Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-09-21

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 to express my interest to work part-time at the museum on weekends. It may helpful to find a full time job in future if i add this experience in the resume.

My name is pranusha and I am pursuing graduation in accounting from york university. I have theoretical knowledge about bookkeeping and I had basic knowledge on few accounting softwares like xero, quickbooks from the college. Moreover, from youtube I learned how to process payroll, how to file GST/HST returns. In my summer break, I worked in a company as customer representative for 4 months. Therefore, i had enough experience in interacting with the people.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0

The response covers the bullet points in part, but fails to meet the minimum length requirement of 150 words, standing at only 110 words. The student explains a reason for wanting to do voluntary work, mentions some background skills, and touches upon availability by stating 'on weekends'. However, due to the severe under-length, the development of ideas is limited and incomplete, preventing the response from reaching a higher band. Specifically, details regarding availability lack specificity, and the overall elaboration remains underdeveloped.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The letter begins with the correct formal salutation and uses basic paragraphing to separate the introduction from the body. However, the progression of ideas is disjointed due to the brevity of the text. Cohesive devices are minimal and sometimes repetitive. For instance, the transition 'Moreover, from youtube I learned' feels unnatural and abrupt. Referencing is generally clear, but the lack of cohesive linking between sentences results in a somewhat choppy structure that limits the flow of the letter.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, with some subject-specific terminology related to accounting such as 'bookkeeping', 'payroll', and 'GST/HST returns'. However, there are notable limitations and basic word choices, such as 'It may helpful' and 'enough experience in interacting with the people'. Word formation and collocation errors, such as missing capitalization ('york university', 'xero', 'quickbooks') and slight inaccuracies in phrasing, place this performance firmly within the band 6 category.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, such as 'I am writing to express my interest to work...' and 'Moreover, from youtube I learned how to process payroll...'. However, there are frequent grammatical errors and punctuation issues, including lowercase 'i' used as a personal pronoun multiple times, missing articles ('It may helpful', 'as customer representative'), and incorrect preposition use ('interest to work' instead of 'interest in working'). These errors occasionally distract the reader, though they do not completely impede communication.

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

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