Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-10-11
IELTS Writing Task 1 question
A friend of yours is thinking about applying for the same course that you did at university. He/She has asked for your advice about studying this subject. Write a letter to your friend. In your letter
- give details of the course you took at the university
- explain why you recommend the university
- give some advice about how to apply
You do NOT need to write any addresses.
Begin your letter as follows:
Dear .................. ,
Student answer (Band 5.5)
Dear Preet,
I hope you are doing well. I feel glad to know that you are interested to apply for the same course that i did.
I completed my diploma course in human resources and business management at Algoma University. Which is located in Brampton downtown.
It is good choice for you to choose Algoma University for further education. Because there are many reasons is that why i recommented this University. The first reason is that environment. The surrounding of that University is very peace and calm. The second reason is staff. Staff is very knowledgeable and polite. If you will face any kind of problem in studies then you will feel free ask from the teacher again and again without any hasitation.
So if you want to apply then you can search on official website and you can apply there. You can visit the registration office as well for application. I will send you number of my friend who is doing study in University.
Thank you and keep in touch. If you need any assistance then free to call me.
Lot of loves,
Ramanpreet Kaur
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5
You address all three requested points: you identify the human resources and business management diploma, give reasons for recommending Algoma University, and suggest using its website or registration office to apply. The friendly tone and personal offer to connect your friend with a current student also suit the purpose. However, the course details are brief, and the recommendation is supported mainly by general comments about the peaceful environment and polite, knowledgeable staff. The application advice would be more useful with specific steps or information to check, such as entry requirements or deadlines. Some ideas are therefore relevant but under-developed, and the recommendation could be made clearer and more persuasive through concrete details.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0
The letter has a clear overall arrangement: it opens with a friendly greeting, introduces your course, explains why you recommend the university, and ends with application advice and a warm sign-off. Paragraphing helps the reader follow these main stages. You also use basic linking expressions such as “The first reason” and “The second reason” to organise your points. At times, however, the connections feel mechanical, particularly in the sequence of reasons, and “Because” begins a sentence that depends on the previous one. The final paragraph also moves quickly from application instructions to offering a friend’s number. Use smoother links and make the relationship between each idea explicit to improve progression.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.0
You use enough vocabulary to communicate the main points and maintain a friendly tone, including phrases such as “further education,” “knowledgeable,” and “official website.” However, the range is limited and several noticeable word-choice, collocation, and spelling errors reduce naturalness. For example, “interested to apply” is not the usual expression, “peace and calm” is awkward in this context, and “recommented” and “hasitation” are misspelled. “Lot of loves” is also an unnatural sign-off. These choices do not prevent the reader from understanding your message, but more accurate everyday expressions and careful proofreading would make the letter clearer and more fluent.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0
You communicate the main message using mostly simple sentence patterns, with some attempts to connect ideas and give advice. However, the range is limited, and errors occur often enough to affect fluency. For example, “Which is located in Brampton downtown” is a sentence fragment, while “Because there are many reasons is that why…” has an incomplete and confusing structure. In “If you will face any kind of problem,” the conditional form is not well controlled, and “feel free ask” is missing the infinitive marker. There are also issues with articles and sentence boundaries. Practise combining clauses accurately and checking verb forms, articles, and punctuation; this will help you express the same ideas more smoothly.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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