Band 7.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-09-18

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 7.5)

Dear Sir or Madam,

I hope this message finds you well. The purpose of my writing is to request you for the cancellation of my part-time course that I booked about two months ago.

I am currently registered in Psychology 101, which will start officially in December. This course is mainly about cognitive disabilities such as stress, anxiety, and depression.

According to the current job contract, I was getting financial help to complete this course. However, yesterday they mentioned that this particular course is not eligible for the funds, under my employment benefits. Unfortunately, I cannot proceed with it.

Furthermore, my manager informed me that Psychology 105 is eligible and our company can pay course fees for that. I would appreciate it if you could provide me with the required details and needed information for registration.

Thank you so much for your time and consideration. I look forward to your response.

Yours sincerely,

Gurkirat Kaur

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 8.0

You have fully addressed all parts of the prompt in a clear and appropriate manner. You successfully identified the specific part-time course you booked ("Psychology 101"), explained the reason for your cancellation due to employment funding constraints regarding this particular module, and appropriately asked about booking a different course ("Psychology 105") and obtaining the necessary registration details. The tone is consistently polite and formal, which is ideal for a college administrator. The purpose of the letter is immediately clear and sustained throughout the response. Your ideas are well-developed and relevant, showing a strong ability to handle a functional workplace or academic correspondence task successfully.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 8.0

Your letter demonstrates a very clear logical organization and progression from the opening statement to the final closing. You have used paragraphing sufficiently and appropriately, dedicating distinct paragraphs to your greeting, the course identification, the reason for cancellation, your alternative request, and your closing remarks. Cohesive devices are used naturally and effectively throughout the text, as seen in transition words such as "However" and "Furthermore", which link your ideas smoothly together without feeling mechanical. Reference words are handled well, ensuring that the reader can easily follow the connection between your job contract and the course funding changes. Overall, the structural flow is smooth and supports the communicative purpose of the letter.

Lexical Resource — Band 7.0

You demonstrate a sufficient and generally precise range of vocabulary for this task, successfully incorporating less common lexical items related to education and employment, such as "registration", "cognitive disabilities", "employment benefits", and "eligible". There are a few slightly awkward collocations or phrasing choices, such as "The purpose of my writing is to request you for the cancellation of" where a simpler construction like "I am writing to request the cancellation of" would be more natural. However, these minor issues do not impede communication, and your overall vocabulary usage is accurate enough to convey your message clearly and professionally.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 7.5

You have utilized a good mix of simple and complex sentence structures, demonstrating solid control over your grammar and punctuation. Examples of complex structures include "This course is mainly about cognitive disabilities such as stress, anxiety, and depression" and "I would appreciate it if you could provide me with the required details..." The majority of your sentences are error-free. While there is a slight awkwardness in phrasing in your opening sentence ("The purpose of my writing is to request you for..."), your overall grammar is reliable, and punctuation is correctly handled. There are no systemic errors that cause difficulty for the reader, reflecting solid control across the text.

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

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