Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-09-19

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

The working week should be shorter and workers should have a longer weekend.

Do you agree or disagree?

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

Student answer (Band 6.0)

303 words

In many countries, an insufficient number of students are choosing science-related subjects at university. This trend can be attributed to several factors, and it may have significant consequences for society.

One of the main reasons why students avoid studying science is that science courses are often perceived as difficult and demanding. Subjects such as physics, chemistry, and mathematics require strong analytical skills and considerable effort, which can discourage many young people. In contrast, fields such as business, media, or social sciences are often seen as less challenging and more appealing. Another important factor is the lack of awareness about career opportunities in science. Many students believe that science-related professions offer lower financial rewards compared to careers in finance, technology, or management. As a result, they choose disciplines that they think will provide quicker and more lucrative employment.

This decline in the number of science students can have several negative effects on society. Firstly, it may lead to a shortage of skilled scientists, researchers, engineers, and healthcare professionals. These experts play a vital role in technological innovation, medical advancements, and economic development. For example, scientific research was essential in developing vaccines during global health crises, demonstrating the importance of having a strong scientific workforce. Secondly, a lack of science graduates may reduce a country's competitiveness in the global economy. Nations that fail to produce enough qualified scientists may become dependent on foreign expertise and struggle to keep pace with technological progress.

In conclusion, the decreasing popularity of science subjects among university students is mainly caused by the perceived difficulty of these disciplines and concerns about career prospects. If this trend continues, societies may face shortages of highly skilled professionals and slower scientific and economic development. Therefore, governments and educational institutions should encourage students to pursue science by providing better guidance, scholarships, and career opportunities.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 3.5

Although the response is well-written, there is a critical task achievement issue: the essay addresses the wrong prompt. The actual prompt asks whether the working week should be shorter and workers should have a longer weekend, but the student's text discusses why university students are not choosing science-related subjects. This represents a complete misinterpretation of the task. Consequently, the position is irrelevant to the actual question asked, and the ideas developed, while coherent in themselves, do not answer the prompt. Per the official band descriptors, responding off-topic severely impacts Task Achievement. Therefore, this criterion must be marked down heavily, resulting in a band score of 3.5, as the response addresses the task only minimally and tangentially due to answering an entirely different, albeit common, IELTS prompt.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

Despite the off-topic content, the structural organization of the essay is quite strong. The student uses a clear four-paragraph structure with an introduction, two distinct body paragraphs exploring causes and effects, and a logical conclusion. Paragraphing is used sufficiently and appropriately, and ideas are logically sequenced with adequate cohesive devices such as 'One of the main reasons', 'In contrast', 'Another important factor', 'Firstly', and 'Secondly'. Referencing and substitution are handled smoothly throughout the text. The only limitation preventing a higher score in this criterion is that the underlying progression serves an irrelevant prompt. However, judging the coherence and cohesion of the language actually produced, it demonstrates clear organizational skills typical of a Band 7.0 or 7.5 writer.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.5

The student demonstrates a solid and flexible lexical resource. There is a good range of vocabulary used appropriately throughout the response, including subject-specific and academic terms such as 'analytical skills', 'career opportunities', 'lucrative employment', 'technological innovation', and 'global economy'. Less common lexical items are used with some awareness of style and collocation, and there are virtually no spelling or word-choice errors. Words like 'perceived', 'discipline', and 'competitiveness' are integrated naturally. While the vocabulary is not overly sophisticated or rare enough to push into the highest bands, it is precise, natural, and more than adequate for the task. This aligns well with the Band 7.0 descriptors for Lexical Resource.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 7.5

The grammatical control in this essay is impressive. The student displays a wide variety of complex sentence structures, including conditional clauses ('If this trend continues, societies may face...'), participial phrases ('demonstrating the importance of having...'), and relative clauses ('Many students believe that science-related professions offer...'). There are frequent error-free sentences, and punctuation is handled with a high degree of accuracy. The control of verb tenses and agreement is consistent throughout. Because the grammar is largely error-free and demonstrates good command over complex forms, it easily satisfies the requirements for Band 8.0 in this specific criterion, showing that the writer possesses strong overall linguistic mechanics despite the content error.

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

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