How to approach the Writing Subtest

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In the Writing section of the course you will be writing four profession-
specific letters based on your analysis of the case notes in the writing task.
This preparatory section provides a model of how to approach the writing
tasks. See also: Common Writing Subtest Mistakes (Main Writing Subtest
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Common stages in the

writing task

Key stages in the writing task Main language focus of each stage
.

Analysing the task to be clear that you are

Identifying the audience and how that affects
providing the appropriate information - e.g. content
your choice of information could be
different for different readers
This includes length - the 200 word limit
means you will need to make careful
decisions about leaving out information while
still maintaining enough information for the
reader to base an assessment or action on.

Focus on meaning—this will generally be

straight forward, but it's a good idea to
check. (See also section B in the 'Common
OET writing mistakes' document).

Reading the case notes to identify: Reading and highlighting the key information

- the main purpose of the referral - what Focus on meaning (see also section B in the
do you want the reader to check or know? 'Common OET writing mistakes' document).

- information which could be relevant to

the reader when making their decision

Organising the information into a cohesive Writing a plan

(unified and interconnected) whole
Focus on meaning and overall text
organisation (see also section B C and E in
the 'Common OET writing mistakes'
document).
Writing the letter out in full with attention Focus on language forms - using grammar
to the details of English and vocabulary appropriate to formal letter
writing (see also sections A, C and D in the
'Common OET writing mistakes' document).

We will look at each of these stages in the context of the sample tasks
provided on the OET website – the particular link to the sample writing tasks
can found by clicking here.