IELTS LISTENING TEST 30

SECTION 1 You will hear a telephone conversation between a receptionist who works at a house renting agency and a man. First, you'll have some time to look at questions 1 to 4. You will see there is an example that has been done for you. On this occasion only, the conversation relating to this will be played first. Hello, how can I help you today? Ah yes, hello. I'm just phoning you as I have seen an advertisement on your website for a property that I'm interested in renting. If possible, I'd like to find out some more information before I organise a viewing. No problem at all. What is the address of the property that you'd like to inquire about? It's 21 North Avenue. Okay. The address of the property is 21 North Avenue. So, 21 North has been written in the space. Now we shall begin. You should answer the questions as you listen, because you will not hear the recording a second time. Listen carefully and answer questions 1 to 4. Hello, how can I help you today? Ah yes, hello. I'm just phoning you as I have seen an advertisement on your website for a property that I'm interested in renting. If possible, I'd like to find out some more information before I organise a viewing. No problem at all. What is the address of the property that you'd like to inquire about? It's 21 North Avenue. Okay. What is it that you'd like to know? First of all, I'd like to know what facilities the office has, as I need to make sure that it'll be suitable for my advertising company. I see. The office contains a large open plan space with a wide frontage onto a busy street with lots of passers-by, so your business would have a really good street presence. There is also a toilet and newly refurbished kitchen equipped with a dishwasher and oven. Wow, that sounds great. I'd definitely like to register my interest. Okay, perfect. I just need to take some details from you, if that's okay. What is your full name? Jonathan Smith. And what position do you hold in your company, Jonathan? Until recently I was sales manager, however I've recently been promoted to regional manager, so I'll be in charge of running our new office. Can I ask where the office is located? Yes, of course. It's located downtown, just around the corner from Royal Square Shopping Centre. Hmm, that's a bit too far out of the centre for my liking. I'd much prefer to be located in close proximity to the station. Do you have any property located in that vicinity? It would help me to narrow down the results if you could tell me how many employees you intend to have working in the office. Our branch is made up of 30 employees and we'd like some extra space for meetings and presentations. Most average office spaces are around 8,000 square feet, but it sounds like you would need more space than that. I think that 10,000 square feet would be more suitable for your needs. Now, let's see, we have 10 properties that match those criteria, so let's try and narrow it down. Before you hear the rest of the conversation, you have some time to look at questions 5 to 10. Now listen and answer questions 5 to 10. Do you have any other requirements? Well, we'll need access to the office 12 hours a day, but security should be 24 hour. We don't hold any money on the premises, but it's crucial that we protect our customer information against theft. Okay, anything else? Yes, ideally I would refer the new office to be split over two levels, so that the working office area is kept separate from street level. That will enable us to locate a reception of ground floor level to welcome customers when they arrive. And are there any particular facilities that you need? Our employees work very hard throughout the day and I want to make sure that they're well nourished. It would therefore be ideal if I could provide them with a kitchen to cook hot meals at lunchtime. Would you want the kitchen to be located at first floor level with the office? No, I don't want the office to be filled with the smell of food. It would be better if the new office had a basement where we could locate the kitchen and staff room area to keep it at arm's length from the workspace. Okay, I have now narrowed the search to two available properties. Do you have any other requirements that could narrow our search down to one result? All of our office staff will be working at desktop computers, so I'll need the office to be equipped with at least 40 power sockets if possible. Anything else? Studies have shown that exercise is very important for maintaining happiness and healthy brain function. In an office environment it's very difficult to get sufficient daily exercise, so it would be great if they had access to a nearby exercise area. One of the available offices is located next door to a gym. Would this be suitable? Yes, absolutely. A gym is exactly what I was thinking of. Brilliant. Do you need the office to be furnished? I don't think so. I already have some furniture, so I would prefer to bring this myself. That's no problem at all. And before I forget, we will definitely require Wi-Fi access as much of our work and customer recruitment is carried out online. No problem. It sounds like the property will suit your needs perfectly. I've taken the liberty of booking you a viewing at 3 p.m. on Thursday so you can see it for yourself. Is there anything else I can help you with today? No, I think that's all the information I need. Thanks very much for your help. No problem. It's been my pleasure to be of assistance. Goodbye. That is the end of section 1. You now have half a minute to check your answers. Now turn to section 2.

