Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-09-26

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,

I hope you are doing well. I am writing this letter to express my interest in unpaid work at the museum. I have never worked without a salary, so this is a golden opportunity for me to take a chance. I have wanted to be a part of community servants since the day I saw my father doing so. He inspired me when he was working in a charitable hospital as a volunteer. He used to give 4 hours a day to help the patients transfer.

I have noticed that you mentioned basic communication skills in at least two different languages. Therefore, I found myself meeting these requirements very well, as I am bilingual in terms of English and French. I preferred to write a letter about this to show my preference and enthusiasm.

I would like to let you know my availability, as you mentioned in the job application posting that you need someone to help tourist in tour to the exhibitions for 4 hours a day. I am free from college for a month. My availability is full-time, but you can give me any 4 hours a day.

I will be so glad to support this work, as this opportunity is not just to provide support but also a chance to learn about different people's ideas, thoughts, and interests about the museum exhibitions.

Best regards,

Anu

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.0

The candidate has successfully addressed all three bullet points of the task prompt. First, the reason for wanting to do voluntary work is explained through a personal anecdote about the writer's father working in a charitable hospital. Second, the relevant skills and qualities are outlined by mentioning bilingualism in English and French to meet the communication requirement. Third, details of availability are clearly provided, stating that the writer is free from college for a month and can work four hours a day. The tone is appropriately polite and semi-formal for a letter to a museum director, although the salutation should ideally be 'Dear Sir or Madam,' as instructed. Overall, the ideas are sufficiently developed and cover all aspects required by the prompt.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The letter demonstrates a clear overall progression and logical organisation. Each paragraph has a distinct focus, beginning with the purpose of the letter and the motivation, moving on to skills, detailing availability, and concluding with a polite closing thought. Cohesive devices are used reasonably well, such as 'Therefore' and 'as this opportunity'. However, referencing and transitions are sometimes a bit mechanical, particularly in the third paragraph where the link between the job application posting and the writer's availability feels slightly abrupt. Paragraphing is used appropriately to structure the letter effectively, and the overall flow allows the reader to follow the message easily without confusion.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully attempting less common items and functional phrases such as 'golden opportunity', 'community servants', and 'bilingual in terms of English and French'. However, there are some minor inaccuracies in word choice and collocation. For example, 'community servants' is unnatural; 'community service' or 'volunteering' would be more appropriate. Similarly, 'help tourist in tour' contains grammatical and lexical awkwardness, and 'take a chance' is not entirely fitting for seizing an opportunity. Despite these occasional errors, the vocabulary is sufficient to convey the intended meaning clearly without impeding communication.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

The response displays a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. The writer successfully employs complex forms, such as conditional and relative clauses ('I have noticed that you mentioned...'). There are several grammatical errors and awkward phrasings throughout the text, including 'Dear sir' (missing capitalization and failing to follow the prompt's instruction of 'Dear Sir or Madam,'), 'help the patients transfer' instead of 'transfer patients', and 'help tourist' instead of 'help tourists'. Punctuation and article usage also show occasional lapses. Nevertheless, these errors do not impede overall communication, and many sentences remain error-free, representing a solid Band 6 level of grammatical control.

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

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