Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-10-13

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 5.0)

Nowadays, Many people work long hours, leaving very little time for leisure activities like entertainment. In my opinion, this situation has more advantages than disadvantages.

On the one hand, working long hours has some advantages. People can earn more money and improve their financial situations. They can also gain more experience and develop their careers. For example, people who work hard get more salary and promotions. By which they can fulfil their needs and wants which is an essential part of life.

On the other hand, people have several disadvantages. Firstly, people have less time to spend with their families and friends. Secondly, working for a long hour can make people tired and stressed. They may also have less time for their hobbies, exercise and relaxation. By which some close bonds also get over. As a result, their health and personal relationships may suffer.

I believe that the disadvantages are greater because people also need time for their health, family and happiness.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.5

You give a clear answer in the introduction, but it conflicts with your conclusion: you first say the situation has “more advantages,” then conclude that “the disadvantages are greater.” This makes your overall position unclear. You mention relevant points on both sides, including income, career development, stress, and relationships, but these are mostly listed rather than explained or supported with specific examples. The response also contains 150 words, so it does not meet the 250-word minimum; 12 words copied from the task prompt were not counted. To improve, state one consistent position, explain how each main point affects people, and add a relevant example for support.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

The response has a basic paragraph structure, with an introduction, two body paragraphs, and a conclusion. “On the one hand,” “On the other hand,” and “Firstly” help signal the organisation. However, the progression is limited because the ideas are presented mainly as lists, and the opposing position in the conclusion does not follow the introduction. The repeated fragment “By which” does not connect ideas clearly: after the salary and promotion example, explain directly how these benefits help people meet their needs; after the point about hobbies, clarify the effect on relationships. Develop each paragraph around a central idea and use clear links between cause and result.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use enough basic vocabulary to communicate the main topic, including “financial situations,” “develop their careers,” “stressed,” and “personal relationships.” However, the range is limited, and some expressions are imprecise or unnatural, such as “get more salary,” “By which some close bonds also get over,” and “like entertainment.” These choices make parts of the argument harder to understand. Aim for more precise collocations and avoid repeating general words such as “people” and “time.” For example, you could describe employees as earning a higher salary, relationships as weakening, and leisure activities as hobbies or recreational pursuits.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You use mostly simple sentence patterns, with some attempts to add complexity, such as “people who work hard get more salary and promotions.” However, the range is limited, and errors in sentence construction and punctuation occur. “By which they can fulfil their needs and wants which is an essential part of life” is not a complete, clearly connected sentence; integrate this idea into the preceding sentence and make the relative clause agree with its reference. The opening “Nowadays, Many” also has incorrect capitalisation, and “working for a long hour” has a number-form error. Practise combining ideas with accurate clauses and check sentence boundaries, agreement, and punctuation.

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

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