Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Barron's Writing · 2026-09-17

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

You have decided to look for a new job.

Write a letter to a friend. In your letter
• explain why you are looking for a new job.
• describe the kind of job you would like to have.
• ask your friend to help you find a job

You do NOT need to write any addresses.

Begin your letter as follows:

Dear _________,

Student answer (Band 5.0)

Dear Sam,

I hope you are doing great. I would like to share with you that finally I have decided to switch my current job and I am looking for new opportunities in the job market.

Honestly its been a tough decison for me to leave my current job due to personal reasons. However, I was feeling stuck in terms of my growth and financial freedom. Also, I belived that my skills and knowledge was not properly aligning with my current role

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 4.0

The student has attempted to address some parts of the task by explaining why they are looking for a new job. However, the response is severely under-length, reaching only 82 words compared to the minimum requirement of 150 words. As a result, the second and third bullet points regarding the kind of job desired and asking the friend for help are completely omitted. This represents a significant failure to cover all parts of the prompt. According to the band descriptors, addressing the task only partially and having under-developed or missing parts corresponds to a lower band level. Consequently, the score reflects this severe under-length and incomplete coverage.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0

The student uses an appropriate informal greeting ('Dear Sam,') and attempts a natural opening. However, due to the extremely short length of the text, it only consists of two brief paragraphs, and the overall progression is cut short before the letter can develop normally. Cohesive devices are minimal, with phrases like 'However' and 'Also' used to link ideas. Paragraphing is attempted, but the abrupt ending prevents a cohesive closing or fully logical development of the ideas. Referencing is generally clear, but the lack of substantial content limits the demonstration of higher-level coherence and cohesion skills.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The student demonstrates an adequate vocabulary for basic communication, using phrases such as 'switch my current job', 'job market', 'tough decision', and 'personal reasons'. There are a few spelling and word choice inaccuracies, such as 'decison' instead of decision, and awkward phrasing like 'was not properly aligning with my current role'. The range of vocabulary is rather limited, relying on fairly common everyday words without successfully integrating less common lexical items. Despite these flaws, communication of the initial points is not impeded, fitting the lower-intermediate band profile.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, such as 'I would like to share with you that finally I have decided to switch my current job...' and 'However, I was feeling stuck...'. However, there are notable grammatical errors and awkward agreements, particularly 'my skills and knowledge was not properly aligning', where plural subjects incorrectly take a singular verb 'was'. Punctuation is generally acceptable, but the grammatical control is inconsistent, and the limited text restricts the variety of complex structures demonstrated. These errors occasionally distract the reader but do not entirely obscure the meaning.

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

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