SECTION 2 You will hear a guidance counsellor talking to a group of students. First, you have some time to look at questions 11 to 14. Listen carefully and answer questions 11 to 14. Hello everyone. I'm the counselling administrator here at St. Ives College and I've been asked to come and talk to you about our counselling team and the services that we offer. We have three professional counsellors here at St. Ives. Louise Bagshaw, Tony Denby and Naomi Flynn. They each hold daily one-on-one sessions with students but which counsellor you see will depend on a number of factors. If you've never used a counsellor before then you should make an appointment with Naomi Flynn. Naomi specialises in seeing new students and offers a preliminary session where she will talk to you about what you can expect from counselling followed by some simple questions about what you would like to discuss. This can be really helpful for students who are feeling a bit worried about the counselling process. Naomi is also the best option for students who can only see a counsellor outside office hours. She is not in on Mondays but starts early on Wednesday mornings and works late on Thursday evenings so you can see her before your first class or after your last class on those days. Louise staffs our drop-in centre throughout the day. If you need to see someone without a prior appointment then she is the one to visit. Please note that if you use this service then Louise will either see you herself or place you with the next available counsellor. If you want to be sure to see the same counsellor on each visit then we strongly recommend you make an appointment ahead of time. You can do this at reception during office hours or by using our online booking form. Tony is our newest addition to the counselling team. He is our only male counsellor and he has an extensive background in stress management and relaxation techniques. We encourage anyone who is trying to deal with anxiety to see him. Tony will introduce you to a full range of techniques to help you cope with this problem such as body awareness, time management and positive reinforcement. Before you hear the rest of the talk you have some time to look at questions 15 to 20. Now listen and answer questions 15 to 20. Each semester the counselling team runs a number of small group workshops. These last for two hours and are free to all enrolled students. Our first workshop is called adjusting. We found that tertiary education can come as a big shock for some people. After the learning environment of school it is easy to feel lost. In this workshop we will introduce you to what is necessary for academic success. As you might expect we're targeting first-year students with this offering. Getting organised follows on from the first workshop. Here we're going to help you break the habit of putting things off, get the most out of your time and discover the right balance between academic and recreational activities. With getting organised we're catering to a broader crowd which includes all undergraduates and postgraduates. Next up is a workshop called communicating. The way people interact here may be quite different to what you're used to especially if you've come from abroad. We'll cover an area that many foreign students struggle with how to talk with teachers and other staff. We'll cover all aspects of multicultural communication. International students tend to get a lot out of this class so we particularly encourage you to come along but I must say that sometimes students from a local background find it helpful too so everyone is welcome. The anxiety workshop is held later on in the year and deals with something you will all be familiar with, the nerves and anxiety that come when exams are approaching. Many students go through their entire academic careers suffering like this but you don't have to. Come to this workshop and we'll teach you all about relaxation and how to breathe properly as well as meditation and other strategies to remain calm. We've tailored this workshop to anyone who is going to sit exams. Finally we have the motivation workshop. The big topic here is how to stay on target and motivated during long-term research projects. This workshop is strictly for research students as less advanced students already have several workshops catering to their needs. Well that's it, thanks for your time. If you have any questions or want more information about our services do come and see us at the counselling service. That is the end of section 2. You now have half a minute to check your answers. Now turn to section 3.

