Social Media

The answer is accurate but relies on plain phrasal verbs like 'get tricked' and a single conditional sentence, keeping the language correct but unremarkable.

When did you start using social media?

I started when I was about seventeen, in my last year of school. My first app was Facebook, which all my classmates in Hue were using, and I mainly used it to chat and share photos.

Why this band

• GRA“which all my classmates in Hue were using” — The relative clause ‘which all my classmates in Hue were using’ is the one piece of subordination added to an otherwise simple, factual sentence about starting Facebook. A higher band might combine this with a further clause about why everyone used it. Here it stands as a single, correctly formed complex structure, the modest range typical of Band 6.5.

Why do you use social media?

Mainly to relax and see what my friends are doing. I also follow a few design accounts on TikTok for quick tips. It is an easy way to stay updated without much effort.

Why this band

• FC“Mainly to relax and see what my friends are doing.” — The answer opens with a short, direct statement of purpose before a second sentence adds one more detail about design accounts on TikTok, which is the minimal but adequate development the 6.5 fluency descriptor describes -- one main reason plus a small extra, not a fully built argument. A 7.0 answer would more likely link these two ideas with a connector rather than presenting them as separate short sentences.

Has anyone ever recommended a social media app to you?

Yes, my colleague Ha recommended Pinterest to me for saving design ideas. She showed me how to organise boards, and now I use it almost every day for inspiration.

Why this band

• FC“Yes, my colleague Ha recommended Pinterest to me for saving design ideas.” — The answer opens by directly naming who recommended what and why, all in one fact-first sentence, before the following sentence adds a small extra detail. A higher band would likely build in more reflection or a stronger link between the sentences. This straightforward, fact-first opening with minimal elaboration is typical of Band 6.5 fluency.

What do you dislike seeing on social media?

I dislike seeing fake giveaways and scam advertisements. My cousin almost lost money to one last year, and it makes me sad that so many people still get tricked by these posts.

Why this band

• LR“get tricked” — 'Get tricked' is an everyday phrasal verb, chosen over a more precise alternative like 'deceived' or 'defrauded' that a higher band might use, which fits the 6.5 descriptor's ceiling on vocabulary sophistication. It communicates the idea of falling for scam adverts clearly and accurately, doing exactly the plain, functional job the band expects without any risk of misuse.

Would you spend more time on social media if you had more free time?

Probably not much more. If I had extra free time, I would rather cook a proper meal or read a novel than scroll through my phone for hours.

Why this band

• GRA“If I had extra free time, I would rather cook a proper meal or read a novel than scroll through my phone for hours.” — This is a correctly formed second conditional, combined with a 'would rather...than' comparison, but it's the only complex structure in the answer and isn't varied further, which matches the 6.5 grammar descriptor's expectation of occasional accurate complex sentences within an otherwise simple answer. A 7.0 script might follow this with a second, differently structured sentence to extend the point, but here one correct conditional is sufficient to answer the question.

Has anyone ever recommended a social media app or website to you?

Yes, a colleague recommended an app to me for following design work. I use it a lot now for inspiration.

Is there anything you really don't like about social media?

Yes, I don't like how much time it takes. I sometimes scroll for a long time without noticing, especially late at night before going to sleep.

In the future, do you think you will spend more or less time on social media?

I think probably less, because I want to spend more time doing other things instead, like exercise or reading in the evenings after work.

The idiomatic phrase 'stay in the loop' and the spoken connector 'to be honest' give the answer more natural flow than 6.5, without the layered subordination of 7.5.

When did you start using social media?

I started around the age of sixteen, near the end of secondary school. My first account was on Facebook, mainly because all my classmates were using it, and I used it to chat and share photos with friends.

