Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Barron's Writing · 2026-09-09

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some people feel that the government should pay the costs of running universities so that a university education will be free for anyone who wants it.

To what extent do you agree or disagree with this opinion?

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

Student answer (Band 6.0)

Some people believe that the government should take all the expenses of the universities of their country, thus students can get free education from the institutes. I partially agree with this statement. This essay will discuss both opinions with examples.

On the one hand, there are some benefits of getting free education from your choice of universities. One of the main reason is to obtain free education and do not get burden over your parents. Children sometimes could not enroll themselves for the degree of their interests because of the expenditure. For instance, in my country, most of the medical students left their passion to become a good doctor just because the private universities charge a lot and they could not afford. Thus, if government pay the costs of the institutes, we may get better professionals who are passionate about their jobs.

On the other hand, some people argue that it is not fair to put all the pressure on the finance of a country. It is better for the government to offer scholarship programs to the students and pay the expenses. For example, many countries are offering scholarships for their people as well as for the foreigners. Another reason is that, as it will put heavy financial pressure on the government so taxpayers in return have to pay for it.

To conclude, though it is beneficial for the residents to get free education, it puts a huge pressure on the government too. So, it is better to fund scholarships to the institutes.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response addresses the prompt by discussing both sides of the argument and providing a clear personal position. The ideas are relevant, such as the financial burden on families and the potential strain on taxpayers. However, the development is somewhat limited; the points are introduced but not fully explored with depth. For instance, the example regarding medical students is a good start, but it could be expanded to explain the broader societal impact of such a policy. The conclusion is brief but effectively summarizes the stance. To reach a higher band, ensure that each main idea is supported by more detailed explanation or evidence.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The essay is organized into clear paragraphs, each with a distinct focus. There is a logical progression of ideas from the introduction to the body paragraphs and the conclusion. Cohesive devices such as 'On the one hand', 'On the other hand', 'For instance', and 'To conclude' are used to guide the reader. However, some transitions feel a bit mechanical, and the referencing could be smoother in places. Overall, the structure is coherent, and the paragraphing is appropriate for the task, making the argument easy to follow throughout the response.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, allowing the student to convey their meaning clearly. There are some attempts at using topic-specific vocabulary, such as 'expenditure', 'scholarship programs', and 'taxpayers'. However, the range is somewhat limited, and there are occasional inaccuracies in word choice or collocation, such as 'take all the expenses' (should be 'cover all the expenses') and 'get burden over your parents' (should be 'place a burden on your parents'). Expanding the range of academic collocations would help improve the precision of the writing.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are frequent grammatical errors, such as 'if government pay' (should be 'if the government pays') and 'put all the pressure on the finance of a country' (should be 'place a financial burden on the country'). These errors do not impede communication, but they do indicate a need for more consistent control over subject-verb agreement and prepositional usage. To improve, focus on proofreading for basic grammatical accuracy and diversifying sentence structures.

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

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.