CELPIP® Writing Task 2 sample: Fitness Centre Hours and Fees Survey

Level 7 sample answer

165 words

I would choose Option A, the 24-hour access with the same $45 fee.

Money is my biggest reason. Many of members are students or seniors, and $9 more each month is over $100 every year. For my family it is a lot, because my wife and me both have memberships. If the price goes up, maybe we will cancel one membership.

Having 24-hour access is also very useful for people with different schedules. My brother-in-law works from 2 p.m. to 11 p.m. at a factory, and he wants to exercise after his shift, but the gym is already closed then. With Option A, he could go at midnight.

I know some members like the evening classes, and some people feel safer when staff is there. But the centre can use cameras and key fobs, so only members can come in. People can also do classes in the daytime or follow videos at home.

In the end, Option A is the best plan for most members.

Why this answer is at level 7

This level 7 example presents a clear preference with understandable reasons about affordability and access. Compared with the stronger answers, its vocabulary is more general, its grammar is less controlled, and its response to the loss of staff and evening classes is less convincing.

• But the centre can use cameras and key fobs, so only members can come in. — Content/Coherence: This responds to the safety concern, but cameras and key fobs do not guarantee that only members enter or provide immediate help. A stronger answer would distinguish access control from assistance during an emergency.
• Having 24-hour access is also very useful for people with different schedules. — Vocabulary: The meaning is clear, but phrases such as “very useful” and “different schedules” are broad. A higher-level answer would describe the scheduling problem more precisely and explain how overnight access solves it.
• For my family it is a lot, because my wife and me both have memberships. — Readability: The family example makes the financial concern easy to understand. However, “my wife and me” should be “my wife and I,” and “it is a lot” is vague. The stronger answers express personal consequences with greater grammatical control and precision.
• People can also do classes in the daytime or follow videos at home. — Task Fulfillment: This addresses the cancellation of evening classes, but assumes that daytime classes or home videos would suit affected members. A stronger response would acknowledge that members who rely on evening sessions may lose an important part of their membership.

Level 9 sample answer

193 words

I'd vote for Option A: round-the-clock key-fob access while keeping the fee at $45.

For me, flexibility is the deciding factor. I'm a nurse on rotating shifts, so some weeks I finish at 11 p.m. and other weeks I start at 7 a.m. Under the current hours, there are entire stretches when I can't get to the gym at all, and I've paid for months I barely used. Being able to drop in at midnight or 5 a.m. would finally make my membership worthwhile.

Keeping the fee steady also matters for a community gym. Brennan Park attracts many retirees and university students who chose it precisely because it's affordable, and a 20% increase could push some of them to cancel. Losing members would only add to the centre's financial pressure.

I realize that the evening classes are popular, and I'd miss the Thursday spin class myself. Perhaps some of them could move to the mid-afternoon, before staff leave at four. As for safety, the gym I used in Oshawa ran unstaffed overnight hours with cameras and an emergency phone, and I never felt unsafe, so I'm sure Brennan Park could manage the same.

Why this answer is at level 9

This level 9 example develops Option A through specific scheduling problems, financial consequences and practical compromises, using more precise language than the level 7 answer. Its confident safety conclusion and response beyond the requested word range hold it back, while the level 11 answer weighs its preferred plan's costs more carefully.

• Being able to drop in at midnight or 5 a.m. would finally make my membership worthwhile. — Content/Coherence: This connects extended access to a clear benefit: making a paid membership usable around rotating shifts. It develops the scheduling argument more fully than the level 7 example. A stronger response would apply equally careful reasoning to the disadvantages of reduced staffing.
• Losing members would only add to the centre's financial pressure. — Vocabulary: “Financial pressure” expresses the centre's budget problem precisely, while “losing members” connects affordability with revenue. This is more economical and analytical than the level 7 language. A stronger answer would also qualify the prediction rather than treating cancellations as certain.
• Perhaps some of them could move to the mid-afternoon, before staff leave at four. — Readability: The sentence clearly links a proposed class time to staff availability, and “Perhaps” appropriately signals a suggestion. A higher-level response would also acknowledge that an earlier class may be inaccessible to members who specifically need evening sessions.
• and I never felt unsafe, so I'm sure Brennan Park could manage the same. — Content/Coherence: The Oshawa experience adds concrete support, but feeling safe at another gym does not establish that Brennan Park could manage emergencies successfully. A stronger answer would present this experience as supporting evidence while retaining some uncertainty.
• I'd vote for Option A: round-the-clock key-fob access while keeping the fee at $45. — Task Fulfillment: The opening states the choice and accurately identifies its main benefits. However, the complete response exceeds the requested word range. A stronger answer would preserve its developed reasons while shortening the shift history and the account of the Oshawa gym.

Level 11 sample answer

189 words

After considering both plans, I'd ask the board to adopt Option B, even though it means paying $54 a month.

What sets Brennan Park apart from a budget chain is its people. When I joined three years ago, barely able to jog for five minutes, it was the staff who corrected my form, adjusted my program and encouraged me to sign up for the Tuesday evening circuit class. That class, which regularly draws twenty-five members, has become as much a social outing as a workout. Cancelling it would strip away the very thing that keeps many of us coming back.

I'm also uneasy about leaving the building unattended for sixteen hours a day. If a member felt unwell on a treadmill at 2 a.m., no one would be on hand to help, and a fob-controlled door can easily be held open for non-members.

I don't want to downplay the cost: $108 a year is significant, particularly for retirees. Still, if the new fee raised enough to absorb the lost revenue, the board could also offer a reduced student or senior rate, protecting the centre's character without pricing anyone out.

Why this answer is at level 11

This level 11 example builds a persuasive case for Option B by connecting staffing and evening classes to member support, social connection and continued attendance. Its controlled language, concrete examples and acknowledgment of affordability make the comparison more thoughtful, although the proposed discounts remain conditional on sufficient revenue.

• That class, which regularly draws twenty-five members, has become as much a social outing as a workout. — Content/Coherence: The class example develops the argument beyond personal preference: it shows how evening sessions support a community of members. The participation detail and social benefit explain why cancelling classes could weaken the centre's appeal.
• Cancelling it would strip away the very thing that keeps many of us coming back. — Vocabulary: “Strip away” conveys a substantial loss, while “keeps many of us coming back” connects the class experience to continued attendance. The language is expressive and directly supports the argument about preserving the centre's character.
• If a member felt unwell on a treadmill at 2 a.m., no one would be on hand to help, — Readability: The controlled conditional structure makes the safety concern easy to follow. A concrete situation explains the practical consequence of having no staff present, giving the argument greater clarity than a general statement about feeling unsafe.
• Still, if the new fee raised enough to absorb the lost revenue, — Task Fulfillment: This introduces a constructive response to the affordability objection while making reduced rates conditional on available revenue. It strengthens the case for Option B, although the closing promise of avoiding exclusion is more certain than this financial condition supports.