Sample answer

It is Ms Mai that I’m going to talk about as an interesting neighbour I used to have.

Actually, she was not my next-door neighbour because her house was not very close to mine. She lived 2-3 alleys away from me, but it was still within the neighbourhood. Ms Mai was an owner of a small food stall serving nothing else but some particular Vietnamese breakfast dishes. Therefore, her food stall was open only in the morning. It is family business with Ms Mai cooking the food, her husband and her only son helping out and delivering food to customers.

All of Ms Mai’s dishes are made with rice noodles, such as bun rieu, banh canh, hu tieu mi. Her dishes are very tasty with a distinct flavour of the soup. I have enjoyed breakfast made by her since I was a kid. I would admit that my day will not be complete without sitting down to Ms Mai’s steaming bowl of banh canh for breakfast.  

In addition to the fact that I’m interested in this woman because of her excellent food, I also like her personality traits. She is a kind, hard-working and frank person. To be more specific, she shows her kindness through not taking money of people with disadvantages who have breakfast at her food stall. Besides, she always works hard to prepare the food as she gets up at around 4 AM everyday to get the cooking materials ready. Another thing about her is that is kinda straightforward and will let you know what she's thinking. She also has a good sense of humour so I find talking to her amusing and comfortable.

It is a pity that Ms Mai and her family did sell their house, stop their business and move back to their hometown 2 months ago because she wants to take good care of her husband who is getting really sick.  

Honestly speaking, I really miss her. I miss her food and also the small talks I had with her when I visited her food stall.

Sample answer

It is a colleague of mine that I’m going to talk about as the most well-mannered person I know/ as the person I always want to work with.

His first name is Brian and he is a Canadian expert in international trade, especially Canada customs procedure. I work with him in a project sponsored by an international organization regarding promoting trade facilitation in Vietnam. Among all experts from Canada and the US coming to Vietnam to work on this project, Brian is my favourite colleague.

I would admit that his manners are impeccable because he show his politeness and kindness all the time. He is very nice and gentle to others and treats me with respect rather than as someone inferior to him. I prefer working with Brian. He is truly an easy-going and supportive person by trying to handle things himself rather than giving demands and requests to me despite the fact that I’m a project assistant and he serves all the rights to do that. He is also a patient listener by being all ears to what I say no matter how boring or trivial it is. Brian is also loved because of his humbleness since he said that he couldn’t do his job without the help and support from other members in the project team.

Brian always shows up with positive facial expressions, especially a big smile is something available all the time on his face.

The way Brian shows his politeness is very natural and friendly, therefore making me feel comfortable in interacting with him. / Being with Brian is so fun and I feel like we are truly working as a team.

Sample answer

It is Taylor Swift that I’m going to talk about as my favourite singer/ a foreign star I really want to meet.

The very first song of hers that I listened to was “Love Story”. Taylor amazes me musically. She is a singer as well as a song writer. All of her narrative songs are inspired by her life experiences and observations. I find lyrics written by Taylor always refreshing, surprising and really relevant to my thoughts and feelings. One of the lyrics of hers that I impressed the most is “All the best people in life are free”.

(If I had a chance to meet her, I would say thank you for everything she’s done. Not only her music but her actions are so inspirational and inspire me with courage)

In addition to the fact that I’m interested in this female singer because of her music, I also admire her personality traits. She is one of the few remaining celebrities that doesn't take drugs, doesn't cuss in her music, doesn't strip, smoke, or use any foul language, and she's just a genuinely kind person.

She is also fearless, truly and very brave. The way she handled the sexual assault committed by a famous male DJ was phenomenal. She countersued the DJ for his acts in response to that guy’s own lawsuit for only a single symbolic dollar in damages. It’s not about the money, it’s about encouraging other people, especially women, to resist publicly similar outrageous and humiliating acts.

Not only her music but her actions are so inspirational. I love her for who she is and everything she’s done.

Sample answer

It is a (teenage) friend of mine whose name is Hai that I would like to talk about as the person who is very smart/ always comes up with new ideas/ the most impressive teenager I’ve ever known

Hai is very special. He is a student at HCMC Conservatory of Music majoring in music composition, yet he is also a part-time mobile game developer working for Vina Game company. I remember how I was astonished when I knew about this. He is both left-brained and right-brained, meaning that  his style of thinking is analytical and methodical, yet intuitive and artistic. I think because the two brain hemispheres of this guy function equally, he can come up with fresh and reasonable ideas and also very humorous and interesting.

I have known him since I joined a Youth Club for university students. We worked together in the Communication Group of that Club. In order to raise fund for the Group, we did create a game called “An Amazing Race – Saigon version”, in which contestants would pay a fee to join the game and try to win the prize.

I remember an internal meeting of our Group to finalize the games and missions in each landmark of the race. The atmosphere of the meeting was so intense because the opinions the Group leader were so different from mine – as a vice leader. The leader’s ideas were nothing but series of games leading towards a poorly-defined or non-existent goal. I believed all the race would be ruined if we followed what she said so I strongly objected to her proposed plan, and she also disagreed with mine. The meeting was on the verge of a terrible argument.

