Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-11-08

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

You would like to reduce your working hours in order to study part time.

Write a letter to your boss. In your letter

• explain why you want to reduce your working hours
• say which hours you would like to work
• describe how your part-time studies would benefit your employer

You do NOT need to write any addresses.

Begin your letter as follows:

Dear ....................................,

Student answer (Band 6.5)

Dear Sir,

I am writing to request you to minimize my working hours. From next week, I will be unable to perform my duties after 6pm.

You must be wondering about the reason behind it. Let me make it easy for you. I am enrolled into the 'Automotive Technician' program in the 'Conestoga College'. Hence, I would like to change my availability.

Here's the details of my new availability. I am open to work regular hours on weekends. However, I will not be able to work late at night because I will be busy attending classes after 6pm from Monday to Wednesday. In addition, I have two practical shop work at the college shop on Thursday and Friday.

Furthermore, my studies would be beneficial for the company.Currently, I am only working as a tire technician but If I learn repair-work on cars I could assist the mechanic team. I would therefore be grateful if you could approve my request.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Yours faithfully,

Harshdeep Singh

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

You address all three requested points: you explain that your Automotive Technician course requires evening study, specify weekend availability and the days when classes or practical work affect your schedule, and describe how car-repair skills could help the mechanic team. The request is clear and relevant. The benefit to the employer is promising but brief: explain more specifically what tasks you could take on or how your new skills could support the business. The proposed hours could also be stated more precisely, since “regular hours on weekends” does not identify start and finish times, and the opening claim about being unable to work after 6 p.m. is not fully reconciled with the Thursday and Friday practical sessions. More complete detail would make the letter more fully developed.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

The letter has a clear progression from the request and its reason to your availability, the employer’s potential benefit, and a polite closing. Paragraphing helps distinguish these stages, and linking expressions such as “Hence,” “In addition,” and “Furthermore” make the relationships between ideas easy to follow. The sequence is generally logical, though the availability details could be organised more clearly—for example, state the exact hours you can work on each day and then explain the study commitments that limit them. The transition “You must be wondering about the reason behind it” is understandable but rather conversational and slightly interrupts the professional flow. Overall, the organisation is clear, with some room to make connections and presentation more natural.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of vocabulary for a workplace request, including “availability,” “practical,” “beneficial,” and “approve my request.” These choices communicate the main points, and the automotive terminology makes your proposed benefit relevant. Some word choices and collocations are less natural, however: “minimize my working hours” is less suitable than “reduce my working hours,” and “practical shop work” is unclear. “I am open to work regular hours” also sounds awkward, while “repair-work on cars” is not a natural compound. Aim for precise, idiomatic phrases and check spacing after punctuation, as in “company.Currently.” More consistent control of collocation would make the letter sound more polished and professional.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.5

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, including the conditional “If I learn repair-work on cars I could assist the mechanic team” and clauses explaining your schedule. Most meaning remains clear, and the request is easy to understand. Some grammatical errors remain: “enrolled into” should be “enrolled in,” “Here’s the details” needs subject–verb agreement (“Here are the details”), and “two practical shop work” needs a plural countable noun or a different construction. The conditional sentence also needs a comma after its opening clause, and “but If” should not capitalise “if” mid-sentence. Review articles, agreement, countability, and punctuation in longer sentences to improve accuracy while retaining your range.

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

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