theanh-ieltspractice - Tumblr blog

[theanh-ieltspractice]

Questions 1 – 10

Complete the notes below.

Write ONE WORD AND/OR A NUMBER for each answer.

Bankside Recruitment Agency

●   Address of agency: 497 Eastside, Docklands

●   Name of agent: Becky [1] ……………..

●   Phone number: 07866 510333

●   Best to call her in the [2] ……………

Typical jobs

●   Clerical and admin roles, mainly in the finance industry

●   Must have good [3] ……………… skills

●   Jobs are usually for at least one [4] ………………..

●   Pay is usually [5] £…………….. per hour

Registration process

●   Wear a [6] ………………. to the interview

●   Must bring your [7]……………….. to the interview

●   They will ask questions about each applicant’s [8] ……………….

Advantages of using an agency

●   The [9] ………………. you receive at interview will benefit you

●   Will get access to vacancies which are not advertised

●   Less [10] ……………… is involved in applying for jobs

TRANSCRIPT:

AMBER:               Hello William. This is Amber – you said to phone if I wanted to get more information about the job agency you mentioned. Is now a good time?

WILLIAM:            Oh, hi Amber. Yes. Fine. So the agency I was talking about is called Bankside – they’re based in Docklands – I can tell you the address now – 497 Eastside.

AMBER:               OK, thanks. So is there anyone in particular I should speak to there?

WILLIAM:            The agent I always deal with is called Becky Jamieson.

AMBER:               Let me write that down – Becky …

WILLIAM:            Jamieson (Q1) J-A-M-I-E-S-O-N.

AMBER:               Do you have her direct line?

WILLIAM:            Yes, it’s in my contacts somewhere – right, here we are: 078 double 6, 510 triple 3. I wouldn’t call her until the afternoon (Q2) if I were you – she’s always really busy in the morning trying to fill last-minute vacancies. She’s really helpful and friendly so I’m sure it would be worth getting in touch with her for an informal chat.

AMBER:               It’s mainly clerical and admin jobs they deal with, isn’t it?

WILLIAM:            That’s right. I know you’re hoping to find a full-time job in the media eventually – but Becky mostly recruits temporary staff for the finance sector – which will look good on your CV – and generally pays better too.

AMBER:               Yeah – I’m just a bit worried because I don’t have much office experience.

WILLIAM:            I wouldn’t worry. They’ll probably start you as a receptionist, or something like that. So what’s important for that kind of job isn’t so much having business skills or knowing lots of different computer systems – it’s communication (Q3) that really matters – so you’d be fine there. And you’ll pick up office skills really quickly on the job. It’s not that complicated.

AMBER:               OK good. So how long do people generally need temporary staff for? It would be great if I could get something lasting at least a month.

WILLIAM:            That shouldn’t be too difficult. But you’re more likely to be offered something for a week (Q4) at first, which might get extended. It’s unusual to be sent somewhere for just a day or two.

AMBER:               Right, I’ve heard the pay isn’t too bad – better than working in a shop or a restaurant.

WILLIAM:            Oh yes – definitely. The hourly rate is about £10 (Q5), 11 if you’re lucky.

AMBER:               That’s pretty good. I was only expecting to get eight or nine pounds an hour.

————————————————

WILLIAM:            Do you want me to tell you anything about the registration process?

AMBER:               Yes, please. I know you have to have an interview.

WILLIAM:            The interview usually takes about an hour and you should arrange that about a week in advance.

AMBER:               I suppose I should dress smartly if it’s for office work – I can probably borrow a suit (Q6) from Mum.

WILLIAM:            Good idea. It’s better to look too smart than too casual.

AMBER:               Will I need to bring copies of my exam certificates or anything like that?

WILLIAM:            No – they don’t need to see those, I don’t think.

AMBER:               What about my passport? (Q7)

WILLIAM:            Oh yes – they will ask to see that.

AMBER:               OK.

WILLIAM:            I wouldn’t get stressed about the interview though. It’s just a chance for them to build a relationship with you – so they can try and match you to a job which you’ll like. So there are questions about personality (Q8) that they always ask candidates – fairly basic ones. And they probably won’t ask anything too difficult like what your plans are for the future.

AMBER:               Hope not.

WILLIAM:            Anyway, there are lots of benefits to using an agency – for example, the interview will be useful because they’ll give you feedback (Q9) on your performance so you can improve next time.

AMBER:               And they’ll have access to jobs which aren’t advertised.

WILLIAM:            Exactly – most temporary jobs aren’t advertised.

AMBER:               And I expect finding a temporary job this way takes a lot less time (Q10) – it’s much easier than ringing up individual companies.

WILLIAM:            Yes indeed. Well I think …