Why this band

• GRA“mainly because all my classmates were using it, and I used it to chat and share photos with friends” — A reason clause introduced by 'mainly because' is combined with a further coordinated clause about how the platform was used, packing two related ideas into one flowing sentence rather than splitting them into separate simple statements. That comfortable combination of subordination and coordination within a single sentence is characteristic of the Band 7.0 grammar range, a step beyond the more basic 'so'-linked sentences a 6.5 answer would rely on. It gives a full, natural account of both why Facebook was chosen and what it was used for.

Why do you use social media?

Mostly to unwind and keep up with what my friends are doing. I also follow a handful of design accounts for quick tips and ideas. It's a fairly low-effort way to stay in the loop.

Why this band

• LR“stay in the loop” — An idiomatic but common spoken phrase is a step up from the plain 'stay updated' of the 6.5 answer, matching the flexible vocabulary target of Band 7.0.

Has anyone ever recommended a social media app to you?

Yes, actually - my colleague recommended Pinterest to me for collecting design ideas. She showed me how to organise everything into boards, and now I use it almost daily for inspiration.

Why this band

• GRA“She showed me how to organise everything into boards” — The embedded question form ‘how to organise everything into boards’ functions as the object of ‘showed’, which is a more complex structure than a plain sentence like ‘She taught me to use boards’. It's comfortable and accurate without being as varied as the structures a 7.5 answer might use. That natural embedding of an indirect question is typical of Band 7.0 grammatical range.

What do you dislike seeing on social media?

Fake giveaways and scam ads, mainly. My cousin nearly lost money to one last year, and it bothers me that so many people still fall for that kind of thing.

Why this band

• LR“still fall for that kind of thing” — ‘Fall for’ is a natural phrasal verb meaning to be deceived, used here instead of a plainer word like ‘believe’ or ‘trust’. It gives the closing comment a more idiomatic, spoken feel without being an unusual or literary choice. That comfortable, slightly idiomatic vocabulary beyond the plainest option is what Band 7.0 lexical resource targets.

Would you spend more time on social media if you had more free time?

Probably not a lot more, to be honest. If I suddenly had extra free time, I'd rather cook a proper meal or read than spend hours scrolling through my phone.

Why this band

• FC“to be honest” — 'To be honest' is a natural spoken connector that frames the closing opinion as candid rather than rehearsed, doing more conversational work than a flat 'I don't think so'. This kind of idiomatic discourse marker, used to smooth the transition into an opinion, is exactly the natural linking Band 7.0 targets over the more basic connectors a 6.5 answer would use. It sets up the honest preference for cooking or reading over scrolling that follows immediately after it.

Has anyone ever recommended a social media app or website to you?

Yes, actually — a colleague at the studio recommended a design-sharing site to me, and I'd say I now check it almost every day for inspiration.

Is there anything you really don't like about social media?

There is, actually — how much time it quietly eats up, to be fair. I'll open it for a minute and somehow lose half an hour without noticing.

In the future, do you think you will spend more or less time on social media?

I'd guess less, if I'm honest — I've been trying to cut back lately, since it's crept up on me more than I'd like to admit.

The purpose clause stacked onto an already complex sentence, and the mildly sarcastic 'as if it was proven science', show the wider grammar and precise vocabulary typical of Band 7.5.

When did you start using social media?

I actually started using social media near the end of high school, so I think I was around sixteen. My first account was on Zing Me, which was really popular back then, but I remember switching to Facebook a few months later so I could keep up with friends from Hue and my new classmates in Hanoi after I moved for university prep. It felt exciting but also a bit overwhelming at first.

Why this band

• GRA“so I could keep up with friends from Hue and my new classmates in Hanoi after I moved for university prep” — A purpose clause ('so I could keep up with...') is added on top of a sentence that already contains a time phrase and an earlier main clause about switching platforms, stacking layers of information without losing grammatical control -- the wide range of accurate subordination the 7.5 grammar descriptor specifically targets. A 7.0 answer would more likely present the reason for switching to Facebook as a separate, simpler sentence rather than folding it into the same structure.

Why do you use social media?

