Writing
LanguageCert Academic Writing: the two tasks, the criteria and your time
LanguageCert Academic Writing's two tasks: what you write, how many words, each task's share of the marks, the criteria and a suggested time split, in tables.
By Certyar1 November 20263 min read
Read this in PersianLanguageCert Academic Writing takes 50 minutes and has two tasks, marked by LanguageCert's trained examiners. This article goes through both, from the official exam page, the Qualification Handbook and LanguageCert's own Writing video.
Writing at a glance
| Task 1 | Task 2 | |
|---|---|---|
| What you write | A formal response for a public audience, such as a report or article | An argumentative piece |
| Based on | A visual input (a graph, an infographic) or a text | An academic subject |
| Words | 150–200 | About 250 |
| Share of the Writing marks | 40% | 60% |
Both tasks are written in the same 50 minutes.
What each task assesses
| Task | What it assesses |
|---|---|
| 1 | Responding appropriately to an input with a formal text for a public audience |
| 2 | Argumentative writing on an academic subject |
Task 1: a formal response to an input
You get an input, usually an infographic or graph, and write a formal text of 150–200 words for a public audience: for example a report or article that explains the data and gives your view and reasons.
- Answer everything the question asks: Task Achievement is a quarter of this task's marks.
- Pick the main trends and comparisons; you don't need every figure.
- Keep the tone formal: no contractions (don't), no chatty language.
Task 2: an argumentative piece
You write an argumentative piece of about 250 words on an academic subject. State your view clearly, support it with reasons and examples, and deal with the other side.
- A simple structure is enough: an introduction with a clear view, two or three paragraphs of argument, a conclusion.
- Give each paragraph one main idea, linked to the rest with connectors.
- An answer that is off topic or memorised gets no credit.
The marking criteria
Each task is assessed on four criteria, each marked from 0 to 8:
| Criterion | What the examiner looks at |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement | How far you addressed the task |
| Grammar | The range, appropriacy and accuracy of structures |
| Vocabulary | The range, accuracy and appropriacy of words, and spelling |
| Organisation | How coherently ideas are linked, and punctuation |
How the two tasks' marks are combined, with a worked example, is in how LanguageCert Academic is marked.
Managing your time
LanguageCert doesn't set a split. Since Task 2 is both longer and weighs more, a sensible one is:
| Step | Task 1 | Task 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Thinking and planning | 3 min | 5 min |
| Writing | 14 min | 21 min |
| Checking | 2 min | 5 min |
| Total | 19 min | 31 min |
Practising Writing on Certyar
On Certyar you practise both tasks in this format with the word count in view, and once you send you get an estimated 0–8 band for each of the four criteria, the reason, and concrete ways to improve. The feedback comes from AI, not a LanguageCert examiner.
Certyar is an independent preparation site, not affiliated with LanguageCert. For the official details, see LanguageCert Academic's page.