Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-09-19

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 ,

I have got a news through one of my friend who told me, you are looking for a part - time helper . I would like to join you as a voluntear , because i think my skills really fits for the same. I am pursuing the study of biology . I have keen intrest to be intouch with people who are visiting the museums , by doing so, i can get a variety of information regarding animals . if i got a chance to work with you , i can mention this work on my resume to apply for different postions.

Here i would like to add some short of skills which i already have like , data entry , billing on POS .These both skills can help you to save your precious time . Instead of keeping the records of visitiors in a book , I can make it easy for you .

I am ready to join the postion of an unpaid worker from next week beacuse i have been working at Tim Hortion for 6 months . I have to notify them so they can replace me .

Your faithfully

Sharry ahuja

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The candidate addresses all bullet points of the prompt, successfully explaining the reason for wanting to do voluntary work at the museum, describing useful skills and qualities, and providing details of availability. The reason for applying is explained through an interest in biology and animals, though the secondary motive of mentioning it on a resume feels slightly transactional. Useful skills are identified through data entry and billing on a POS system. Availability is stated as starting next week due to a notice period needed at a current job. All parts of the prompt are covered, but the ideas are somewhat limited and under-developed, placing this response at a Band 5.5 to 6.0 level. Because all prompts are appropriately addressed, a score of 6.0 is awarded.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The letter exhibits a coherent overall arrangement with a clear attempt to structure the information into paragraphs for introduction, reasons/skills, and availability. However, the progression is sometimes affected by faulty punctuation, such as spaces before commas, and basic linking. Cohesive devices are minimal, and referencing is occasionally unclear, such as the vague transition in the second paragraph ('Here i would like to add some short of skills...'). Paragraphing is attempted, but the transition between ideas feels disjointed. Overall, the organizational structure meets the requirements for a Band 5.5, rounding to 5.5 based on mechanical cohesion and punctuation errors.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The lexical resource used in the response is adequate for the task, but contains noticeable spelling and word-choice errors, such as 'voluntear', 'intrest', 'intouch', 'postions', 'short of skills', and 'Tim Hortion'. The student attempts less common vocabulary, but these attempts are often marred by inaccuracy. While the vocabulary is minimally adequate to convey the message regarding data entry and POS billing, the frequent spelling and collocation errors restrict the score. These issues align well with the Band 5 descriptors, as the errors cause occasional difficulty and distraction for the reader.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The response demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, such as 'I would like to join you as a voluntear , because i think my skills really fits for the same.' However, there are frequent errors in grammar, punctuation, and capitalization, including lowercase 'i', comma splices, subject-verb agreement issues ('skills really fits'), and tense usage ('if i got a chance'). While communication is generally maintained and the meaning remains clear, the density of grammatical and punctuation errors prevents the score from reaching Band 6. A score of 5.0 is appropriate due to the persistence of basic grammatical inaccuracies and faulty complex sentences.

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

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