IELTS Writing task 2 – 5/11/2016:Some people believe that living in big cities is becoming more difficult

Đề thi IELTS Writing Task 2 ngày 05/11/2016

Some people believe that living in big cities is becoming more difficult. Others believe that it is getting easier.

Discuss both views and give your own opinion

Model Answer


Some people argue that living in large urban cities is becoming a burden, whilst others contend that it is in fact becoming less difficult. I strongly believe that the latter holds more truth and will discuss further below.

On the one hand, it has been argued that living in large urban centers is becoming increasingly problematic due to traffic congestion. As big cities develop, the level of traffic simultaneously grows to accommodate travel needs. For instance, densely populated cities like Jakarta have seen an exponential increase in the number of road vehicles, causing more traffic congestion. The Indonesian capital is infamously known for its traffic jams that can delay people for up to three hours at times, making it extremely inconvenient to travel by car. This issue is just one of the many that demonstrate the challenge of living in large cities.

On the other hand, residing in big cities is also easier with better access to various facilities. With better infrastructure in urban areas, public transport, hospitals, schools and much more offer city residents so much convenience that a non-city resident would lack. For example, Melbourne has a sophisticated public transport network and a wide variety of schools, health care facilities and shops that are all easily accessible by car or train, all of which are comparably less so in rural Victoria. For these reasons, people opine that living in cities is getting easier.

In my opinion, I believe in the latter view that living in cities is indeed becoming more convenient. With greater expenditure on improving the train and tram networks and safety across Melbourne as an example, travelling to and from places has never been easier. This in turn has increased the accessibility to amenities like shops and restaurants with shorter travelling periods needed.

In conclusion, residing in large cities like Jakarta may be more difficult due to congestion. However, I am convinced that cities like Melbourne have in fact increased its ease of access with its infrastructure, and are definitely becoming more convenient.


Modernization has long sparked heated debate among communities around the world as it profoundly impacts contemporary society. A great many people assume that megacities settlement is highly competitive while another view state that major-city life is easing. In my opinion, one should discreetly consider several conditions before making this choice.

On the one hand, crowded cities obviously offer a handful of job opportunities for incoming citizens, hence making a living is not so challenging for most individuals. As a result, inhabitant can easily enjoy life without having to worry about their tight budget since those can be filled anytime in job-abundant cities. Moreover, when people settle down in modernized cities, they can be provided with ample communal infrastructures which will be likely to improve their living standards compared to poorly structured ones in rural towns.

However, every coin has two sides, and living in a cosmopolitan city can bring several downsides as well. Although it is not a dilemma to find a part-time job in those cities, having a full-time, well-paid job is a totally different story since one must be strictly qualified in countless aspects in order to meet the requirement of serious enterprises’ employers. That is the reason why so many find it so problematic living in large cities. Furthermore, there is no denying that such cities have fantastic facilities, but the cost is unaffordable in some cases, thereby those benefits cannot be made full use of.

To sum up, degrees and money-making capability are the norms residents should take into consideration when they desire to enjoy living in megacities, otherwise there is high chance they have to put up with a lot of pressures as well as hassles.


Body 1: It is becoming harder and harder to live in cities. The first problem is the increasingly higher cost of living. There are so many expenses that an average city dweller has to pay monthly, including the fees for accommodation, daily necessities and utility bills, not to mention countless others. For example, renting a decent apartment in Ho Chi Minh City in the downtown area would cost more than 8 million dong, buying a loaf of bread can cost up to 10 thousand dong, whereas it used to be considerably less some 30 years ago. Secondly, the stiffer competition for job opportunities means that people are put at greater stress and depression. Many immigrants from the countryside flood to big cities and struggle to secure a stable job, which results in redundancy and unemployment on a larger scale than ever before.

Body 2: Living in metropolitan areas is being more comfortable and convenient. Initially, improved access to education services and medical care is the first advantage. Gone are the days when there were few schools and underprivileged children were dying of diseases; nowadays, however, the general population receives universal education, some students even can go to colleges or universities. As well as this, previously incurable diseases can be treated in many hospitals located in the cities, which results in people’s enhanced physical well-being. Moreover, there are more and more job opportunities opened to people of different educational backgrounds. Ordinary citizens can be employed as white-collar workers in factories, while more intelligent students can work as engineers or doctors, depending on their individual abilities.

17 Tháng Năm, 2017

2 responses on "IELTS Writing task 2 – 5/11/2016:Some people believe that living in big cities is becoming more difficult"

  1. Recently, the world population has increased rapidly, following on burst in the number of big cities. Some people believe that living in bis cities is become more and more difficult. In my opinion, however, I partly disagree with them that there are lots of difficulties to live in big cities.
    First of all, the number of big cities has increase exponentially so it is not a great challenge to find a place to live in megacities. For example, the amount of rural area has been trimmed because of the expansion of cities such as in the case of Shanghai. As the result, more and more apartment blocks are built everyday, leading to the ease of finding a place to live. Secondly, the good condition of the facilities and welfare in the cities makes living in the cities is easier than ever before. A recent research has shown that the improvement in facilities like schools or hospitals and social welfare such as retirement pension makes living in the cities easier and more convenient.
    On the other hand, there are still many difficulties prevent people from living in big cities. For example, due to the enormous population, it is nearly impossible to build enough houses and apartments for all of people. As a result, there are still remain lots of homeless people which proves that living in big cities is not east at all. Moreover, the cost of living in megacities is usually high because if the luxury facilities so that not all of people can afford it. This leads to the increase in the number of people who struggle to survive in big cities, verifying that it is difficult to live in the urban area.
    In conclusion, there are many difficulties and eases to live in the cities so it is wised to consider whether you live in big cites or not.

  2. Modernization in recent years has been develop making big cities grow. Thus, many people expect that urban life is easier than before while the others ensure that they have to struggle for living in big cities. In this essay, i would like to consider both statements and mentioning my own view. I strongly belive that dwelling in large urban cities is not easy.
    On the one hand, it is true to believe that living in metropolitan areas is being more convenient and comfortable. Firstly, urban living standards have been improved. For example, citizens can buy their goods, supplements in any store with any form of payment such as credit card, debit card. Therefore, instead of bringing cash everytime go out, urban people can pay for anything they want by a small card. Services are obiviously attentive and satisfactory such as health care, internet services, studying. Secondly, big cities open a wide job opportunity for people who in need. Everyday, there are a lot of recuiting news from unskilled to high quality requirement. Thus, metropolitan areas become promised lands with many people.
    On the other hand, crowded cities have to face with many problems. Many incoming citizens entering big cities leads to overpopulation in urban areas. Thus, traffic congestion now is serious. The service costs is probably not cheap. Therefore, presidents especially poor people have to struggle for living although government has funds for them. To catch up modernization era, recruiters need a higher standards for labors. For example, instead of doing part-time, labor has to work full-time so he has enough money to rent a apartment and purchase some essential services at the downtown.
    In conclusion, there are many disadvantages beside benefits when living in urban so it is to consider to live in big cities.

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