Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Recent IELTS Exams (Canada & India) · 2026-10-15

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 argued that there is no enough number of students that tend to study science at universities. This essay will discuss the causes of this claim and the effects does it have on society.

Talking about the causes, some students think that studying science at university is a time wasting as they have to attend lectures and have to finish study in a given period. Consequently, they tend to study from other resources such as youtube and paid courses. For example, a provided survey in Africa in 2020 showed that 70% of students tend to leave colleges and study on youtube. Another reason, some universities courses are not demanding for some students because some courses contents are out-dated. Additionally, some teachers do not explain in easy, understandable way that attracts students to attend the university.

As a result, this affects society significantly. The number of university graduates will decrease sharply after a few years. Therefore, there will be a decline in number of professionals in these fields. As a result, this will attract foregins to work in the country and this may affect the country. Also, if students depended on self-study, they will not have the basics that help them to land a job in well-known companies. Subsequently, the number of unemployment will grow noticeably. For example, a given study that took place in some country, showed that chemical engineering profession disappeared due to the lack of students who studied this field at the university.

To conclude, there are a lot of causes for this problem such as students perspective and the way the mentors teach students and this affects society, by increasing number of unemployments.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You address both parts of the question: you suggest causes, including students viewing university study as time-consuming, outdated course content, and teaching that does not engage them, then describe possible effects such as fewer professionals and increased unemployment. These points are relevant, but several are asserted rather than clearly explained. For instance, the link between studying through YouTube and lacking the foundations needed for employment needs more reasoning, and the claim that a chemical-engineering profession “disappeared” is not sufficiently contextualised. The discussion also shifts from a shortage of students choosing science to students leaving college generally. Develop the causes and societal consequences more directly, and use specific, credible examples to support the main claims.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall arrangement: an introduction, a paragraph on causes, one on effects, and a conclusion. Signposting such as “Talking about the causes” and “As a result” helps readers follow the broad direction. However, some links are mechanical or unclear. “As a result” is repeated, and “Another reason” introduces a point without a clear connection to the previous explanation. The effects paragraph moves from fewer graduates to foreign workers and then unemployment, but the relationships between these outcomes need to be made explicit. The conclusion repeats the main points rather than bringing them together. Use a wider range of precise transitions and ensure each paragraph develops a clear sequence of cause and consequence.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use some topic-related vocabulary, including “professionals,” “out-dated,” “self-study,” and “unemployment,” which helps communicate the subject. However, the range is limited and several word choices or collocations are noticeably inaccurate, sometimes making the meaning less clear. Examples include “no enough number,” “time wasting,” “provided survey,” and “the number of unemployment.” Spelling and form errors such as “foregins” and “courses contents” also reduce precision. Aim to learn common academic collocations and check word forms: for example, describe a shortage of students, say that a course is time-consuming, and refer to the unemployment rate or number of unemployed people. More precise vocabulary would make your explanations clearer and more convincing.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentences, including clauses with “as,” “because,” and “if,” and the overall meaning is usually understandable. However, the range of structures is limited, and errors occur frequently enough to affect clarity. For example, “the effects does it have” has incorrect question structure, while “some students think that studying science … is a time wasting” contains problems with the complement and article use. There are also agreement and sentence-construction issues in “some universities courses are not demanding” and “the number of unemployment will grow.” Practise accurate noun phrases, subject–verb agreement, and embedded statements. Build complexity gradually, checking each clause for a clear subject and correctly formed verb.

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

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