TOEFL Speaking Interview — Band 4 Sample (Favourite Class)

What this page covers

Below you will find the four interview prompts the researcher asks on this topic, a transcribed band 4.0 (CEFR B2) student response for each, and a rubric-anchored breakdown of why the response sits at band 4 rather than band 3 or band 5. If you want to see the full ladder, the band 3 version and the band 5 version use the same prompts. Background reading on the task itself lives in our 2026 Interview-task guide, and the wider score map sits in band scores and CEFR levels.

The four interview prompts

In a Take-an-Interview set the researcher records four questions on one topic. Items 1 and 4 are short framing questions; items 2 and 3 carry most of the rubric weight. The two main prompts here (items 2 and 3) appear verbatim in the band 5 favourite-class sample, so the comparison is fair.

1. "Tell me a bit about what you are studying right now."
2. "What is your favourite class so far this year, and what makes it stand out?"
3. "Has there been a moment in this class that changed how you think about something?"
4. "Would you recommend this class to a friend, and why?"

Sample answers (transcript)

Um, right now I'm studying business, and this semester I have four classes. I have economics, accounting, statistics, and also a class about marketing. Most of them are okay, but, you know, some are more interesting than others. I'm in my second year now.

My favourite class is, um, behavioural economics. There are a few reasons. First, the professor is good. She uses examples from real life, like one example was about retirement plans and how a small change can make more people sign up. I think this is interesting because, you know, normally economics is just numbers and theory, but in this class we see how it works with real people. Also the class is small so we can ask questions and the professor remember our names. The readings are short but, um, they are not easy. We have to read them carefully. So yeah, this is the class I like the most this semester.

Yes, actually. A few weeks ago we read about a study with jam in a supermarket. When the shop offered many flavours, like twenty-something, people looked but they didn't buy. When the shop offered only six, more people bought. This was surprising for me because I always thought more choice is better. Now I think too many options can make you confused, and you just walk away. So I try to, um, give myself less choice when I have to decide something quickly. It's a small change but it helps me.

Yes, I would recommend this class, especially if my friend likes economics or wants to understand how people make decisions. The class is not so heavy in math, which is good for me. But you have to read every week, so if my friend doesn't like reading, maybe it is not the right class. Overall, I think it's a useful class.

Rubric breakdown

Scores below are aggregated across the three rubric criteria the TOEFL Speaking section uses (Delivery, Language Use, Topic Development), with sub-rows for the three substantive items in this set (Q2, Q3, Q4). For the full 0 to 6 to band conversion, see our scoring-system explainer.

What works at band 4

• You answer the question first, then add reasons. The opener "My favourite class is behavioural economics" is what separates this from a band 3 response that buries the answer inside hedging.
• You name a real example (the retirement-plan study, the jam study) on each substantive item. Even when the example is not fully unpacked, naming it is what raters use to lift Topic Development from band 3 to band 4.
• You handle a conditional structure cleanly in Q4 ("if my friend doesn't like reading, maybe it is not the right class"). At band 3 this would collapse into a flat yes-or-no.
• You use the full 44-second window on Q2 and most of it on Q3. You finish your sentences instead of being cut off mid-clause, which is a band 4 hallmark.
• Pronunciation does not block meaning anywhere in the set. Stress falls correctly on most content words, even when filler is present around them.

What to fix to push to band 5

Five concrete micro-revisions, each tied to a sentence already in the transcript. Apply these to your own practice transcripts and the same lift is available. For drilling delivery in isolation, work through the Listen-and-Repeat walkthrough first.

1. Land the example, do not just label it.
   Before: "one example was about retirement plans and how a small change can make more people sign up."

   After: "yesterday she walked us through how a small change in the default option on retirement plans nearly tripled enrolment."
2. Fix the agreement slip.
   Before: "the professor remember our names."

   After: "the professor remembers our names."
3. Tighten the surprise sentence.
   Before: "This was surprising for me because I always thought more choice is better."

   After: "That ran counter to my intuition that more choice equals more freedom."
4. Replace flat closing words with a callback.
   Before: "Overall, I think it's a useful class."

   After: "So yes, I would recommend it, especially the week we covered the jam study; that lecture alone changed how I make decisions."
5. Cut paired filler when one will do.
   Before: "but in this class we see, you know, how it works with real people."

   After: "but in this class we see how it works with real people."