IELTS General Reading Practice Test 11 With Answers
IELTS General Reading Practice Test 11 With Answers
Section 1
Question 1-13
General Training Reading Sample: Dining Out & Electricity Account Payment
You are advised to spend 20 minutes on Questions 1-13.
Questions 1-7
IELTS General Reading Practice Test 11 With Answers
Look at the three restaurant advertisements below. Answer the questions below by writing the letters of the appropriate restaurants (A-C) in boxes 1-7 on your answer sheet.
Example Answer
It stops serving lunch at 2.30 pm. B
1. It is open for breakfast
2. It is open every night for dinner.
3. It is only open for lunch on weekdays.
4. It has recently returned to its previous location.
5. It welcomes families.
6. It caters for large groups.
7. It only opens at weekends.
Questions 8-13
IELTS General Reading Practice Test 11 With Answers
In boxes 8-13 on your answer sheet write:
TRUE if the statement is true
FALSE if the statement is false
NOT GIVEN if the information is not given in the passage
Example Answer
You must pay your account by mail. FALSE
8. If you want a receipt, you should send your payment to the Southport address.
9. You may pay your account at branches of the Federal Bank.
10. You must pay the full amount, instalments are not permitted.
11. The Coastside Power Office is open on Saturday mornings.
12. You may pay your account by phone using your credit card.
13. There is a reduction for prompt payment.
NEW ELECTRICITY ACCOUNT PAYMENT FACILITIES
AVAILABLE FROM’ JULY 1998
After 1 July 1998, you may pay your electricity account in any of the following ways:
1. Payments via mail:
(A) No receipt required:
Mail payments to:
Coastside Power
Locked Bag 2760
Southport NSW 3479
(B) Receipt required:
Mail payments to:
Coastside Power
PO Box 560
Northbridge NSW 3472
2. Agency payments (payments directly to the bank):
Payments can be made at any branch of the Federal Bank by completing the deposit slip attached to your account notice.
NB: This facility is no longer available at South Pacific Bank branches.
- Payments directly to Coastside Power Office:
Payments can be made directly to Coastside Power Office at 78-80 Third Avenue, Northbridge. Office hours are Monday to Friday, 8.30 am to 4.30 pm.
Payment may be by personal cheque, bank cheque or cash.
Note: Payments cannot be made by phone.
SECTION 2
Questions 14-27
IELTS General Reading Practice Test 11 With Answers
Read the notice on the following page about Student Clubs and Societies. The notice has four main paragraphs A-D.
Choose the most suitable heading for each paragraph from the list of headings below.
Write the appropriate numbers i-x in boxes 14-17 on your answer sheet.
List of Headings
i. English Society
ii. Education Club
iii. Film Appreciation Society
iv. Drama Society
v. Music Club
vi. Games Society
vii. Women’s Club
viii. Debating Club
ix. United Nations Student Club
x. Technical Students’ Club
14. Paragraph A
15. Paragraph B
16. Paragraph C
17. Paragraph D
Questions 18 and 19
IELTS General Reading Practice Test 11 With Answers
Using NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS, answer the following questions.
Write your answers in boxes 18 and 19 on your answer sheet.
18. How do you let the CAS President know you are interested in joining a club?
19. How often is the CAS Ball held?
STUDENT CLUBS AND SOCIETIES
Desperate to find friends with common interests?
Urgently in need of student contacts around college?
Looking for different cultural and religious experiences?
Wanting some good discussion?
Don’t look any further!
JOIN A CLUB OR SOCIETY AND HAVE FUN
A.
This club was first started by a group of friends who enjoyed going to the cinema. When our trips became more frequent we realised that there must be others who also shared our love of movies. This club is for those people. Membership gives wide access to other activities like basketball and football as well as barbeques and other social functions. We don’t just enjoy movies.
B.
The association has many opportunities to debate and we are a non-political unbiased international organisation which aims to promote international awareness on campus. We establish links and access to the organisation’s agencies and other internationalist organisations and their resources. Our plans this year include discussion groups, guest speakers and to build a model of the UN General Assembly.
