Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-09-30

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 booking in one of your courses due to sudden increase of my work at office.

I enrolled in excel part-time course at your college last month. I was interested in the advanced level of this curriculum as it will help me enhance my career.

However, due to a personal emergency, one of my colleague has to take leave. So, all the workload fall on my shoulders, and I am not able to attend your course, as my boss offered me an overtime with extra salary that I accepted to ease my financial burden.

I am really interested in taking another course after a month or maybe two, could you please help me suggesting courses related to data analysis, which can help me get better opportunities at work or that can help me to get into leadership roles. Please let me know if I can book a different course with current fee structure or if I have to pay more.

I look forward to your reply with a valid solution.

Yours faithfully,

Roopkamal

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.0

The candidate has successfully addressed all three bullet points required in the task instructions. First, the specific part-time course is clearly stated as the Excel part-time course. Second, the reason for cancellation is adequately explained by mentioning a personal emergency involving a colleague and increased workload paired with overtime. Third, the letter asks about booking a different course related to data analysis and inquires about leadership roles and the current fee structure. The tone is appropriate for a formal letter to a college administrator. The response covers all parts of the prompt well and ideas are sufficiently developed, fitting comfortably into Band 7.0 of the task achievement descriptors.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

The letter follows a clear logical organization from stating the purpose of the writing to explaining the situation, asking about alternative courses, and finally closing politely. Paragraphing is used appropriately, with each main point separated into its own paragraph. Cohesive devices are generally well managed, using linking words such as 'However' and 'So' to connect ideas, although the use of 'So' is slightly informal for a formal request. Referencing is mostly clear throughout the text, allowing the reader to follow the progression of thoughts smoothly without confusion. This performance aligns well with the Band 7.0 descriptors for coherence and cohesion.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

The candidate demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary suitable for the task. Phrases such as 'enhance my career,' 'financial burden,' and 'valid solution' show a good attempt to use less common items with general awareness of style and collocation. However, there are some minor lexical inaccuracies and awkward phrasing, such as 'due to sudden increase of my work at office' (instead of 'at the office' or 'workload') and 'one of my colleague has to take leave' (plural needed for 'colleagues'). Despite these occasional errors in word choice, the vocabulary is sufficient to convey the message clearly and effectively, matching the Band 6.0 criteria.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

The writer employs a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating the ability to construct longer sentences with relative ease, such as 'I was interested in the advanced level of this curriculum as it will help me enhance my career.' However, several grammatical errors are present, including subject-verb agreement issues ('all the workload fall' instead of 'falls'), missing articles ('excel part-time course' should be 'the Excel part-time course'), and prepositions ('help me suggesting' instead of 'help me suggest' or 'help me with'). While these errors are noticeable, they rarely impede communication, placing the response solidly at Band 6.0.

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

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