Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-09-02

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Many people work long hours, leaving very little time for leisure activities.

Does this situation have more advantages or more disadvantages?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

 

Student answer (Band 6.5)

In recent times, it has been observed that many individuals work extended hours, by leaving a little time for their free-time activities such as spending time with the family, involving in household chores. While this trend offers certain benefits, I believe that the disadvantages outweigh the advantages because of its significant impact on the individual and the society.

One major advantage of this trend is that improves the income and broadens the career prospects. Companies would like to encourage the people who work overtime around the clock and provide the possible incentives such as promotions and hikes to retain them. For instance, in corporate organizations the employees who are flexible and capable of delivering the projects on time by working long hours usually get a good recognition and promotion. Ultimately, this hard work would help them to reach a higher position in their field.

However, there are several disadvantages associated with this trend. The most significant drawback is lack of proper rest. People who work of extended hours not only suffer from stress or lack of sleep but it also affects their overall productivity over the time. In addition to that, it slowly affects they physical well-being. A good example for this situation is, the students in foreign countries, who work in part time jobs and do continuous shifts tend to feel stressed and depressed. Furthermore, their academic performances were also also dropped rapidly owing to the lack of efficiency. As a result, many individuals who work in odd times suffer from some health problems such as sleep disorders. The other prominent disadvantage is, it affects our relationship with family and society. Owing the overtimes, people have very less time to spend with their family and friends which will weaken their bond and create a distance in between them. Additionally, this would trigger their relationship towards the society in a negative wat by frustrating to each and everything. As a result, many people believe that proper work-life balance is essential to have a steady growth in both personal and professional life.

To conclude, although it offers financial stability, I believe its drawbacks are more when compared with its advantages because it negatively impacts the organization and the individual by affecting the productivity. More importantly, the human relationships and the health of an individual are at significant risk.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

The response addresses all parts of the prompt, clearly stating a position that the disadvantages outweigh the advantages. Ideas are relevant and supported with examples, such as the mention of corporate incentives and the impact on students' academic performance. However, the development is occasionally uneven; for instance, the argument regarding 'students in foreign countries' is somewhat tangential to the general topic of 'people working long hours' in a career context. While the position is consistent, some points, such as the impact on society, could be more deeply explored to reach a higher band. Overall, the response is well-focused and meets the requirements of the task.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Paragraphing is used effectively to separate the advantages from the disadvantages. Cohesive devices such as 'In addition to that,' 'For instance,' and 'To conclude' are used to guide the reader through the argument. However, there are instances where the flow is slightly mechanical, and some transitions are a bit repetitive or awkward, such as 'The other prominent disadvantage is, it affects...'. Despite these minor issues, the progression of ideas is clear and easy to follow throughout the text.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.5

The vocabulary is generally appropriate for the task, with some attempts at using less common items like 'financial stability' and 'career prospects.' There are some minor collocation errors, such as 'involving in household chores' (should be 'involved in') and 'frustrating to each and everything' (which is unclear). Spelling is generally accurate, but there are occasional word-choice slips that slightly hinder precision. To improve, the student should focus on more natural collocations and avoid repetitive phrasing when introducing new points. The range is sufficient to convey ideas clearly.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The essay demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is always clear, there are frequent grammatical errors, such as 'by leaving a little time' (should be 'leaving little time'), 'it improves' (missing subject 'it'), and 'affects they physical well-being' (should be 'their'). There are also issues with article usage and prepositional phrases. While these errors do not impede communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent a higher score. The student should focus on subject-verb agreement and pronoun usage to improve accuracy.

See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.

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