SECTION 3 You will hear a discussion between a business student called Marco and his personal tutor about the courses that Marco should take. First you have some time to look at questions 21 to 23 on page 5. Now listen carefully and answer questions 21 to 23. Hi Marco, come in. Thanks. I've got a bit stuck trying to select courses for next semester. Could you help me please? Of course, sit down. First of all most people just go for the areas of business that they're interested in but even if something doesn't look very stimulating it's important that you can use it once you get a job. It's not much good choosing areas that aren't going to be helpful later on. Right, I want to go into management so I'll need to think about that and should I start specialising in a particular area yet? I don't think that's wise at this stage. It's better to aim for a wide variety of subjects especially as management covers so many possibilities. You shouldn't be limiting your choices for later on. Yes, I see. You should also look at how the course is made up. Will you have regular seminars and tutorials for example as well as lectures? Okay. Some of the lecturers are quite big names in their fields aren't they? Mm-hmm. Should I aim to go to their courses? Well remember that the lecturers who aren't well-known may still be very good teachers. I'd say we have a consistently high standard of teaching in this department so you don't need to worry about it. Before you hear the rest of the discussion you have some time to look at questions 24 to 30 on pages 5 and 6. Now listen and answer questions 24 to 30. Good. Well that's a great help. Now last time we met you mentioned doing management didn't you? That's right. I'm still quite keen on the idea. Mm-hmm. The trouble is that because of changes in the content of various courses team management overlaps with the introduction to management course you took in your first year. So what you learned from it would be too little for the amount of time you'd have to spend on it. I'll drop that idea then. Have you had a chance to look at the outline I wrote for my finance dissertation? I left it in your pigeonhole last week. Yes. Why exactly do you want to write a dissertation instead of taking the finance modules? It'll be pretty demanding. Well I'm quite prepared to do the extra work because I'm keen to investigate something in depth instead of just skating across the surface. I realised that a broader knowledge base may be more useful to my career but I'm really keen to do this. Right. Well I had a quick look through your outline and the first thing that struck me was that you'll have to be careful how you set about it as the way you've organised it seems unnecessarily complex. The data that you want to collect and analyse is potentially valuable but you'll need to narrow down the subject matter to make the whole thing manageable. Okay. I'll have another look at it. I was talking to Professor Briggs about it yesterday and I got some more ideas then. For part of the dissertation I was thinking of trying to persuade finance managers from three or four companies to let me ask them about their company finances. If not I think I'll have to change to another topic. Well go ahead then. I could give you some names. Thanks. Now let's talk about practicalities. Your dissertation must be finalised by the end of May so you should aim to finish the first draft by the end of March. Is that feasible? Yes it shouldn't be a problem. I'll need to register for the dissertation won't I? Is that with the registrar's department? No it's internal to this department so you just need to let the secretary know. Do that as soon as you're sure you're going to write the dissertation. Okay. Then to analyse your statistics you're going to need some suitable software. If I were you I'd drop into the computer office and ask them for a copy. Right. So if I revise my outline... That is the end of section three. You now have half a minute to check your answers. Section four. You will hear an introduction about an eco-friendly building called the Gherkin. First you have some time to look at questions 31 to 40. Now listen carefully and answer questions 31 to 40. Today I'd like to tell you about how UK architects are playing their part to address the issue of global warming. You have seen many of these iconic buildings while going about your everyday life but you may not know how they are affecting your tomorrow. In 2003 construction was completed on the famous Swiss Rebuilding or more informally called the Gherkin. A true masterpiece commissioned by the law offices of Foster and Partners. This is not the first ambitious endeavor of the firm. They are renowned for their various philanthropic environmental efforts. The Gherkin with its cut and edge green initiative and sharp design is gaining recognition as an icon in modern architecture. You can pick it out of the London skyline by its unorthodox cigar shape. While its appearance is the obvious attribute at which to marvel there is far more to this building than meets the eye. And let's face it there's a lot about this building that meets the eye. The building helps reduce the city's carbon footprints in a number of ways. Just a quick note in case you're not familiar with the term carbon footprint get used to it. It's a buzzword you'll hear relentlessly to talk about reducing emissions. Think of it as the amount of harmful greenhouse gases that are given off into the environment by a single person, organization or product. So going back to the Gherkin building perhaps the most obvious as well as the most significant eco-friendly feature is the glass windows which allow light to pass through the building both reducing heating costs and brightening up the workspace. The ingenuity behind the various eco-friendly aspects of the Gherkin has seen its fair share of publicity both from serious and silly sources. In a recent April Fool's Day edition one e-publication printed a story detailing plans to replace 50% of the current exterior with grass which would not only make large steps in the name of sustainability but also give the building the green hue that would truly earn it the nickname of the Gherkin. The only drawback is as you may have guessed that this story was an April Fool's Day joke and completely made up. In all seriousness though the building is setting a new standard of design that other architects and city planners just cannot ignore. The building's bold and cost-efficient design has won a number of architecture awards including the Sterling Prize, the London Region Award and the Empress skyscraper award among others. The design comfortably accommodates a large number of offices while keeping maintenance and operation costs down striking a superb balance between nature and the workplace. Nature is well and good as long as the weather is nice outside. Given London's notoriously bad weather the architects knew they must devise a quality temperature regulation system and that they did. A special system designed to reduce the building's reliance on air conditioning was devised that cuts consumption in half compared to standard office buildings. There are atria that link each floor vertically to one another forming spiraling spaces of the entire building. They serve not just as social common spaces but also act as the building's lungs distributing clean air from the opening panels in the facade through the entire building. The building isn't all business though it has its fair share of fun as well. At the very top a club room offers a picturesque entertainment spot for company functions private parties etc with a breathtaking panoramic view of the city. The creation of such an innovative structure has many wondering what the future of urban planning and architecture may be. Well if the other projects currently commissioned by Foster and Partners are any indication the entire city constructed with similarly eco-friendly buildings is not far in the distance. The Masdar city development aims to create a desert city that produces zero waste and removes as much carbon dioxide from the atmosphere as it puts in. A huge feat in protecting our earth. The Gherkin is a truly impressive feat yet it is not the only one worth noting. Now to move on to another green initiative I'll tell you about the Eden Foundation building found in Cornwall. That is the end of section 4. You now have half a minute to check your answers. That is the end of the listening test.