I use social media mainly to keep up with design trends and connect with friends who live far away. For example, earlier this week I watched a live Q&A with a product designer on a Figma community group and ended up chatting with a designer from Kuala Lumpur afterward. It felt productive and social at the same time, which is honestly what I like best about those platforms.

Why this band

• FC“which is honestly what I like best about those platforms” — Instead of ending on the concrete example about the Figma Q&A, the answer steps back to generalise about what it values in social media overall. A 6.5 or 7.0 answer would more likely stop at the example itself. That move from a specific anecdote to a broader, reflective conclusion is the evaluative development typical of Band 7.5 fluency and coherence.

Has anyone ever recommended a social media app to you?

Yes, actually, my friend Thao suggested I try out BeReal about six months ago. She messaged me on Zalo and explained how it's all about posting unfiltered daily moments, which she thought I'd find refreshing compared to the usual polished posts on Instagram. I gave it a shot for a few weeks, and it was fun seeing friends' spontaneous photos pop up each day.

Why this band

• LR“I gave it a shot for a few weeks” — ‘Gave it a shot’ is an idiomatic way of saying ‘tried it’, more natural and conversational than the plain verb a lower band would use. It fits smoothly into the anecdote about BeReal without feeling like a deliberately inserted phrase. That easy, natural use of an idiom rather than plain vocabulary is characteristic of Band 7.5 lexical resource.

What do you dislike seeing on social media?

Honestly, I really dislike seeing people spread fake news or misleading health tips on social media. Just last week, a friend from university shared a post about some miracle weight loss tea, and dozens of people were commenting as if it was proven science. It just makes the whole space feel less trustworthy, especially when older relatives start believing those things too.

Why this band

• LR“as if it was proven science” — 'As if it was proven science' is a precise, natural way to convey sarcasm about people treating a miracle-tea post as credible, doing more evaluative work than a plain statement like 'people believed it too easily' that a 7.0 answer would likely use instead. This single ironic touch, deployed without being laboured, is the kind of figurative flexibility the 7.5 lexical descriptor rewards, and it captures the speaker's frustration about misinformation precisely.
• FC“It just makes the whole space feel less trustworthy, especially when older relatives start believing those things too.” — Rather than ending on the specific anecdote about the friend's weight-loss-tea post, the answer widens out into a broader evaluative claim about trust in the whole platform, and adds a second concrete worry about older relatives -- the single but genuine reflective point the 7.5 fluency descriptor asks for beyond description. A 7.0 answer would likely stop right after narrating the anecdote itself, without this generalising final move.

Would you spend more time on social media if you had more free time?

Actually, I don't think I would. Even when I have some extra time, I usually prefer going for a run along My Khe Beach or sketching ideas for fun rather than scrolling through social media. For example, last Sunday I had a free afternoon and ended up reorganizing my design files instead of checking Instagram or TikTok much at all.

Why this band

• GRA“Even when I have some extra time, I usually prefer going for a run along My Khe Beach or sketching ideas for fun rather than scrolling through social media” — A concessive clause (‘Even when...’) is combined with a parallel ‘rather than’ comparison of two gerund phrases (‘going for a run... or sketching... rather than scrolling’), all inside one accurate, well-controlled sentence. A 7.0 answer would likely simplify this into two shorter sentences, and a 6.5 answer would drop the concession altogether. That density of accurate, varied structure in a single sentence is what Band 7.5 grammar targets.

Has anyone ever recommended a social media app or website to you?

Yes, one of the designers at my studio talked me into joining a design-sharing site, and it's become something I check almost on autopilot now, mostly for inspiration when I'm stuck.

Is there anything you really don't like about social media?

The way it quietly eats up time is probably my biggest complaint, if I'm honest — I'll open it meaning to check one thing and resurface twenty minutes later having achieved nothing at all.

In the future, do you think you will spend more or less time on social media?

Less, I'd hope, if I'm honest — I've been deliberately cutting back lately, having noticed how much of an evening it can quietly swallow when I'm not paying attention.