C
Whether for fun or debating experience, we discuss everything from personal experience, future society or feminism. This year we plan an internal competition, weekly debates and beginners’ lessons as well as chances to compete nationally. Whether it be to improve your verbal or social skills the society provides both!
D.
Want to be a movie star? Then go somewhere else! On the other hand, want to work really hard for great rewards? Then come and join the club where the interesting theatre is created. We usually put on three productions each year. So if you like to write, paint, act, direct or do anything in the theatre, come and put your name down with us.
If you are interested in joining any of these clubs, you can leave a message for the
President at the CAS Office in the Student Union Building.
And don’t forget the CAS Ball is an annual event!
This year it’s being held on 22 December!
Questions 20-27
IELTS General Reading Practice Test 11 With Answers
It is possible for some students in Higher Education in Britain to borrow money through a government scheme. These loans are called ‘student loans’ and are described in the following passage.
Read the passage and answer Questions 20-27 below.
In boxes 20-27 on your answer sheet write
YES if the answer to the question is ‘yes’
NO if the answer to the questions is ‘no’
NOT GIVEN if the information is not given in the passage
Example:
I’m a full-time student at a local college of Higher Education. I already get a standard maintenance grant. Does this mean I’m not eligible for a student loan?
Answer: NO
20. I’m taking a month’s cookery course at a local college. It’s a private catering college. I’m going a couple of evenings a week, after work. I get a diploma at the end of it. Can I get some help with a student loan?
21. I’m starting a foundation course in September. It’s full time and after a year I hope to get on to a degree course. The fees for the actual course are being paid for by my Local Authority. Am I eligible for a student loan?
22. I finish my first degree in July. I’ve got a place on a Postgraduate Certificate in Education course to start in September. Will the Local Authority pay the tuition fees for this course?
23. Now all her children are grown up my mother says she’d like to finish the studies she was forced to give up earlier in life. She’s 48 now and her course is full-time for a year. Is she too old to get a student loan?
24. I’ve already been given a small scholarship to cover some of my tuition fees. Can I still get a student loan?
25. I’m actually staying with my aunt while I’m at college. Will the Student Loans Company want to know how much she earns?
26. I owed the bank rather a lot of money a few years ago. It’s all paid back now but they won’t lend me any more. Will this disqualify me from getting a student loan?
27. I took a course a couple of years ago, got a student loan, but had to withdraw half-way through. I’ve kept up all my payments on my loan. Am I eligible for a second loan?
Student Loans
The Government has been funding a loans scheme for students in Higher Education since September 1990.
These loans are available as a ‘top up’ to the standard grant. Although the loan is intended to supplement the grant for living costs, eligibility for a student loan is not restricted to those who receive a maintenance grant. The decision whether or not to take the loan is yours.
Eligibility
You are eligible for a student loan if you are a UK resident and are attending a full-time Higher Education course, below postgraduate level, or a Postgraduate Certificate in Education course, provided you start your course before your 50th birthday. Full-time courses last at least one academic year and include sandwich courses which combine time at college with time spent in a workplace.
Eligible courses are offered by colleges, universities, the Scottish grant-aided colleges and other publicly funded institutions providing Higher Education courses. In general, eligible courses include first-degree courses or their equivalents and any other courses for which your Local Authority will pay your tuition fees.
Your financial circumstances
Students who want loans are not ‘means tested’ or ‘credit vetted’ – all those eligible will obtain a loan. This means that:
- The amount of your maintenance grant or tuition fees does not matter.
- Other income, if any, is not taken into account.
- Any previous student loans are not taken into account.
- The income of your parents, spouse, partner or other relatives is not taken into account.
- Your previous financial record is not a consideration.
When to apply for a loan
If you would like more information on how to apply for a student loan in readiness for your entry to Higher Education in Autumn 2003, then you should contact The Student Loans Company from June 2003 onwards. Once in Higher Education, you can apply for a loan at any time in the academic year.
SECTION 3
Questions 28-40
IELTS General Reading Practice Test 11 With Answers
Look at the passage below.
FIRST IMPRESSIONS COUNT
A.
Traditionally uniforms were – and for some industries still are – manufactured to protect the worker. When they were first designed, it is also likely that all uniforms made symbolic sense – those for the military, for example, were originally intended to impress and even terrify the enemy; other uniforms denoted a hierarchy – chefs wore white because they worked with flour, but the main chef wore a black hat to show he supervised.
