A Speech By The Master of a University Hall of Residence - IELTS Listening Sample Answer

The IELTS Listening section tests the candidate’s listening skills through four sections containing forty questions in total. Candidates need to listen to the audio and answer all the questions. This topic is section Two of IELTS Listening. Section two is a speech by the master of a University Hall of Residence giving a short introductory talk to new students at the University Hall of Residence. IELTS listening practice papers are helpful preparation materials for candidates. This section contains different question types:

• Short answer questions
• Sentence completion

Audio Transcript

In section two you will hear the master of a university hall of residence giving a short introductory talk to new students at the university hall of residence

Good evening ladies and gentlemen and welcome to Chelston hall of residence. My name is Dr. Frank Jones and I am the master of Chelston hall. As you will know you are all attending Wesley university to study different courses and Chelston hall of residence will be your home for the first year of your studies. You are all first-year students as Chelston offers accommodation only to first-year students at the university.

In this short talk, I’m going to go through some of the things you ought to know about life in the hall. I will also go through some rules so that we can all live together in a satisfactory way for the whole year.

First of all, I would like to go through the eating arrangements Chelston hall offers full board accommodation. So there will be breakfast and dinner every day with lunch also available. At weekends you are not obliged to go to the meals but they will be there if you wish to take advantage of them. In fact, it would be a waste of money not to as you are paying for the food in your hall fees. The times of the meals are as follows: breakfast is served from 7 a.m to 8: 30 a.m every day. Though these times are an hour later at weekends, dinner is served from 6: 30 pm to 7: 45 pm 7 days a week. On Saturday and Sunday lunch is served from 12:30 p.m to 1:45 p.m if you are late then you will not get any food. Once the hatches are closed in the dining hall they stay closed. The dining hall is cafeteria-style service and there is always a selection of food for vegetarians. If there are a lot of people at the dining hall then please queue up in an orderly manner and wait your turn. Please do not push into the queue. At the end of your meal please take your tray over to the side tables and put your dirty plates and utensils in the appropriate places. We do have kitchen staff but they are not your servants and we expect you to take your own dishes and cutlery off the table. Rudeness and incivility to the staff will also not be tolerated. Each evening after dinner there will be coffee and tea available in the common room until 9:30. Again please do not leave cups lying around but put the dirty ones back on the trays provided the coffee service will be discontinued if the common room becomes untidy.

Other facilities that we have here on site are a tv room and self-service laundry, the tv room has one set which can receive the regular channels but no satellite channels. The laundry room has eight washing machines and eight dryers. These are all coin-operated. You will need one pound in two fifty pence pieces for one wash. The dryers take twenty pence pieces and will run for 15 minutes on one 20 pence piece. We recommend that you buy a box of washing detergent at the local supermarket but you can buy individual packets of washing powder from a vending machine provided. It has not run out one individual box from the machine is good for one wash.

As you will know by now the hall is divided up into corridors with six rooms attached to each corridor. Each corridor has shower compartments, one bath and a kitchen. We have cleaners who clean up the corridors and bathrooms but the cleaners are not responsible for cleaning the kitchens. So if you want to cook something in addition to the food we provide then please clean up your dirty pans and plates yourself. If any kitchen gets into too bad an estate then it will be closed and locked up for the remainder of the term. Any dirty dishes or pans that are in the kitchen will just be thrown out. By the way, as you will also know the corridors are co-ed so you will need a reasonable amount of consideration and modesty moving around to the bathrooms and back.

Another important issue is our fire drill. Please make sure that you have read the notice which is in every corridor about what to do if there is a fire. It is very important that you know where your nearest fire exit is and where to go when you get out of the building. For example, if you are in block a there are two exits and not everyone should exit from just one of these. The assembly point for both blocks is the car park where your block leader will take a roll call to make sure no one is left inside. We are obliged by the fire service to perform two emergency practices every year. Please take them seriously as if they are not done well then we shall have three or four or five practices or however many it takes to get it right.

Finally, we have the issue of noise for a lot of you, this will be the first time not living at home with your family and you will have access to lots of friends your own age and alcohol. I must urge you at all times to try and behave with consideration to your fellow hall tenants. At all times don't play your music too loudly or make too much noise at any time and especially at night. People around you all the time will be trying to work, sleep or just relax. Have fun but think of others. We take quite a strict attitude to those who end up annoying everyone else. If you are found to be disturbing others in the hall to an unreasonable amount you will be warned and if the problem persists you will be asked to leave. You will not receive any refund of the funds you have paid. I hope that I have not unduly worried anyone.

That is the end of section two.

Questions 11-15

Answer the questions below.

Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS OR A NUMBER for each answer.

11. When is breakfast served in Chelston Hall on Sundays?
12. What method of food service is provided at Chelston Hall dining hall?
13. Where are coffee and tea served after dinner at Chelston Hall?
14. How much does it cost to do 1 wash in a washing machine at Chelston Hall?
15. From where can students buy washing powder inside Chelston Hall?

Question 11.

Answer: 8.00 am (to 9.30 am)

Explanation: As stated by the speaker, “breakfast is served from 7 a.m to 8 30 a.m every day. Though these times are an hour later at weekends ” Hence we can determine from this that on Sundays the breakfast would be from 8.00 am to 9.30 am.

Also, check:

Question 12.

Answer: Cafeteria-style

Explanation: The speaker mentions that the dining hall is cafeteria-style service and there is always a selection of food for vegetarians. There the answer is ‘ Cafeteria-style’

Question 13.

Answer: the common room

Explanation: The master of the University Hall of Residence informs the students that each evening after dinner there will be coffee and tea available in the common room. So ‘common room’ is the answer here.

Question 14.

Answer: 1 pound

Explanation: While talking about the laundry room the master informs students that they will need one pound for one wash.

Question 15.

Answer: (a) vending machine

Explanation: The master recommends students buy individual packets of washing powder from a vending machine provided.

Questions 16-20

Complete the sentences below.

Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS for each answer.

16. It is not the job of the cleaners at Chelston Hall to clear up __________
17. Students at Chelston Hall are asked to be careful going to and from the bathroom as the Hall is__________
18. If there is a fire at Chelston Hall, leave the building and meet your block leader in ___________where the block leader will take a roll call.
19. Chelston Hall has to perform at least______________emergency fire practices yearly.
20. If a student is asked to leave for disciplinary reasons, he or she will not get a ____________

Question 16.

Answer: Kitchens

Explanation: As stated by the speaker, “the cleaners are not responsible for cleaning the kitchens.” He mentioned this so that the students must clean their utensils if they wish to cook something in addition to the food that is provided.

Question 17.

Answer: co-ed

Explanation: The corridor of Chelston Hall is co-ed so the speaker warns the students to be considerate and show modesty while moving around to the bathrooms and back.

Question 18.

Answer: (the) car park

Explanation: The speaker advised students about the assembly point for both blocks in case of fire which is the car park.

Question 19.

Answer: two

Explanation: The Master mentions that “ We are obliged by the fire service to perform two emergency practices every year.” Therefore ‘two’ is the answer.

Question 20.

Answer: refund (of fees)

Explanation: The speaker informs the students “ if you are found to be disturbing others in the hall….. You will not receive any refund of the funds you have paid.” Hence for the violation of disciplinary rules, the students would have to leave and without any refund of the fees paid.