According to the British Council’s Take IELTS website, one key to getting good scores in IELTS Writing is to be able to use a mix of simple and complex sentence forms. However, quite often we can see candidates getting too carried away with the idea and end up using too many commas in their essays.

 

Generally speaking, an easy-to-read, eloquently written complex sentence usually involves only one to two commas. For example:

“Whereas Speaking Part I is more structured, Speaking Part II is a freer presentation for your speaking and communication skills.”

Nonetheless, it is common for candidates to mistakenly write an overly long complex sentence with too many commas – more so when they attempt to write as they think. Do remember thatthinking about something is very different from reading about something – having to read a long, continuous stream of thought can be tiring, and even prevent the examiners from understanding how your sentences are constructed. The following, for example, is a little bit hard to read:

“To conclude, before you make any important decisions in your career, which will affect your life significantly, you should take a moment to think about what you want in life, as well as how you can achieve them, because some may consider job satisfaction as one of their many keys to happiness in life, while the others look at their job merely as a stepping stone for their real life goals.”

See how having too many commas can be problematic? Bear this in mind every time you proof read your essay.