Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-09-03

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

A museum near your home is looking for people to do part-time voluntary/unpaid work. You would like to do some voluntary/unpaid work at the museum. Write a letter to the museum director to apply for the voluntary/unpaid work. In your letter

• explain why you want to do voluntary/unpaid work at the museum
• describe some skills and qualities you have that would be useful
• give details of when you would be available for work

You do NOT need to write any addresses.

Begin your letter as follows:

Dear Sir or Madam,

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Dear sir/madam,

I am writing this letter to express my interest in doing some voluntary part-time work in your museum. As i came to know that there is vacancy for part time works. Since i have selected history as my second subject. I would like to know more about it.

i would like to work as a volunteer, since i have previously done the same during my school vacation camps. I am well known with the antient history and also good with the dates. Also have good impression on the paintings and historical items available there, since i have visited the museum a few times.

I would like to work between the early summer, when i would be free from from my university admission processes . will be available for the first two months, during the mornings and afternoons. I appreciate you taking time into this and i am waiting for a reply from your behalf.

Yours sincerely,

John

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

You have addressed all three bullet points required by the prompt: explaining your motivation, describing your skills, and providing your availability. The tone is generally appropriate for a formal letter. However, the development of your ideas is somewhat limited. For instance, while you mention an interest in history, expanding slightly on how your academic background would specifically benefit the museum's visitors would have strengthened your application. The purpose of the letter is clear, and the reader understands your intent throughout.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The letter is organised into clear paragraphs, which helps the reader follow your points. You use basic cohesive devices such as 'also' and 'since', but the flow between sentences can feel a bit mechanical. Some transitions are missing or slightly awkward, such as the jump between your interest in history and your previous experience. To improve, try using a wider variety of linking words (e.g., 'furthermore', 'consequently', 'in addition to this') to create a more natural, sophisticated flow between your ideas.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

Your vocabulary is adequate for the task, but it is somewhat repetitive and basic. You rely on simple phrasing like 'good with' and 'well known with'. There are also some minor errors in word choice, such as 'antient' (spelling: ancient) and 'good impression on the paintings' (which is not the standard collocation; 'a keen interest in' would be better). To reach a higher band, focus on using more precise, topic-specific vocabulary related to museum work and volunteering.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent errors in grammar and punctuation. Common issues include inconsistent capitalisation (e.g., 'i' instead of 'I'), missing articles (e.g., 'there is vacancy'), and awkward phrasing like 'I appreciate you taking time into this'. While these errors do not prevent the reader from understanding your message, they are frequent enough to impact the overall fluency of the text. Focus on proofreading for basic subject-verb agreement and proper noun capitalisation.

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

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