IELTS listening.

You will hear a number of different recordings, and you will have
to answer questions on what you hear. There will be time for you to read the
instructions and questions, and you will have a chance to check your work. All the
recordings will be played once only. The test is in 4 sections.

Write all your answers in the listening question booklet. At the end of the test,
you will be given ten minutes to transfer your answers to an answer sheet. Now turn
to section 1 on page 2 of your question booklet. Section 1. You will hear a student
from overseas phoning the student accommodation office of a college in The UK for
some information.

First, you have some time to look at questions 1 to 4 on page 2. You will see that
there is an example that has been done for you. On this occasion only, the
conversation relating to this will be played first. College accommodation bureau.
Darren speaking.

How may I help you? Oh, good morning. I'm starting at the college in Sept. 0, and I
need to find some accommodation. Right.

Well, there are various options. The first one is to stay in college accommodation.
That would be a single room. The first type of accommodation is a single room in
the college. So, single room has been written in the space.

Now we shall begin. You should answer the questions as you listen, because you will
not hear the recording a second time. Listen carefully and answer questions 1 to 4.
College accommodation bureau. Darren speaking.

How may I help you? Oh, good morning. I'm starting at the college in Sept. 0, and I
need to find some accommodation. Right.

Well, there are various options. The first one is to stay in college accommodation.
That would be a single room. How much would that cost? Well, it depends.

For a standard room, you're looking at £3,276 for the year. That's just for a room
with wash basin. Or £3,834 if you want an en suite. That's with your own small
bathroom. I see.

That's more than I expected. It does include heating. That's quite a saving because
energy costs can be high, especially in winter. Does it include meals as well? No.

All our rooms are self catering now. There's a shared kitchen on each corridor
where you can cook if you want to, or there are plenty of places to eat out on
campus. Okay. And you said that's the price for the whole year? Well, you pay
annually, but actually, it's for 36 weeks.

It doesn't include holidays. You have to vacate the room then. Oh, I'd need
somewhere to stay in the holidays. I can't afford to go home. The flights are too
expensive.

Well, there is another option. Several families who either work at the college or
have children studying here, offer visiting students a room in their homes. Oh. We
call this arrangement home welcome, and we've still got a few places left at the
moment. You pay a hundred and £50 per week, and that includes breakfast, a packed
lunch, and dinner, as well as heating.

Is there a contract? Do you have to stay for the whole year? No. It's flexible. It
sounds really good, but I'm not sure.
I really wanna be a little more independent. Before you hear the rest of the
conversation, you have some time to look at questions 5 to 10 on page 2. Now listen
and answer questions 5 to 10. What about finding somewhere to live off campus? Yes.

You can rent a property in town privately. You might want to rent a room in a
shared house. You'd have a room of your own and share the kitchen and bathroom with
other students. What about if I don't want to share? You can get what we call a
studio.

They're often quite small, but they'll have everything you need. Right. How much
would those 2 options cost? Well, prices vary depending on which part of town the
property's in. Generally speaking, the cheapest is around £275 a month for each
student.

Oh, that's not too bad. Yes. But it can also be as high as £490. And then you'll
have to pay all your other bills. What sort of amount would I be looking at for
those?

Well, last year, students were paying on average about £43 per month each for gas
and electricity. This year, it'll probably be somewhere in the region of £48.
That's a lot. Yes. They've gone up quite a bit.

And on top of that, you have to pay for water, and that'll probably be around £9.
That didn't occur to me. And I guess I'd have to pay for transportation too. That's
right. Most of these properties are quite a long way from the college.

Oh, it just gets worse and worse. What's the minimum contract on this type of
accommodation? Six months. And you have to pay a deposit. But, of course, you can
stay there over the holidays.

That's true. And you'd have to provide references. They want 2 from someone in this
country. I see. That's not a problem.

If you do choose this option, we can't find the property for you. You'd have to go
through the estate agent, which manages the property for the owner. Right. Thanks.
Well, I think I'd like to see what's available privately.

Could you give me the estate agent details? That is the end of section 1. You now
have half a minute to check your answers. Now turn to section 2 on page 3. Section
2.

You will hear an audio guide introducing visitors to a museum. First, you have some
time to look at questions 11 to 15 on page 3. Now listen carefully and answer
questions 11 to 15. Welcome to the Global Museum, located at the heart of this
truly multicultural city, which is home to more than 60 different nationalities.
The museum has a number of exciting displays and exhibitions, and this audio guide
is designed to help you make the most of your visit.

Altogether, the museum has 18 different galleries, and this season sees the opening
of 3 new exhibitions. We recommend that you begin your tour by visiting this
season's highlights. The Heritage Clothes exhibition is located in Gallery 5 of the
museum. People who live in the area have spent two years preparing this exhibition,
which brings together some of the fascinating garments traditionally worn in their
own communities. They research the history of their communities' clothing
traditions and the customs and rituals associated with them.

Altogether, 16 countries are represented, from Ghana to Korea, from Turkey to

Nepal. The photographs that accompany each display case were taken by some of the
city college students who are studying design and show the clothes being modeled by
the real people who wear them in the course of their everyday lives. Another
highlight this season is the exhibition called Toys from the Past, which can be
found in Gallery 9. This exhibition, which will appeal to people of all ages, is on
tour throughout the country and will be here for ten weeks only. The exhibits
include dolls made over a hundred years ago with beautiful porcelain faces and, in
some cases, real hair.

The collection covers the favorite toys such as wooden train sets from many
different generations and provides plenty of interest for children and adults. The
gigantic board games, which are laid out on the gallery floor, are 1 of the most
popular activities in the exhibition and should not be missed. This exhibition
concludes with a special display of miniature toys. These small objects are on loan
from countries all over the world and, in some cases, measure no more than a few
centimeters. There's a tiny car made from matchsticks, a toy airplane complete with
pilots and passengers made out of seashells, and some exquisite little buildings no
higher than 4 centimeters.

Before you hear the rest of the talk, you have some time to look at questions 16 to
20 on pages three and four. Now listen and answer questions 16 to 20. The final
gallery highlight of the season is the biscuit gallery at Number 15. Many years
ago, this city was famous for its biscuits. Although today, the factory no longer
exists.

Did you know, for example, that before biscuits were packed in paper or cardboard
boxes, biscuit tins were fashion items? The factory made tins round, square,
triangular, hexagonal for a whole range of different occasions to celebrate
national events, festivals, famous faces, and so on. 1 fascinating display deals
with people's favorite biscuits. There are sweet biscuits and savory ones, biscuits
filled with jam and biscuits filled with currants, biscuits with pink, yellow, and
white sugar icing, or colored sugar flowers. When the factory finally closed, it
announced that people's favorite biscuit was not, as you might expect, a chocolate
biscuit or 1 filled with jam and cream, but a plain savoury 1 which was eaten with
cheese.

When you get to the end of the exhibition, there's an entertaining hands on
activity to fill your own biscuit tin. All the biscuits ever produced by the
company are piled up on a table along with various tins. The biscuits are made out
of thin pieces of wood, but the weight, colors, and shapes replicate the original
biscuits. Your job is to fill a tin with biscuits so that when the lid is taken
off, they sit there as neatly as they did when the job was done by machine. It's
not as easy as it looks.

If you would like to buy a memento of your visit, there is a museum gift shop
selling postcards, souvenirs, and handmade pottery next to the information desk on
the Ground Floor. And finally, if you don't want to carry your coats and bags
around with you during your visit, please make use of the free lockers provided by
the museum. Enjoy your visit. That is the end of section 2. You now have half a
minute to check your answers.

Now turn to section 3 on page 5.