CELPIP Writing Task 2: Build a Complete Survey Response

CELPIP Writing Task 2 is officially Responding to Survey Questions. Current official materials describe a 150–200-word response in which you choose between two options and explain why your choice is better. The lexical challenge is not sounding grand. It is comparing the options under clear criteria without turning a personal preference into an unsupported universal rule.

Consider a survey asking whether a neighbourhood should use an empty lot for a small park or additional parking. A useful response needs a position, criteria, trade-off, example, concession, and recommendation. Six words can sharpen those jobs: contend, compelling, outweigh, concede, mitigate, and feasible.

For the complete task pathway, use the CELPIP vocabulary practice hub. The Exam English hub connects this work to other exam formats.

Start with a direct position

Your first paragraph should make the selected option easy to find:

“I would use the lot for a small park because the neighbourhood already has two parking facilities but no accessible green space.”

The reason contains a comparison. It is stronger than Parks are always better. Your position can be personal—I would choose—or policy-focused—The council should choose—but keep the scope consistent.

If the survey asks for your preference, you do not need to claim that everyone agrees. If you make a general policy recommendation, support it with conditions or evidence rather than presenting your preference as proof.

Contend: advance a position that can be debated

To contend that something is true is to argue or maintain a position, often when another view is possible:

“Supporters of the parking proposal contend that local shops need more short-term spaces.”

The verb takes a that clause in this use. It does not itself show that the claim is correct. That makes it useful for distinguishing positions:

“I contend that the park offers the broader benefit because residents of every age could use it.”

In 150–200 words, I believe is often simpler. Use contend only when the argumentative contrast is real. Do not confuse this sense with contend with, which means deal with a difficult situation: Residents contend with heavy traffic.

Compelling: a reason that strongly merits acceptance

A compelling reason, case, argument, or example is strongly convincing or demands attention:

“The lack of any wheelchair-accessible recreation space is a compelling reason to choose the park.”

The word is not a substitute for support. This is a compelling option because it is compelling says nothing. Name the fact that gives the reason force.

Also distinguish persuasive strength from personal attraction. A design can be visually compelling, but in a survey response you usually mean the evidence or reasoning is convincing. One compelling criterion does not automatically settle the whole decision; another cost or constraint may still matter.

Outweigh: judge two sides on a stated scale

When one consideration outweighs another, it has greater importance or effect in the decision:

“The long-term health and social benefits outweigh the loss of twenty parking spaces.”

Use parallel things on each side: benefits outweigh costs or the benefit outweighs the inconvenience. Avoid outweigh than. The verb already expresses comparison.

Most importantly, name the criterion. A benefit might outweigh a cost for community access but not for the construction budget. Your response becomes more credible when the reader can see the scale you used.

Do not write A outweighs B as if arithmetic proves the result unless the prompt supplies numbers. In an opinion response, it is your judgment, so give the reason immediately.

Concede: acknowledge a real point without abandoning your position

To concede a point is to acknowledge that it is true or reasonable, often before showing why your conclusion still stands:

“I concede that additional parking would help during weekend events; however, that demand could be managed through short-term agreements with nearby offices.”

Useful patterns include concede that... and admittedly.... Do not use concede with. A concession should be genuine. If you write I concede that parking is completely useless, you have not represented the other option fairly.

A concession is not surrender. It narrows your claim and shows that you considered the trade-off. Keep it proportionate: one sentence may be enough.

Mitigate: reduce the losing option’s disadvantage

To mitigate a harm is to reduce its severity or impact:

“The council could mitigate the loss of spaces by reserving nearby street parking for short visits.”

This move improves a recommendation because it does not pretend the chosen option has no cost. Mitigation is not elimination. Ten replacement spaces may mitigate a shortage without fully resolving it.

Connect the measure to the named problem. Plant more trees to mitigate everything is too broad. Plant shade trees to mitigate summer heat on the playground identifies both action and effect.

Feasible: test the recommendation against conditions

A feasible solution is workable under the relevant time, cost, space, or administrative conditions:

“A shared-parking arrangement appears feasible because the office lot is empty after 6 p.m., when community events usually begin.”

