Band 7.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.0 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-07-30

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some people think that it’s a good idea to socialise with work colleagues during evenings and weekends. Other people think it’s important to keep working life completely separate from social life.

Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Student answer (Band 7.0)

A group of people believe that spending time with work friends after office hours and weekends is a great thought. Whilst, some people think that it is imperative to keep distance from office life and social life.

Firstly, most of the people who are outgoing or living away from home or extrovert would love to spend time with colleagues during evenings and weekends. Because, they need someone to party with and, after office party culture has become popular in recent years. Also, one of the most prestigious Harvard Business school has conducted research and found out that co-workers who socialise after office hours are more productive and less likely to switch the organization frequently.

Secondly, other people who want to separate their social life from working life, they think it's important to do it. Mostly working professionals staying with their families or introvert or pursuing study, passion they will be in this category. In addition to that, few people only works for money to pay bills and they want their me time after working hours.

In my opinion, I am inclining towards the later statement. Because, I keep my personal life very secretive from work colleagues to maintain professionalism at workplace. I support this thought as it's difficult to maintain relations with everyone. For instance, when I started my career eight years ago, I was freshly graduated and naive. I was used to hang out with my manager after working hours but due to difference of opinions in other matters we didn't get along so it affected my work.

All in all, Keeping a private social life from workplace is beneficial in longer term because when you don't get along with your co-worker, it will affect your own performance which is detrimental for your career.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

The response addresses all parts of the prompt, discussing both perspectives and providing a clear personal opinion. The ideas are relevant, such as the mention of productivity and the desire for work-life balance. However, the development of these ideas is somewhat limited. For instance, the reference to Harvard Business School is a good attempt at supporting evidence, but it lacks specific detail. The personal example provided is relevant but could be expanded to better illustrate the long-term consequences of mixing social and professional spheres. Overall, the position is consistent throughout, meeting the requirements for a Band 6.5, which rounds to a 6.0 or 7.0 depending on the depth of development; here, it leans towards a 6.5.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The essay is logically organized into four paragraphs, with a clear introduction, two body paragraphs, and a conclusion. The use of cohesive devices such as 'Firstly', 'Secondly', and 'In addition to that' helps guide the reader. However, some transitions are slightly mechanical or awkward, such as starting a sentence with 'Because' or 'Whilst' as a standalone fragment. Referencing is generally clear, though the flow between sentences could be smoother to achieve a higher band. The paragraphing is appropriate, and the progression of ideas is logical, which is characteristic of a Band 6.5 performance.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.5

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, allowing the writer to express their ideas clearly. There are some attempts at less common vocabulary, such as 'imperative', 'prestigious', and 'detrimental'. However, there are also instances of imprecise word choice or slightly unnatural phrasing, such as 'great thought' instead of 'good idea', 'switch the organization' instead of 'change jobs', and 'I was used to hang out' instead of 'I used to hang out'. These errors do not impede communication but prevent the response from reaching a higher band.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.5

The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is always clear, there are frequent grammatical errors, particularly with subject-verb agreement ('few people only works') and sentence fragments ('Whilst, some people think...'). There are also issues with article usage and prepositional phrases. While the writer attempts complex structures, the control over these is inconsistent. The errors are noticeable but do not cause significant difficulty for the reader, placing this firmly in the Band 6.0 range.

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