B.
The last 30 years, however, have seen an increasing emphasis on their role in projecting the image of an organisation and in uniting the workforce into a homogeneous unit — particularly in ‘customer facing” industries , and especially in financial services and retailing. From uniforms and workwear has emerged ‘corporate clothing’.
“The people you employ are your ambassadors,” says Peter Griffin, managing director of a major retailer in the UK. “What they say, how they look, and how they behave is terribly important.” The result is a new way of looking at corporate workwear. From being a simple means of identifying who is a member of staff, the uniform is emerging as a new channel of marketing communication.
C.
Truly effective marketing through visual cues such as uniforms is a subtle art, however. Wittingly or unwittingly, how we look sends all sorts of powerful subliminal messages to other people. Dark colours give an aura of authority while lighter pastel shades suggest approachability. Certain dress style creates a sense of conservatism, others a sense of openness to new ideas. Neatness can suggest efficiency but, if it is overdone, it can spill over and indicate an obsession with power. “If the company is selling quality, then it must have quality uniforms. And if it is selling style, its uniforms must be stylish. If it wants to appear innovative, everybody can’t look exactly the same. Subliminally we see all these things,” says Lynn Elvy, a director of image consultants House of Colour.
D.
But translating corporate philosophies into the right mix of colour, style, degree of branding and uniformity can be a fraught process. And it is not always successful. According to Company Clothing magazine, there are 1000 companies supplying the workwear and corporate clothing market. Of these, 22 account for 85% of total sales – £380 million in 1994.
E.
A successful uniform needs to balance two key sets of needs. On the one hand, no uniform will work if staff feel uncomfortable or ugly. Giving the wearers a choice has become a key element in the way corporate clothing is introduced and managed. On the other, it is pointless if the look doesn’t express the business’s marketing strategy. The greatest challenge in this respect is time. When it comes to human perceptions, first impressions count. Customers will size up the way staff look in just a few seconds, and that few seconds will colour their attitudes from then on. Those few seconds can be so important that big companies are prepared to invest years, and millions of pounds, getting them right.
F.
In addition, some uniform companies also offer rental services. “There will be an increasing specialisation in the marketplace,” predicts Mr Blyth, Customer Services Manager of a large UK bank. The past two or three years have seen consolidation. Increasingly, the big suppliers are becoming ‘managing agents’, which means they offer a total service to put together the whole complex operation of a company’s corporate clothing package – which includes reliable sourcing, managing the inventory, budget control and distribution to either central locations or to each staff member individually. Huge investments have been made in new systems, information technology and amassing quality assurance accreditations.
G.
Corporate clothing does have potentials for further growth. Some banks have yet to introduce a full corporate look; police forces are researching a complete new look for the 21st century. And many employees now welcome a company wardrobe. A recent survey of staff found that 90 per cent welcomed having clothing which reflected the corporate identity.
Questions 28-33
IELTS General Reading Practice Test 11 With Answers
The passage “First Impressions Count” has seven paragraphs A-G.
Which paragraphs discuss the following points?
Write the appropriate letters A-G in boxes 28-33 on your answer sheet.
Example Answer
the number of companies supplying the corporate clothing market. D
28. different types of purchasing agreement
29. the original purposes of uniforms
30. the popularity rating of staff uniforms
31. involving employees in the selection of a uniform
32. the changing significance of company uniforms
33. perceptions of different types of dress
Questions 34-40
IELTS General Reading Practice Test 11 With Answers
Do the following statements agree with the views of the writer of the passage? In boxes 34-40 on your answer sheet write:
YES if the statement agrees with the writer’s views
NO if the statement contradicts the writer’s views
NOT GIVEN if it is impossible to say what the writer thinks about this
34. Uniforms were more carefully made in the past than they are today.
35. Uniforms make employees feel part of a team.
36. Using uniforms as a marketing tool requires great care.
37. Being too smart could have a negative impact on customers.
38. Most businesses that supply company clothing are successful.
39. Uniforms are best selected by marketing consultants.
40. Clothing companies are planning to offer financial services in the future.