Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Recent IELTS Exams (Canada & India) · 2026-08-22

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)

Education is very essential need for everyone in this growing word, and most important is to choose a course for higher education in universities. Nowadays, in many countries not enough students are choosing to study science at university level because of many reasons. It also has a vast range of effects on society. This essay will discuss its major causes before explaining it effects.

The major causes include difficulty of science subjects like Chemistry, Physics, Mathematics and Biology. These subjects are considered relatively tough and their is a very strong competition among students. In addition, it is also a very challenging career because the competition is not just in studies but has also reached practical life. Secondly, people choose career that seem to be more easier and financially rewarding. For example, students are now attractive towards other fields like media, business etc. because these are easier and have a very great scope as well as well paying jobs. In addition, lack of laboratories and experienced teachers reduced the interest of students to study science.

As the number of science students declined, it has a vast range of consequences for the society. It may lead to shortage of qualified doctors, engineers and other technical professions which slow the developmental progress. It make for countries more difficult to develop new technologies and solve problem. Most importantly, scientific progress also slows down because of decreased numbers of scientists. As a result we have to depend on foreign experts and technologies. It has a vast effect on our economy because increased cost reduce our ability to compete.

In conclusion, the declining number of students at universities studying science mainly reduced because of demanding nature and other attractive, growing and easier fields. As a result, our economy is effected therefore, government should encourage students to choose science subjects.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The essay addresses both parts of the prompt: causes and effects. The ideas are relevant, such as the perceived difficulty of science subjects and the economic impact of a skills shortage. However, the development is somewhat superficial. For instance, the mention of 'lack of laboratories' is a valid point but is not expanded upon. Similarly, the effects on society are listed rather than explored in depth. To reach a higher band, you should provide more specific examples or elaborate on the logical chain of events for each point. The position is clear throughout, but the overall development lacks the depth required for a higher score.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, with a clear introduction, body paragraphs for causes and effects, and a conclusion. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'In addition', 'Secondly', and 'As a result'. However, some transitions are mechanical or slightly repetitive. The referencing is generally clear, though the flow between sentences could be smoother. The paragraphing is appropriate, but the internal structure of the paragraphs could benefit from more sophisticated linking to connect the ideas more fluidly rather than just listing them.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'financially rewarding', 'technical professions', and 'developmental progress'. However, there are some inaccuracies in word choice and collocation, such as 'attractive towards' (should be 'drawn to') and 'growing word' (likely meant 'world'). Some phrasing is also slightly simplistic, such as 'very essential need' and 'very great scope'. To improve, focus on using more precise academic collocations and avoiding repetitive intensifiers like 'very'.

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 'their is a very strong competition' (should be 'there is'), 'people choose career' (should be 'careers'), 'it make for countries' (should be 'it makes it'), and 'economy is effected' (should be 'affected'). These errors are frequent enough to be noticeable but do not prevent the reader from understanding your argument. Increasing the variety of complex structures while ensuring subject-verb agreement would improve your score.

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

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