Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-09-13

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 6.5)

Dear Sir or Madam,

I am writing this letter to cancel my booked part-time course. I have booked a part-time Continuing Care Assistant 6 months course starting in a month. It is 3 months theoritical and 3 months on field course.

Unfortunately, I have to go to India due to some family emergencies. So I wont be able to attend my course of starting few days. And after missing first few introduction classes, I want be able to learn next chapters. Therefore I want to cancel my booking for now.

I would like to enrol in Personal support worker course which is starting from January 2027. I have done some reserch and I found out PSW course is intersting and in demand occupation. I have checked that it is same charge as CCA course which I have booked. Can you help me to differ my booked course with PSW starting in January?

I am looking forward to hear from you soon.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

The response successfully covers all the bullet points outlined in the prompt. First, the writer clearly identifies the part-time course booked as the Continuing Care Assistant course. Second, the reason for cancellation is explained adequately, noting a trip to India due to family emergencies and the inability to catch up after missing the initial introductory classes. Finally, the letter asks about transferring to a different course, specifically the Personal support worker course starting in January 2027. The tone is appropriately formal for a letter to a college administrator, maintaining a clear purpose throughout. The ideas are relevant and sufficiently extended to meet the requirements of General Training Task 1, earning a solid band score.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The letter is logically organised into distinct paragraphs that correspond to the natural flow of addressing an administrator: stating the purpose, explaining the reason, proposing an alternative course, and closing. Cohesive devices such as 'Unfortunately', 'Therefore', and 'And' are used to connect ideas, although the transitions can occasionally feel slightly formulaic or repetitive. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate different points, ensuring the reader can easily follow the progression of the writer's request. Referencing is generally clear, and overall, the structural arrangement supports the communication of the message effectively.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, attempting some less common lexical items such as 'emergencies', 'intersting', and 'in demand occupation'. However, there are several spelling and word choice inaccuracies, such as 'theoritical' instead of 'theoretical', 'reserch' instead of 'research', and 'differ' instead of 'defer' or 'transfer'. While these minor errors do not impede communication, they prevent the lexical score from reaching higher bands. The student demonstrates a sufficient range of vocabulary to convey personal needs and academic inquiries, but greater precision and correct spelling of topic-specific words are required for a higher band.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The writer employs a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating some control over tense usage, such as present simple and future constructions. However, there are notable grammatical errors and awkward phrasings throughout the text. Examples include 'my course of starting few days' instead of 'the first few days of my course', 'want be able to learn' instead of 'won't be able to learn', and 'looking forward to hear' instead of 'looking forward to hearing'. Punctuation and capitalization are generally acceptable, but the frequency of minor structural and phrasing errors places this response comfortably in the band 6 range.

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

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