Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Recent IELTS Exams (Canada & India) · 2026-09-02

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)

It is clear that most countries are lacking students in the medical fields as a result of lack of teachers or tutors in these education field. In this essay, i would highlight the possible causes and how it affects the modern society today.

One of the reasons that could bring about decline in students showing interest in medical courses at schools is lack of adequate lectures. Students often seeks advice from senior colleagues either a family member or a friend on courses to choose at universities they attended. There is every possible reason that they will advice them to avoid science programs due to the prior knowledge that there schools lacked qualified teachers on that field of study. As a result of this there will be a continonus decrease in number of students who will show interest in this field of study.

These can bring about so many serious problems in the society. Countries that lack medical students will have little or no specialized medical practioneers. For example, hospitals will lack doctors and nurses who are experienced in treating complex medical problems and these can bring about high death rate in these countries.

In conclusions, although these causes are might seem challenging, in my own experience, i believe the government can go a long way to avoid situations like this by employing qualified lecturers from other countries and also building schools with suitable medical equipment that will foster proper and quality education.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses both parts of the prompt (causes and effects), but the development is limited. The essay is under the 250-word minimum, which negatively impacts the depth of the argument. The ideas, such as the lack of qualified teachers and the resulting shortage of medical practitioners, are relevant but remain somewhat superficial. The position is clear, but the supporting examples are brief and lack the necessary detail to fully explore the implications for society. To improve, you should expand on your points with more specific examples or deeper analysis to meet the length requirement and provide a more comprehensive response.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the progression of ideas. There is an introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. However, the use of cohesive devices is somewhat mechanical and repetitive (e.g., 'As a result of this', 'These can bring about'). Referencing is occasionally unclear, such as the use of 'These' at the start of the third paragraph to refer to the previous paragraph's argument. While the paragraphing is appropriate, the flow between sentences could be smoother through a more varied use of linking words and better referencing.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task but lacks the range and precision required for a higher band. There are some errors in word choice and spelling, such as 'practioneers' instead of 'practitioners' and 'continonus' instead of 'continuous'. Phrases like 'medical fields' and 'medical courses' are repeated, suggesting a limited range of synonyms. To achieve a higher score, you should focus on using more precise academic vocabulary and ensuring accurate spelling of key terms related to the topic.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The essay contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. However, there are frequent grammatical errors that occasionally impede the flow, such as 'Students often seeks advice' (subject-verb agreement), 'there schools lacked' (incorrect pronoun usage), and 'these causes are might seem' (incorrect verb construction). Punctuation is also inconsistent, particularly with the use of commas. While the meaning is generally clear, the frequency of these errors limits the score. Increasing your control over basic grammar and proofreading for subject-verb agreement would significantly improve your writing.

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

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