TOEFL TPO -1 Academic Discussion Writing Sample: When students are preparing to graduate from university, they need to make decisions about what kind of company they want to work for. They might consider large, older companies with an established reputation, or possibly new start-up companies, which tend to be small but very focused on the future. Consider the advantages of each. Would it generally be better for a new university graduate to begin working for a large, established company, or for a small start-up company? Why?
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Professor
When students are preparing to graduate from university, they need to make decisions about what kind of company they want to work for. They might consider large, older companies with an established reputation, or possibly new start-up companies, which tend to be small but very focused on the future. Consider the advantages of each. Would it generally be better for a new university graduate to begin working for a large, established company, or for a small start-up company? Why?
Student A
I think in general, the established company is the better choice. Because they're already well-known, these companies have a certain amount of respect in the business community, so it would look good to have that job experience on your résumé. That advantage alone would be a great start for a recent graduate.
Student B
I see your point, Kelly, but taking a position at a start-up company would offer so much excitement. They often have an energy that older companies can't match—everyone can be focused on new, innovative business practices and they would be more aggressive about getting new clients. That would be a much better experience for someone fresh out of university!
User Samples & Evaluation Results
User Sample
In my opinion, university graduates should choose established companies when they first step into society, as these companies can offer them a firm financial foundation and a bright career future. To elaborate, giant companies not only offer the younger generations premium platforms where they can interact with excellent individuals from various backgrounds but also can make sure that graduates are able to earn stable, well-paid salaries, enhancing their life standards. Furthermore, the youngsters will have more opportunities to use advanced facilities in established companies that are convenient for their daily life and work, such as company traffic allowance, auto-coffee machines, and multi-function printers. With such assistance, these graduates can exert their professional knowledge learning from the universities to real-life situations more efficiently and effectively. Still, critics may argue that graduates should take part in start-up companies to gain more position-promoting opportunities. However, the pinpoint is that we couldn’t overlook the high risks of job loss by attending start-up companies. Reversely, they can also get promoted through their hard work in giant companies.
Evaluation Result
1. Sub Scores:
Relevance and Contribution to Discussion: 4.5 Clarity and Elaboration of Viewpoint: 4.0 Language Use and Grammar: 4.0
2. Estimated Scores:
Estimated Score: 27
3. Task completeness:
The essay does a good job of addressing the task by discussing the advantages of working for an established company over a start-up company. However, it could benefit from further elaboration on the advantages of start-up companies as mentioned by Student B in the reading passage. This would provide a more balanced discussion and show that you have considered both sides before arriving at your conclusion.
Suggestions for improvement:
-
Include a brief discussion on the advantages of start-up companies, such as excitement, innovation, and potential for rapid growth.
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Provide specific examples or real-life situations to support your points.
Example 1: "While working at a start-up company may offer excitement and innovation, as mentioned by Student B, it is important to consider the stability that established companies can provide."
Example 2: "Although start-ups may provide more opportunities for rapid career growth, established companies often have well-defined career paths and development programs that can help graduates grow professionally."
4. Essay structure and organization:
The essay has a clear structure with an introduction, body paragraphs discussing the advantages of established companies, and a conclusion. However, it could benefit from clearer transitions between ideas and paragraphs to improve coherence.
Suggestions for improvement:
-
Use transitional phrases or words to connect ideas within paragraphs.
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Add topic sentences at the beginning of each paragraph to introduce the main point.
Example 1: "In addition to financial stability, established companies also offer numerous resources that can help graduates develop their skills."
Example 2: "Despite these benefits, some may argue that start-ups provide unique opportunities for growth; however, this comes with its own set of risks."
5. Grammar
In my opinion, university graduates should choose established companies when they first step into society, as these companies can offer them a firm financial foundation and a bright career future. To elaborate, giant companies not only offer the younger generations premium platforms where they can interact with excellent individuals from various backgrounds but also can make sure that graduates are able to earn stable, well-paid salaries, enhancing their life standards. Furthermore, the youngsters will have more opportunities to use advanced facilities in established companies that are convenient for their daily life and work, such as company traffic allowance, auto-coffee machines, and multi-function printers. With such assistance, these graduates can exert their professional knowledge learning from the universities to real-life situations more efficiently and effectively. Still, critics may argue that graduates should take part in start-up companies to gain more position-promoting opportunities. However, the pinpoint is that we couldn’t overlook the high risks of job loss by attending start-up companies. Reversely, they can also get promoted through their hard work in giant companies.
