Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-08-23
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 5.5)
Some people prefer to go out with their work colleagues during evenings and weekends to socialize. I am one of the other people who think it is necessary to keep distance between working life and social life with colleagues.
On one side, some people think it is good idea to go out with colleagues after office hours so eventually they will become friends to hangout with by knowing them personally more. Example: If they will talk after office hours , met for dinners and movies, etc they will become friends and get comfortable with each other. Because of this they worked in same company for many years even though they find boredom in work they are doing. For some people find comfort with person is very important and that matters the most.
On other side, some people think it is important to keep working life completely separate from social life. They have conversation in office time related to work , economic or basic personal stuff but they don't want to hangout after office hours. Because some people think there will be no difference in friends and colleague and it will ruin their both relationships. For example : There are 5 persons who are working in same department and same positions but after some years one of them will become team leader. Because of superiority eventually they will ruin their relationships as colleagues and friends both, if they were met outside after office hours. But in this case there will be no problem at all.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response addresses both sides of the argument and provides a personal opinion in the introduction. However, the development of ideas is limited. The arguments are somewhat repetitive, and the example provided regarding the team leader is slightly confusing and does not fully support the point about maintaining professional boundaries. The conclusion is missing, which is a significant omission for a discussion essay. To reach a higher band, you need to expand on your points with more depth and ensure you provide a clear, summarized conclusion that reinforces your stance.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0
The essay is organized into paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the structure. However, the use of cohesive devices is quite mechanical and sometimes inaccurate. For example, the transition 'On other side' is non-standard, and the logical flow between sentences is occasionally disjointed. The referencing is sometimes unclear, making it difficult to follow the progression of the argument. Improving the variety of linking words and ensuring that each paragraph has a clear topic sentence would significantly improve the coherence of your writing.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary is adequate for the task but lacks the range and precision required for higher bands. You rely on basic terms like 'good idea', 'hangout', and 'stuff'. There are also some awkward collocations, such as 'find boredom in work' and 'ruin their both relationships'. While the meaning is generally clear, the lack of sophisticated vocabulary and the presence of word-choice errors limit the score. Try to incorporate more topic-specific vocabulary related to professional environments and social dynamics.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The essay contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors that occasionally impede the flow. Common issues include subject-verb agreement (e.g., 'some people find comfort'), article usage, and tense consistency (e.g., 'they worked in same company'). There are also punctuation errors and awkward phrasing, such as 'if they were met outside'. While the errors do not completely prevent understanding, they are frequent enough to lower the score. Focusing on basic sentence construction and proofreading for subject-verb agreement would be beneficial.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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