The evidence earns the word. Feasible does not mean ideal or approved. If you cannot show why an option could work, use a more modest phrase: one option worth investigating.

Worked survey response

Survey: A public library has funding for either a children’s activity room or additional quiet study space. Which should it choose?

I would use the funding for a children’s activity room. The most compelling reason is that the library already provides two quiet floors, whereas families currently have no enclosed space for reading programs or creative activities. A dedicated room could serve preschool sessions in the morning and homework clubs after school, so its benefit would extend beyond one age group.

I concede that students sometimes struggle to find desks during examination periods. However, that seasonal pressure does not outweigh the year-round need for family programming. The library could mitigate the shortage by introducing bookable study periods during the busiest weeks and converting one meeting room temporarily when it is not reserved.

This compromise is feasible because it uses existing rooms rather than requiring another construction project. I therefore recommend the children’s room, combined with a clear peak-season study plan. It adds a service the library currently lacks while preserving practical support for students.

The response does not claim that children matter more than students. It compares service gaps, frequency, and available mitigation. The recommendation follows from those criteria.

Personal preference versus public claim

Compare these sentences:

“I prefer the park because I enjoy running outdoors.”

That is sufficient as a personal reason, but limited as a public-policy case.

“The park would serve residents who lack private outdoor space, and it could host free activities across age groups.”

This broader claim needs support. The response might cite prompt details about apartment density or existing programs. Do not invent survey results, budgets, or public consensus.

A useful bridge is:

“Although my own preference is for the park, my recommendation rests mainly on access: the prompt indicates that the area has no other public green space.”

Now the writer separates personal taste from the stated criterion.

Common Task 2 vocabulary mistakes

• Hiding the choice. State your selected option early.
• Using compelling without evidence. Name the fact that makes the reason convincing.
• Writing outweigh than. Use A outweighs B.
• Comparing unlike units. Keep benefits, costs, effects, or priorities logically parallel.
• Making a fake concession. Acknowledge the strongest reasonable disadvantage.
• Treating mitigate as eliminate. State what harm is reduced and what remains.
• Calling an idea feasible without conditions. Mention time, money, space, or process.
• Using contend as proof. It introduces a debatable claim; it does not validate it.
• Inventing public support. Do not claim most residents agree unless the prompt says so.
• Memorizing an absolute template. Criteria and trade-offs must follow the actual options.

Quick check

1. Which sentence uses outweigh accurately?

A. “The benefit outweighs than the cost.” B. “For year-round access, the benefit of an indoor room outweighs its higher maintenance cost.” C. “The option outweighs because I said so.”

2. Which is a genuine concession?

A. “I concede that the parking plan would help visitors with limited mobility.” B. “I concede with my own perfect argument.” C. “I concede that the other option has no possible value.”

3. Which sentence preserves the meaning of mitigate?

A. “A shuttle could mitigate the access problem, although some visitors would still need to wait.” B. “A shuttle mitigates the issue by making it impossible.” C. “The issue mitigated a shuttle.”

Answers: 1-B, 2-A, 3-A. The correct choices state the comparison criterion, acknowledge a real benefit, and reduce rather than erase a disadvantage.

A controlled planning method

Draw two columns for the options. Choose three criteria that the prompt supports, such as access, frequency of use, cost, time, convenience, or long-term value. Add one fact or realistic example under each criterion. Then decide:

• Which reason is most compelling?
• Which disadvantage must you concede?
• Does one benefit outweigh the relevant cost?
• Can a specific measure mitigate that cost?
• Is your final recommendation feasible under the stated conditions?

Write 150–200 words. On revision, circle every universal word—all, always, everyone, never. Keep it only if the prompt truly supports that scope.

For more practice making precise claims and trade-offs under time pressure, try Lyra Practice.

Sources

• CELPIP test format and scoring — CELPIP
• Writing Pro Target 5 Study Pack — Prometric
• CELPIP free resources — CELPIP

Related

• IELTS Vocabulary for Opinions and Arguments
• IELTS Advantages and Disadvantages Vocabulary
• IELTS Writing Task 2 Vocabulary by Essay Type
• CELPIP survey trade-off vocabulary

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