TOPIK Writing 53: How to Describe a Graph or Table in 200–300 Characters

TOPIK writing question 53 asks you to turn a graph, table or diagram into a short Korean text of 200–300 characters. It is worth 30 points. You do not give your opinion — you explain the data: what was surveyed, how the numbers changed, why, and what is expected next. Write it in the -다 style, in three parts (introduction, body, conclusion), and do not add a title.

This guide is based on NIIED's official document "TOPIK II 쓰기 답안 작성 방법" (How to write TOPIK II writing answers), which includes the scoring table for 53. If you haven't read it yet, start with our guide to questions 51–52; the next step after 53 is question 54, the essay.

Where 53 sits in the writing section

On the paper test (PBT), you have 50 minutes for all four questions, right after the listening section. Question 53 is a good place to win steady points, because once you know the pattern it barely changes from test to test.

What the question looks like

The instruction is always close to this:

다음을 참고하여 '…'에 대한 글을 200~300자로 쓰십시오. 단, 글의 제목을 쓰지 마십시오.

("Using the information below, write 200–300 characters about '…'. Do not write a title.")

The official sample asks you to write about 인터넷의 장단점 — the advantages and disadvantages of the internet — and how to use it well. So the "data" is not always a line graph. You may see:

• - A graph of change over time — a number going up or down over several years.
• - A survey result — for example, how two groups answered the same question.
• - A diagram — pros and cons, causes and effects, or a process.

Most graph questions also give you two extra boxes: the reasons for the change and a forecast or outlook. Those boxes are part of the task. If you skip them, you lose points under "content" even if your Korean is perfect.

⚠️ "Characters", not words. 200–300자 means 200–300 Korean syllable blocks, counting spaces and punctuation. On the paper answer sheet (원고지, the grid paper) every syllable, space and full stop takes one box. 250 characters is only about four or five sentences — much shorter than most learners expect.

How the 30 points are scored

The official scoring table has three parts:

Language is the biggest part — 16 of 30 points. But notice that content and structure together are worth 14. A text with beautiful grammar that leaves out the reasons or the forecast cannot get a high score.

The official notes for 53 add five rules:

1. Complete all the parts of the task and describe them fully.
2. Organize the text as introduction – body – conclusion within 200–300 characters.
3. Describe the data accurately, and base your conclusion on the data. Do not interpret it freely or add a personal opinion that has nothing to do with the data.
4. Use intermediate-level or higher grammar and vocabulary.
5. Write in a formal written style. Spoken expressions or the endings -ㅂ/습니다 and -아/어요 lose points, and so does writing in bullet points (개조식).

The style: always -다

This is the most common and most avoidable mistake. Question 53 is a written report, so every sentence ends in the plain written style:

• - ❌ 1인 가구가 증가했습니다.
• - ❌ 1인 가구가 증가했어요.
• - ✅ 1인 가구가 증가하였다. / 1인 가구가 증가했다.

Both 증가하였다 and 증가했다 are fine. Also avoid spoken words such as 너무, 진짜 or 근데 — use 매우, 크게 and 그런데 / 그러나 instead.

The 3-part structure

You don't need to describe every single number. Pick the start point, the end point and the biggest change, then cover every box the question gives you.

Expressions to learn by heart

These are not from the official document — they are standard phrases that fit the 53 format.

Introduction

• - …을/를 대상으로 …에 대해 조사하였다. (… surveyed … about …)
• - …에 따르면 / 조사 결과 … (according to … / the survey showed …)

Describing change

• - …에서 …(으)로 증가하였다 / 감소하였다 (rose / fell from … to …)
• - 꾸준히 증가하였다 · 급격히 감소하였다 (rose steadily · fell sharply)
• - 두 배 이상 늘어났다 · 절반으로 줄었다 (more than doubled · halved)

Comparing

• - 반면에 / 이에 비해 (on the other hand / compared with this)
• - A는 …인 반면 B는 …으로 나타났다 (A was …, while B was …)
• - 가장 높게 나타났다 · 그 뒤를 이었다 (was the highest · came next)

Reasons

• - 이러한 변화의 원인으로는 …을/를 들 수 있다 (one cause of this change is …)
• - 이는 … 때문인 것으로 보인다 (this seems to be because …)

Forecast

• - 이러한 추세가 계속된다면 … 것으로 전망된다 (if this trend continues, … is expected)
• - 앞으로도 … 것으로 예상된다 (… is expected to continue)

A sample answer

Imagine a graph (made up for this example) with these points: in Inju City (인주시, the fictional city TOPIK often uses), the share of one-person households rose from 15% in 2000 to 31% in 2020. Reasons: people marry later or not at all; more older people live alone (about three times more). Forecast: 40% in 2040.

인주시의 1인 가구 비율 변화를 조사한 결과, 1인 가구 비율은 2000년 15%에서 2020년 31%로 20년 동안 두 배 이상 증가한 것으로 나타났다. 이러한 변화의 원인으로는 결혼을 늦게 하거나 하지 않는 사람이 늘어난 것과 혼자 사는 노인이 많아진 것을 들 수 있다. 특히 혼자 사는 노인의 수는 같은 기간에 약 3배 증가하였다. 이러한 추세가 계속된다면 2040년에는 1인 가구 비율이 40%에 이를 것으로 전망된다.

That is 238 characters with spaces. Look at what it does: one introduction sentence, the change with exact numbers, both reasons, the extra detail, and the forecast — all in -다 style, no title, no opinion.

Writing on the answer sheet

On the paper test you write 53 on the grid sheet (원고지). The model at the end of past question booklets shows the basic rules:

• - Leave the first box empty at the start of the text.
• - A space between words takes one empty box.
• - When a line ends, continue from the first box of the next line.
• - A full stop takes one box, and the next sentence starts right after it.

The 2026 test rules also say: write with a thin pen, only inside the answer area for that question. If your answer goes outside the area or you write 53 in the box for 54, it gets no points. To fix a mistake, draw two lines through it or use your own correction tape — test centers don't hand it out. Text written only in the question booklet is not scored.

On the computer test (IBT)

The IBT writing section has 3 questions (the paper test has 4), also in 50 minutes. A data-description task like 53 is part of it. You type in Korean on a keyboard and the screen shows your character count. If you plan to take the IBT, practice typing Korean — slow typing costs more time than grammar.

Five mistakes that cost points

1. Using -습니다 or -아/어요. The official notes say this loses points.
2. Leaving out part of the data — usually the reasons or the forecast.
3. Adding your opinion — 제 생각에는…, or a guess that is not in the graph.
4. Writing a title or a list instead of connected sentences.
5. Writing far too little. There is no official rule that says "minus X points under 200 characters", but a very short text simply cannot cover the task, so the content score drops.

Practice tips

• - Time yourself: aim for about 12–15 minutes for 53, so 54 gets enough time.
• - Collect 10 graphs from the news or past papers and write only the first and last sentence for each. Those two sentences are the most formulaic.
• - Read your answer once just for endings: every sentence should end in -다.

Official past papers include question 53 with model answers — see our list of TOPIK past papers. To see how many points you need for your target level, check the TOPIK score table.

Practice 53 on TOPIKly

TOPIKly has TOPIK II practice sets that include the writing questions. Write your 53 answer in the app and the AI grader scores it against the same three criteria and shows where you lost points (AI grading is part of the Pro plan). Try TOPIK II practice questions.

Sources: NIIED, "TOPIK Ⅱ 쓰기 답안 작성 방법" (official writing guide with scoring tables, PDF on topik.go.kr) · Ministry of Education notice No. 2025-317, 2026 TOPIK implementation plan · topik.go.kr IBT writing demo.