Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-08-11

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 6.0)

It is often argued that whether socialising with work colleagues is beneficial or whether keeping one's social and professional lives completely separate from each other more fruitful. This essay will discuss both opinions before explaining why I believe that socialising with professional colleagues is more advantageous.

Efficient team-work is one of the major requirements of every professional company nowadays. It ensures that the goals and objectives of the company are met timely and effectively. Socialising with one's colleagues from workplace enhances mutual cooperation, understanding and promotes communication amongst each other. This not only creates frienship between colleagues but also strengthens good team-work and a productive work environment.

Conversely, keeping private and professional lives separate has its own benefits, as some people believe that personal life has some boundaries and that personal information should be kept hidden from your professional colleagues. Keeping an open personal life to your colleagues may prove to be a source of embarrasment, insecurity and discomfort for some people. This may lead to decreased productivity and a low self-esteem making it difficult to focus on your job.

In my opinion, socialising with professional colleagues shouldn't be looked down upon. It has several advantages at work and also offers numerous benefits mentally, psycologically and socially.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0

The response addresses both sides of the argument and provides a clear personal opinion. However, the essay is significantly under the 250-word minimum requirement, which limits the depth of development. While the main points regarding team cohesion and personal boundaries are relevant, they are not fully extended or supported with concrete examples as required by the prompt. The conclusion is also very brief and lacks a summary of the main arguments. To improve, you must expand your supporting points with specific illustrations and ensure you meet the minimum word count to allow for a more comprehensive discussion.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is logically organised into paragraphs, with a clear introduction, two body paragraphs, and a brief conclusion. Cohesive devices such as 'Conversely' and 'In my opinion' are used to signal shifts in the argument. However, the flow between sentences is sometimes mechanical, and the lack of length prevents the development of more sophisticated cohesive links. The paragraphing is appropriate, but the overall structure feels truncated due to the limited word count. To reach a higher band, focus on using a wider variety of linking words and ensuring that each paragraph has a more robust internal structure.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The vocabulary used is generally appropriate for the task, with terms like 'mutual cooperation', 'professional company', and 'productive work environment'. There are some minor spelling errors, such as 'frienship' and 'psycologically', which slightly detract from the quality. The range of vocabulary is adequate for the task but lacks the sophistication or precision required for higher bands. To improve, try to incorporate more precise collocations and ensure accurate spelling of key terms. Avoid repeating words like 'colleagues' and 'professional' too frequently by using synonyms or paraphrasing.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The essay demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are some grammatical slips, such as the opening sentence which is a fragment ('It is often argued that whether... or whether... more fruitful'), missing a main verb or proper structure. Other sentences are generally clear, but the range of complex structures is limited. Punctuation is mostly accurate, but the overall control of grammar is inconsistent. To improve, focus on constructing complete, error-free complex sentences and proofreading for minor slips in subject-verb agreement and sentence completeness.

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

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