Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-11-14

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 5.5)

Hello,

Dear Boss,

I hope you are doing well. I am writting this letter to inform you that I am doing study of small business which is part time. As per my professor instruction we all students who are doing this course need to attend 2 days in person classes for gitting good score.

Moreover, I decided to attend morning schedule owing to that I will be free in evening time from 2 pm 10 pm at days when I am going university. So, please give me shifts on this time which will be conivent for me and you.

Furthermore, It is a business where we learn how our can grow in compititive area, intract more custmor, and earn profit and goodwill which is good for all typs of firm. Addtitional, Our show us real life example of small business how implement all the plan and get succes. Which is real full for us in our business and If I am attending classes properly then i will able to learn business stretgies.

Thank you boss for giving me time.

Your Senserly,

Kamal.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You explain that you want to study small business part time and that your course requires two in-person days, so the reason for your request is relevant. You also attempt to describe how the course could help your employer, mentioning customer growth, profit and business strategies. However, the requested working hours are not clear: “from 2 pm 10 pm” does not specify whether you mean 2 p.m. to 10 p.m., and the days you are available are not stated. The employer benefit is also difficult to follow and remains general. State your preferred days and exact shift times, then connect specific course skills to improvements you could make at work.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The letter has a recognisable sequence: you introduce your study plans, explain the schedule, and then discuss possible benefits to the business. Paragraph breaks and linking expressions such as “Moreover” and “Furthermore” help signal these stages. However, some connections are unclear or mechanical, and the final paragraph combines several ideas without a clear progression. For example, “Our show us real life example” is difficult to connect to the preceding point, while “Which is real full for us” does not clearly explain the benefit. Organise the final paragraph around one or two specific skills and explain how each would help your employer. A more direct opening and closing would also make the letter easier to follow.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use some vocabulary relevant to the topic, including “small business,” “competitive area,” “customers,” “profit,” and “business strategies.” This gives the reader a general sense of your course and its possible value. However, spelling errors and inaccurate word choices are noticeable and sometimes make meaning difficult to understand, as in “gitting,” “conivent,” “compititive,” “intract,” and “real full.” Some phrases are also unnatural, such as “doing study of small business” and “earn profit and goodwill.” Choose standard collocations and check spelling carefully. For instance, you could say that the course teaches you to “attract more customers” and “increase profitability,” which would express your ideas more precisely and professionally.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more extended sentences, including a reason clause in “owing to that I will be free in evening time” and a conditional sentence beginning “If I am attending classes.” However, the longer structures are often difficult to follow because of errors in sentence construction, verb forms, articles and punctuation. For example, “I am doing study” and “how our can grow” are not grammatically complete or well-formed, while “Which is real full for us” is a sentence fragment. The request sentence also lacks a clear grammatical structure. Use shorter, complete sentences first, then add clauses with accurate forms—for example, “The course requires me to attend classes in person two days a week, so I would like to work from 2 p.m. to 10 p.m. on those days.”

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

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