Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-10-12

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,

I am writing to inform you about the cancellation of my PSYC 200 part- time couse that I booked recently.

Since, i visited the college website for the final confirmation and payment for the selected courses I found that PSYC 200 a part- time course booked was already completed in last semester. I was looking to book PSYC 201 for coming semester urfortunately, I selected 200. I request you to cancel the booking as it is a waste of both time and money in redoing the course. On the other hand, i request to book Psyc 201 if the seats in this course are still available.

I would appereciate if you can cancel my pre booked course and help me to acquire a seat in the course that is in my requirement list .Please let me know if there is a need to fill out any form or to pay any cancellation fee.

Thank you for your attention to this matter. I will look froward to hearing back from you soon.

Thank you

Regards

Simranpreet

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.5

You address all three requirements clearly: you identify the PSYC 200 course, explain that you intended to book PSYC 201 because you had already completed PSYC 200, and request a change if places are available. The reason for cancelling is relevant and the request about forms or fees adds useful detail. Your purpose remains clear throughout. To make the response more fully developed, explain the booking mix-up a little more directly and specify whether you are asking the college to transfer your booking or cancel it and make a new one. The phrase “a waste of both time and money” is understandable, but a more neutral explanation would suit a formal request better. Overall, the key points are covered, though some details could be expressed more precisely.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The letter follows a sensible sequence: you state your purpose, explain the course-selection problem, request the alternative course, and close politely. Paragraphing helps separate these stages, and links such as “On the other hand” show an attempt to connect ideas. However, some connections are not quite natural: “On the other hand” suggests a contrast, whereas the PSYC 201 request is a continuation of your solution. The long second paragraph also combines the explanation and both requests, making the progression slightly less smooth. Use a more direct link such as “Therefore,” and give the alternative-course request its own sentence or paragraph. These changes would make the organisation feel more controlled and less dependent on linking phrases.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use enough vocabulary to communicate the booking issue and make a polite request, including “cancellation,” “available,” and “cancellation fee.” There are also attempts at more formal expressions, such as “I would appreciate” and “Thank you for your attention to this matter.” However, several spelling errors and awkward word choices reduce precision: “couse,” “urfortunately,” “appereciate,” and “pre booked” should be corrected, while “acquire a seat” is less natural here than “secure a place.” “In my requirement list” is also unclear. Aim for accurate, natural collocations rather than more elaborate wording. The message remains understandable, but more consistent spelling and phrasing would make the vocabulary more effective and appropriate for a formal letter.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and more complex sentence forms, including the explanation beginning “Since I visited the college website” and the conditional phrase “if the seats in this course are still available.” The main meaning is generally clear, and the request is easy to follow. Some grammatical and punctuation errors remain, however. For example, “Since, I visited” has an unnecessary comma and does not form a complete sentence naturally with the following clause; “I found that PSYC 200 a part-time course booked was already completed” has an unclear sentence structure. Capitalisation of “I” is inconsistent, and the closing punctuation and sentence boundaries need attention. Practise building complete, clearly ordered clauses and checking punctuation, while retaining your attempts at complex sentences.

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

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