At that moment, Hai played an excellent role of a neutral third party coming up with a whole new plan which was a combination of the leader’s ideas, my ideas and of course his ideas as well. It was truly a balanced solution merging all the plus points of everyone’s ideas, making all relevant parties feel that their contributions were recognized. In addition, he presented his plan in a very logical yet humourous way so everything was very understandable and persuasive. Eventually we went with his proposal and the Race took place successfully. Not many people can become a smart moderator like him ( so even though he is still a teenage boy, I somewhat really admire his personal qualities and characteristics)

Sample answer

It is a friend of mine whose name is Huy Lam that I would like to talk about as a person who is very good at English.

I know this guy since we are classmate in university. Huy Lam is very special, he is always outstanding in English classes because of his excellence in this language. All lecturers in the faculty know about his ability  so he was usually asked to solve tough questions or give explanation to the rest of the class. His English pronunciation is impeccable and sounds no different from native speakers. His reading skill is really excellent with the impressive reading speed. Furthermore, most of his essays are delivered in an elegant and brilliant writing style. Huy Lam once told me that he had studied English since he was a little kid and he learned this language mostly from the Bible. This is not very surprising to me because Huy Lam has been long famous in my class for being a practicing Protestant, like all members in his family. He said that his capacity in English was a present from God.

Even though Huy Lam’s talent in English is in recognition, he never pumps himself up or has an attitude because of that. Huy Lam is loved by not only his excellence but also his characteristics. He is super friendly and always comes up with a bright smile on his face which can warm your heart just by looking at his face.

At the present time, I don’t see him anymore since he is studying psychology in the US. He wants to become a psychologist to help people with mental illness through psychological treatments.

Sample answer

It is a colleague of mine that I’m going to talk about as a person working on environmental protection.

His first name is Brian and he is a Canadian expert in international trade, especially Canada customs procedure. I work with him in a project sponsored by an international organization regarding promoting trade facilitation in Vietnam. Among all experts from Canada and the US coming to Vietnam to work on this project, Brian is my favourite colleague.

Brian is loved by not only his warm and friendly characteristics, but also by his strong advocacy towards environmental protection. To be more specific, Brian always carries himself reusable bags whether he is shopping for food, clothes or books. He tries his best to avoid using plastic bags to cut down on litter. He showed me a video clip of a poor whale having more than 88 pounds of plastic in its stomach and said that this was the reason for his hatred towards littering behaviour, as well as plastic products. Brian always reminds me to save electricity by turning off the air-conditioning in the office when the weather is not very hot. He prefers opening windows to get natural lighting and ventilation. His wife told me that he always turned off the faucet when brushing his teeth and never turned the shower on until he’s ready to get in. He believes that changing old habits would be good for both the environment and our wallet.

Brian also grows some plants in the balcony of his apartment. He did successfully save a small dying rose bush, then he put it in a plant pot and placed it in his office for decoration. He perceives his success in reviving the plant can be as significant as his achievements in economic area. He is genuinely a nature lover.

Sample answer

It is my grandmother that I would like to talk about as the person who encouraged me to achieve my greatest goal in life/ as the person I would like to be similar when I grow up.

When I was a little kid, I lived with my maternal grandmother because my parents were busy working to make a living. The financial status of my family at that time was not good but my grandma managed to overcome all challenges and hardship to raise me. She did a wonderful job in parenting. I think this is due to her amazing personal qualities of being independent, kind and resourceful.

(Nếu đề về achieve goal)

She encouraged me to  grow up with determination and courage. I remember when I was 7, I stole money from my piggy bank to buy toys and comics. I was afraid that my parents would figure it out and punished me seriously, so I kept that secrect to myself. At the age of 7, I experienced the stress of feeling guity. I barely slept at night and always lived in fears. Eventually, I confessed my crime to my grandma. After listening to my confession, she told me a statement that I have never forgot for the rest of my life. She said: “Oh, my dearest. Courage is the price that life exacts for granting peace or forgiveness”. Thanks to her encouragement, I confessed to my parents and of course I got punished for what I did. But after that I was so relieved and free from the feelings of guilt. I can tell that my grandma was the first one to motivate me to accomplish a great achievement: having bravery to face my fears and find inner peace.

(Nếu đề về would like to be similar when you grow up)

She is my super role model. I want to be like her when I am older as a person who is loved by family members and colleagues because of her generosity, kindness and empathy. She helped many people with disadvantages from the poor, the homeless, the orphans, and even abandoned animals on the street. My grandma was a nurse midwifery at a public maternity hospital. During the time she worked at the hospital, whenever she had spare time, she went around the waiting areas in the hospital to persuade pregnant women coming for abortion to give up their intention and keep their babies. She is a pro-life person and seriously has feelings for living beings, especially unborn babies.

My grandmother passed away 6 years ago but she is still the most influential person in my life.