Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Recent IELTS Exams (Canada & India) · 2026-08-03

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

In many countries not enough students are choosing to study science at university. What are the causes of this? What effects does it have on society?

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

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Nowadays many students are preferring to study in non-STEAM fields in universities due to various reasons like lack of interest or seeing it as an challenging field. In my opinion this will have a negative effect for the future generations and society. I will discuss my reasons behind this in this essay with relevant examples.

Generally, choosing to study science at university is seen a challenging task for many students, as it involves math, physics, chemistry and many core engineering subjects which are hard and require substantial effort to clear them. Therefore, many students choose non science fields such as arts, management, business courses, etc as those are considered easy and can be completed with minimal effort.

Conversely, if many students start avoiding science this will have a negative impact on society and future generation because less engineers means less creativity for human development and there will be a shortage of qualified engineers in many countries in different sectors, which is a big problem for any country because this will in turn have a negative effects on economy and productivity of the country. Subsequently, new research will be slowed due to lack of qualified personnel and research and developments departments will be impacted.

In conclusion, many student's are not studying science in universities becasue they find them hard to finish and are looking at alternate easy options such as management, art degrees, and businesses which will give them same financial stability as science graduates. Furthermore, lack of qualified personnel in science will have a negative effect on the country's research and developments. Therefore, governments should ensure that student's are not neglecting science fields at universities.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The essay addresses both parts of the prompt: the causes for the decline in science students and the effects on society. The position is clear throughout. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited. For instance, the explanation of why students avoid science is quite general, and the impact on society is described in broad terms without specific examples or deeper analysis. To reach a higher band, you should provide more concrete illustrations, such as mentioning specific industries or the long-term consequences of a skills gap in a particular sector. The conclusion effectively summarizes the main points but introduces a new suggestion regarding government intervention that was not previously discussed in the body paragraphs.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Cohesive devices such as 'Generally', 'Conversely', 'Therefore', and 'Furthermore' are used to link ideas. However, the flow is occasionally mechanical, and some transitions feel repetitive. For example, the use of 'negative effect' and 'negative impact' appears multiple times, which affects the natural progression of the argument. Paragraphing is used appropriately, but the internal structure of the paragraphs could be improved by ensuring that each sentence builds more effectively upon the previous one rather than simply listing consequences.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'non-STEAM fields', 'qualified personnel', and 'productivity'. However, there are some inaccuracies in word choice and collocation, such as 'seeing it as an challenging field' (should be 'a challenging') and 'clear them' (when referring to subjects, 'master' or 'complete' would be more appropriate). Additionally, there is some repetition of basic vocabulary like 'negative effect' and 'hard'. To improve, try to incorporate more precise academic collocations and avoid repeating the same phrases throughout the essay.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are several grammatical errors that occur throughout the text. Examples include 'many student's are' (incorrect pluralization with an apostrophe), 'seen a challenging task' (missing 'as'), and 'negative effects on economy' (missing an article). Punctuation is generally functional, but the frequent errors in pluralization and article usage prevent the essay from reaching a higher band. Focusing on proofreading for these small, recurring errors would significantly improve the overall accuracy of your writing.

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