Display title: 6 Revised Essay
In my opinion, university graduates should opt for established companies as their initial career choice, as these organizations provide a solid financial foundation and promising career prospects. Established companies not only offer young professionals exceptional platforms for networking with accomplished individuals from diverse backgrounds but also ensure stable, well-paid salaries that enhance their living standards. Moreover, these companies often provide access to advanced facilities that facilitate daily life and work, such as transportation allowances, automated coffee machines, and multi-function printers. With such support, graduates can efficiently and effectively apply the knowledge acquired during their university education to real-life situations. Critics may argue that joining start-up companies offers greater opportunities for rapid advancement; however, the inherent risks of job loss in such ventures cannot be overlooked. Conversely, hardworking individuals can also climb the corporate ladder within larger organizations. (142 words)
In my opinion, university graduates should opt for established companies (choose established companies - opt for is a more natural phrase) as their initial career choice (when they first step into society, society - rephrased to make it more concise and clear), as these companies can offer them organizations provide a firm solid financial foundation and promising career prospects (a bright career future. To elaborate, giant future - rephrased for clarity). Established companies not only offer the younger generations young professionals exceptional platforms (premium platforms where they can interact - changed to exceptional for better word choice) for networking with excellent accomplished individuals from various diverse backgrounds but also can make sure that graduates are able to earn ensure stable, well-paid salaries, salaries that enhance their living standards (enhancing their life standards. Furthermore, the youngsters will have more opportunities to use standards - rephrased for clarity). Moreover, these companies often provide access to advanced facilities in established companies that are convenient for their facilitate daily life and work, work (convenient for their daily life and work - rephrased to make it more concise), such as company traffic allowance, transportation allowances, automated coffee machines (auto-coffee machines, machines - changed to automated for better word choice), and multi-function printers. With such assistance, these support, graduates can exert their professional efficiently and effectively apply the knowledge acquired during their university education to real-life situations (learning from the universities to real-life situations more efficiently and effectively. Still, critics effectively - rephrased for clarity). Critics may argue that graduates should take part joining start-up companies offers greater opportunities for rapid advancement (position-promoting opportunities - rephrased for clarity); however, the inherent risks of job loss in start-up companies to gain more position-promoting opportunities. However, the pinpoint is that such ventures cannot be overlooked (we couldn’t overlook the high risks of job loss by attending start-up companies. Reversely, companies - rephrased to make it more concise). Conversely, hardworking individuals can also climb the corporate ladder within larger organizations (they can also get promoted through their hard work in giant companies.companies - rephrased for clarity).
8 Mind Map
-
Introduction
- University graduates
- Established companies vs. start-ups
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Financial stability
- Well-paid salaries
- Enhanced living standards
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Networking opportunities
- Accomplished individuals
- Diverse backgrounds
-
Advanced facilities
- Transportation allowances
- Automated coffee machines, multi-function printers
-
Application of knowledge
- Efficient and effective work environment
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Counterargument: Start-ups
- Rapid advancement opportunities
-
Risks of start-ups
- Job loss potential
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Conclusion
- Climbing the corporate ladder in established companies
9 Key Words
| Word | Phonetic Symbol | Part of Speech | English Definition | English Translation | Sample Sentence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Established | /ɪˈstæblɪʃt/ | Adjective | (of a business, organization, or institution) having existed for a long time and being widely recognized | Established | The established company has a strong reputation in the industry. |
| Networking | /ˈnɛtˌwɜrkɪŋ/ | Noun | The action or process of interacting with others to exchange information and develop professional contacts. | Networking | Attending conferences is an excellent way to improve your networking skills. |
| Accomplished | /əˈkʌmplɪʃt/ | Adjective | Highly skilled; expert | Accomplished | She is an accomplished pianist who has performed in numerous concerts around the world. |
| Diverse | /daɪˈvɜrs, dɪ-, ˈdaɪvɜrs/ | Adjective | Showing a great deal of variety; very different | Diverse | The team members come from diverse backgrounds, which enhances their problem-solving abilities. |
| Facilities | /fəˈsɪlɪtiz/ | Noun | Buildings, services, equipment, etc. that are provided for a particular purpose | Facilities | The company provides state-of-the-art facilities for its employees to work efficiently. |
| Inherent | /ɪnˈhɪrənt, -ˈhɛr-/ | Adjective | Existing in something as a permanent, essential, or characteristic attribute | Inherent | There are inherent risks involved in starting a new business venture. |
| Counterargument | /ˈkaʊntərˌɑrgjəmənt/ | Noun | An argument or set of reasons put forward to oppose an idea or theory developed in another argument | Counterargument | She presented a strong counterargument to the proposal, highlighting its potential drawbacks. |
| Corporate ladder | /ˈkɔrpərɪt ˈlædər/ | Noun | A hierarchy of positions within a company or organization | Corporate ladder | With hard work and dedication, he was able to climb the corporate ladder quickly. |
| Prospects | /ˈprɒspɛkts/ | Noun | The possibility or likelihood of some future event occurring | Prospects | The job offered excellent salary and growth prospects. |
6 Revised Essay
In my opinion, university graduates should opt for established companies as their initial career choice, as these organizations provide a solid financial foundation and promising career prospects. Established companies not only offer young professionals exceptional platforms for networking with accomplished individuals from diverse backgrounds but also ensure stable, well-paid salaries that enhance their living standards. Moreover, these companies often provide access to advanced facilities that facilitate daily life and work, such as transportation allowances, automated coffee machines, and multi-function printers. With such support, graduates can efficiently and effectively apply the knowledge acquired during their university education to real-life situations. Critics may argue that joining start-up companies offers greater opportunities for rapid advancement; however, the inherent risks of job loss in such ventures cannot be overlooked. Conversely, hardworking individuals can also climb the corporate ladder within larger organizations.
How Academic Discussion Is Scored
The TOEFL Academic Discussion task is evaluated based on the official ETS scoring rubric. AI evaluation analyzes each response across multiple dimensions.
Relevance & Contribution
Does the response address the question and contribute meaningfully to the discussion?
Language Use
Grammar accuracy, vocabulary range, and sentence structure quality.
Development & Support
Are ideas well-developed with specific examples and clear reasoning?
Common Patterns Across Responses
Based on analysis of user submissions for this task, here are common patterns observed in student responses.
Many students provide clear opinions but lack specific supporting examples.
Strong responses directly reference the reading passage and other speakers' viewpoints.
Higher-scoring responses use varied sentence structures and academic vocabulary.
Time management is a key factor — responses that feel rushed tend to score lower on development.
Learning Tips
Read the prompt carefully and identify all parts of the question before writing.
Reference the reading passage and the other students' opinions in your response.
Use specific examples to support your main point — avoid generic statements.
Aim for 120-150 words. Longer responses are not always better; clarity and focus matter more.
Practice timed responses (10 minutes) to build fluency under exam conditions.
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