Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-09-13

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 6.5)

Dear Sir or Madam,

I am writing this letter to apply for the volunteer job at your museum as a part-time activity. I have a significant amount of knowledge about histroical things owing to my academic background which I believe, makes me a good candidate for the role.

I am a student of Associates of Arts program in our local university with History as my major. Currently, I am looking for a part-time work to apply my academic knowledeg to get some field experience. I heard from a few locals about the job posting for a museum. It is the best opportunity for me to not only get some practical experience in a professional historical set up but also earn some money to support my finances.

What's more, since I have information about the maintainence preocedures of ancient and unique items because of my academic background, I could do the job of a cleaner or maintainence person really well. Not only this, I also have a legal security licence. Hence, I can do security guard's job as well.

Although being a student makes my day demanding and exhausting, I still have a few hours left in the evening to do extra errands. Therefore, during week days, evening work will suit my schedule the best. Nonetheless, I am quite flexible on weekends.

I look forward to your swift response.

Yours sincerely,

Komal

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

The response successfully covers all the bullet points outlined in the prompt. The candidate explains why they want to do voluntary work (to apply academic knowledge, gain field experience, and support finances), describes useful skills and qualities (history major background, familiarity with maintenance procedures, and holding a security guard license), and clearly outlines their availability (evenings on weekdays and flexibility on weekends). The tone is appropriate for a formal letter to a museum director. However, there is a slight contradiction and misunderstanding regarding voluntary work, as the candidate mentions wanting to 'earn some money to support my finances', which technically contradicts the prompt's specification of 'unpaid work'. Despite this minor confusion, all parts of the task are addressed adequately and supported with relevant ideas. Therefore, a solid Band 7 is awarded for fully meeting the core requirements of the task.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The letter demonstrates a clear overall progression and logical organisation. It opens with an appropriate salutation and statement of purpose, moves through the required bullet points in distinct paragraphs, and concludes with a standard sign-off. Paragraphing is used effectively to separate different ideas, such as motivation, skills, and availability. Cohesive devices are employed adequately, with phrases like 'What's more', 'Not only this', and 'Therefore' linking ideas together smoothly. Referencing is generally clear throughout the text. Although some cohesive devices feel slightly mechanical or repetitive in their transition structures, the structure supports the flow of information well, earning a stable Band 7.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The candidate displays a sufficient range of vocabulary appropriate for a general application letter, incorporating terms such as 'academic background', 'practical experience', 'maintenance procedures', and 'flexible'. Less common lexical items are attempted, such as 'exhausting' and 'substantial', though there are some spelling errors like 'histroical' (historical) and 'preocedure' (procedure), as well as a word form error with 'knowledeg' (knowledge). Word choice is generally adequate, but collocation is occasionally imprecise, such as describing voluntary work while mentioning earning money. Despite these minor spelling and lexical slips, the vocabulary used is sufficient to communicate the message clearly, justifying a Band 6.0.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.5

The writing features a good mix of simple and complex sentence structures, including conditional and participial clauses (e.g., 'owing to my academic background which I believe, makes me a good candidate'). There is good control over punctuation and sentence boundaries overall. However, there are a few noticeable grammatical slips and awkward phrasings, such as 'volunteer job' instead of 'voluntary position', and missing articles or preposition issues in places. The majority of sentences are clear and correct, and the grammatical errors do not impede understanding. The variety of structures combined with generally good control warrants a Band 6.5.

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