Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

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

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/ Madam,

Hope this letter finds you well. I am writing this letter to cancel my part-time program at your college. (Course: Medical Laboratory Assistant Program, Term: Fall 2026, Reason: Ineligible for course more thatn six months)

I would like to inform you that I am unable to attend the Medical Laboratory Assistant course starting in October 2027. This is because I am on a post-graduate work permit and am not eligible for courses longer than six months.

I would like to do the Pharmacy assistant course instead, which is only four months duration. Since I have already paid my MLA course fees, is it possible to transfer them to a new course?

I would like to know about the next batch for the Pharmacy assistant course and its fee structure.

Please send me information about the hostel facilities and campus placements.

Your's faithfully

Jismy

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The student covers all bullet points required by the prompt, successfully identifying the part-time course booked (Medical Laboratory Assistant), explaining the reason for cancellation (not eligible for courses longer than six months on a post-graduate work permit), and asking about booking a different course (Pharmacy assistant). The tone is appropriately formal for a letter to a college administrator. However, the length requirement has not been met as the response contains 146 words, falling just short of the 150-word minimum specified in the task instructions. This minor shortfall under-develops the final details slightly, leading to a penalty under Task Achievement where the response is best placed at Band 6.0 due to the length infraction.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The letter is coherent and easy to follow. Ideas are logically sequenced, moving naturally from the initial notification of cancellation to the explanation of the reason, followed by an inquiry about an alternative course and further details regarding hostel facilities and campus placements. Paragraphing is used appropriately, with distinct paragraphs for each main idea. Cohesive devices are generally managed well, although the opening section contains a slight awkwardness with parenthetical metadata: '(Course: Medical Laboratory Assistant Program, Term: Fall 2026, Reason: Ineligible for course more thatn six months)'. Despite this minor stylistic flaw, the overall progression is clear, supporting a solid Band 7.0 score for coherence and cohesion.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The student demonstrates an adequate and generally appropriate range of vocabulary for a functional letter, using terms such as 'post-graduate work permit', 'fee structure', and 'eligible'. There are a few vocabulary and spelling inaccuracies, most notably the typographical error 'more thatn' instead of 'more than'. Furthermore, phrases like 'do the Pharmacy assistant course' could be expressed with more precision. The range of vocabulary is sufficient to convey the intended message clearly without impeding communication, matching the criteria for Band 6.0.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.5

The student displays a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, such as conditional and explanatory clauses ('This is because I am on a post-graduate work permit and am not eligible for courses longer than six months'). There are a few minor grammatical and punctuation errors, including a missing comma in the salutation ('Dear Sir/ Madam') and an incorrect possessive form in the sign-off ('Your's faithfully' instead of 'Yours faithfully'). However, these errors are relatively infrequent and do not impede the reader's understanding. The grammatical control is solid enough to meet the expectations of Band 6.5.

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

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