SECTION 4 You will hear an introduction about an eco-friendly building called the Gherkin. First you have some time to look at questions 31 to 40. Now listen carefully and answer questions 31 to 40. Today I'd like to tell you about how UK architects are playing their part to address the issue of global warming. You have seen many of these iconic buildings while going about your everyday life but you may not know how they are affecting your tomorrow. In 2003 construction was completed on the famous Swiss Rebuilding or more informally called the Gherkin. A true masterpiece commissioned by the law offices of Foster and Partners. This is not the first ambitious endeavor of the firm. They are renowned for their various philanthropic environmental efforts. The Gherkin with its cut and edge green initiative and sharp design is gaining recognition as an icon in modern architecture. You can pick it out of the London skyline by its unorthodox cigar shape. While its appearance is the obvious attribute at which to marvel there is far more to this building than meets the eye. And let's face it there's a lot about this building that meets the eye. The building helps reduce the city's carbon footprints in a number of ways. Just a quick note in case you're not familiar with the term carbon footprint get used to it. It's a buzzword you'll hear relentlessly to talk about reducing emissions. Think of it as the amount of harmful greenhouse gases that are given off into the environment by a single person, organization or product. So going back to the Gherkin building perhaps the most obvious as well as the most significant eco-friendly feature is the glass windows which allow light to pass through the building both reducing heating costs and brightening up the workspace. The ingenuity behind the various eco-friendly aspects of the Gherkin has seen its fair share of publicity both from serious and silly sources. In a recent April Fool's Day edition one e-publication printed a story detailing plans to replace 50% of the current exterior with grass which would not only make large steps in the name of sustainability but also give the building the green hue that would truly earn it the nickname of the Gherkin. The only drawback is as you may have guessed that this story was an April Fool's Day joke and completely made up. In all seriousness though the building is setting a new standard of design that other architects and city planners just cannot ignore. The building's bold and cost-efficient design has won a number of architecture awards including the Sterling Prize, the London Region Award and the Empress skyscraper award among others. The design comfortably accommodates a large number of offices while keeping maintenance and operation costs down striking a superb balance between nature and the workplace. Nature is well and good as long as the weather is nice outside. Given London's notoriously bad weather the architects knew they must devise a quality temperature regulation system and that they did. A special system designed to reduce the building's reliance on air conditioning was devised that cuts consumption in half compared to standard office buildings. There are atria that link each floor vertically to one another forming spiraling spaces of the entire building. They serve not just as social common spaces but also act as the building's lungs distributing clean air from the opening panels in the facade through the entire building. The building isn't all business though it has its fair share of fun as well. At the very top a club room offers a picturesque entertainment spot for company functions private parties etc with a breathtaking panoramic view of the city. The creation of such an innovative structure has many wondering what the future of urban planning and architecture may be. Well if the other projects currently commissioned by Foster and Partners are any indication the entire city constructed with similarly eco-friendly buildings is not far in the distance. The Masdar city development aims to create a desert city that produces zero waste and removes as much carbon dioxide from the atmosphere as it puts in. A huge feat in protecting our earth. The Gherkin is a truly impressive feat yet it is not the only one worth noting. Now to move on to another green initiative I'll tell you about the Eden Foundation building found in Cornwall. That is the end of section 4. You now have half a minute to check your answers. That is the end of the listening test.