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Task 2 · Responding to Survey Questions

CELPIP Task 2 Sample: Working From Home or a Four-Day Week

Two original answers to the same Task 2 prompt: one at CELPIP level 9 and one at level 7, each rated on the four official categories (Content/Coherence, Vocabulary, Readability, Task Fulfillment). Read both, then write your own survey response on this prompt and get it scored.

Updated October 20, 2026

The prompt

Working from home or a four-day week

Your employer is surveying staff about a new work arrangement that will start next year. Everyone will keep the same salary and the same total hours.

Which arrangement would you choose?

Option A: Work from home three days a week, five days in total

Option B: Work four longer days a week, all of them in the office

Choose the option that you prefer and explain the reasons for your choice. Write about 150–200 words.

Time on the test: 26 minutes. Recommended length: 150–200 words. This is an original practice prompt in the official format, not a test question.

Sample answer at level 9

CELPIP level 9 · CLB 9

184 words

I would choose the four-day week in the office, Option B, even though working from home sounds more comfortable at first. My main reason is the clear line it draws between work and the rest of life. When I worked remotely during the pandemic, my laptop stayed open on the kitchen table and I answered messages until late in the evening because there was no moment that felt like leaving. Four longer days would be demanding, but Friday would be genuinely free: no notifications, no "quick call", and a whole day for appointments, errands or simply rest. The second reason is teamwork. Most of my job involves solving problems with colleagues from other departments, and that happens much faster at a whiteboard than in a video call where everyone waits for a turn. With everybody in the office on the same four days, meetings would be shorter and decisions quicker. Working from home does save the commute, and I would miss that. However, a three-day weekend every week is worth more to me than two hours of travel, so Option B is my choice.

Category ratings

CategoryLevelWhy
Content / Coherence9Choice first, two well-developed reasons with a personal example, the other option weighed honestly, and a conclusion that compares the two trade-offs.
Vocabulary9Natural, precise phrasing: "draws a clear line between", "genuinely free", "waits for a turn", "worth more to me than".
Readability9Varied sentences, good cohesive devices ("My main reason", "The second reason", "However"); the colon list in paragraph two is a nice touch; one or two sentences run long.
Task Fulfillment9Fully addresses the survey with a clear choice and reasons; appropriate neutral tone; 184 words.

What shows level 9 and above

  • Nuance even though working from home sounds more comfortable at first
  • Specific example my laptop stayed open on the kitchen table and I answered messages until late in the evening
  • Complex structure because there was no moment that felt like leaving
  • Precise wording that happens much faster at a whiteboard than in a video call where everyone waits for a turn
  • Cohesion However, a three-day weekend every week is worth more to me than two hours of travel

The strength here is the personal example in paragraph two: a concrete picture (laptop on the kitchen table) does more for Content/Coherence than another abstract reason would. The answer also shows the judgement raters look for at level 9: it names what it gives up.

Sample answer at level 7

CELPIP level 7 · CLB 7

177 words

In my opinion, the best arrangement is Option A, working from home three days a week. Firstly, working from home saves a lot of time. I spend around one hour every day to go to the office and one hour to come back. If I work from home three days, I will save six hours every week which I can use for my family or for exercise. Also I will spend less money on gas and parking. Secondly, I can concentrate better at home. In the office there are many interruptions, like colleagues who are asking questions or the noise of the phones. At home I can finish my reports faster and with less mistakes. On the other hand, a four-day week is also attractive because of the long weekend. However, ten hours in the office every day is too long for me, and I think I would be very tired at the end of the day. For these reasons, I prefer Option A. It gives me a better balance between my job and my personal life.

Category ratings

CategoryLevelWhy
Content / Coherence7Well organised with a clear choice, two reasons and a counter-argument; support is relevant but stays at the level of general claims (saves time, fewer interruptions).
Vocabulary7Adequate and mostly accurate; some imprecision ("spend… to go", "less mistakes", "the noise of the phones").
Readability7Clear paragraphs and connectors ("Firstly", "Secondly", "On the other hand"); errors are few but visible: "spend one hour to go", "less mistakes", "colleagues who are asking".
Task Fulfillment8Complete response, other option acknowledged, neutral tone; 177 words.

Corrections

  1. I spend around one hour every day to go to the office → I spend around one hour every day going to the office
    "Spend time" is followed by an -ing form, not a to-infinitive.
  2. with less mistakes → with fewer mistakes
    "Fewer" is used with countable nouns; "less" with uncountable ones.
  3. colleagues who are asking questions → colleagues asking questions
    A general, repeated situation does not take the continuous; the reduced participle clause is more natural.
  4. six hours every week which I can use → six hours every week that I can use
    "That" is the usual pronoun in a defining relative clause; no comma before it.

Solid level 7: nothing is missing and the structure is textbook. What keeps it from 9 is development; the reasons would land harder with one concrete scene (a report finished in two hours at home that took a morning in the office) and with more precise verbs.

What separates level 7 from level 9

  • A short personal example (one or two sentences) is the most efficient way to develop a reason.
  • Weigh what you give up ("I would miss that") before concluding; it shows judgement, not weakness.
  • "Spend time doing", "fewer" with countable nouns, "that" in defining relative clauses.
  • Firstly/Secondly is fine, but vary the openers at least once ("My main reason is…", "The second reason is…").

Try this prompt yourself

Write your own survey response on the prompt above and get an estimated CELPIP level with corrections and a model answer. Free, no sign-up, two reports a day.

Score my survey response Task 2 guide

More Task 2 samples

See all CELPIP writing samples, the scoring and CLB levels guide, and the official CELPIP test format and scoring page.