Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-09-02

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

You recently booked a part-time course at a college. You now need to cancel your booking.

Write a letter to the college administrator. In your letter:

• say which part-time course you booked
• explain why you need to cancel your booking
• ask about booking a different course

You do NOT need to write any addresses.

Begin your letter as follows:

Dear Sir or Madam,

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Dear Sir or Madam,

Hope you are doing well. My name is Ram and I booked part-time course in your college. I already paid booking fees of the project management, but now my mind is divert and i want to cancel my booking, because I discussed with my family member that I booked part-time course. And he advise me according to my background study. I completed my diploma in pharmacy stream as well as I am working as a pharmacy assistant in compounding pharmacy. He suggest me beside wasting money and time in project management, I have to choose bachelor in Pharmacy.

I know the duration of bachelor in pharmacy is more than project management, moreover the i have to pay extra fees for pharmacy course.

If it is possible can you book my seat in pharmacy course rather than project management. I will wait for your answer.

Your Sincerely,

Ram

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The letter addresses all three bullet points: identifying the course, explaining the reason for cancellation, and requesting a transfer. However, the development of these points is somewhat limited. The explanation regarding the family member's advice is a bit repetitive and lacks professional clarity. While the task requirements are met, the tone is slightly informal for a formal request to a college administrator. To improve, ensure that the explanation is concise and the request for the new course is framed more formally, perhaps by including specific details about the new course or asking about the administrative process for such a transfer.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The letter follows a logical sequence, moving from the booking details to the reason for cancellation and finally the request. However, the use of cohesive devices is quite limited and sometimes mechanical. For example, the transition between the explanation of the family member's advice and the decision to change courses is abrupt. Paragraphing is also insufficient; the entire body of the letter is presented as a single block, which makes it harder to follow. Using clear paragraph breaks for each bullet point would significantly improve the structure and readability of the letter.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task but lacks the precision and variety expected at higher bands. There are several awkward phrasings, such as 'my mind is divert' (should be 'my plans have changed') and 'beside wasting money' (should be 'instead of wasting'). The use of 'pharmacy stream' and 'compounding pharmacy' shows some relevant subject-specific knowledge, but overall, the range is limited. To improve, focus on using more natural collocations and formal expressions suitable for business correspondence, such as 'transfer my enrollment' instead of 'book my seat'.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The letter contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors that occasionally impede the flow. Examples include 'I booked part-time course' (missing article), 'he advise me' (incorrect tense), and 'the i have to pay' (unnecessary article). Punctuation is also inconsistent, particularly with the use of commas and sentence boundaries. While the meaning is generally clear, the frequency of these errors prevents the writing from reaching a higher band. Focusing on subject-verb agreement and the correct use of articles would be highly beneficial.

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

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