for all countries, with [blank_start]the exception[blank_end] of the USA. The percentage of foreign students was [blank_start]highest[blank_end] in Australia at 24% of total student numbers in 2012. In the USA, the percentage of foreign students [blank_start]remained stable[blank_end] at 2%, which was the lowest percentage of all four countries. (195 words)