Band 7.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.0 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-08-01

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 7.0)

Dear David,

I hope you are having a wonderful day!

I am writing this email to inform you that i won't be able to work full time in the coming because i am going to join school again as a part time student. I would like to reduce my working hours, so i can focus on my studies.

As of now, i am working on Monday to friday from 9AM to 5 PM. My classes will be on every wednesday, and friday. I would really appreciate if you can accommodate it, and reduce my working hours for meantime.

The course i enrolled into, is for learning " Advance Microsoft Excel ". This course would be helpful for me to learn new skills, and use it at my work. Our company isn't having employees who have the understanding of Microsoft excel, and on the other hand our got new contract which is going to be start in 6 months, and we need someone who have the knowledge of the Microsoft excel.

I look forward to your response on my request.

Yours Faithfully,

Shiv

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

You have addressed all three bullet points in the prompt: explaining the reason for the request, specifying the desired hours, and highlighting the benefits to the employer. The tone is appropriate for a formal letter to a manager. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited. For example, while you mention the benefit of learning Excel, the explanation regarding the company's current lack of expertise and the upcoming contract is slightly repetitive and could be more concisely phrased to sound more professional. Overall, the purpose of the letter is clear, and the requirements are met.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The letter is logically organized into clear paragraphs, each serving a specific purpose. You use basic cohesive devices such as 'As of now' and 'on the other hand' to connect ideas. However, some transitions feel a bit mechanical, and the flow between sentences could be improved by using a wider variety of linking words. The paragraphing is appropriate, and the progression of ideas is easy to follow, although the final paragraph is quite brief. Improving the use of referencing and more sophisticated cohesive devices would help elevate the score.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, such as 'accommodate', 'enrolled', and 'expertise'. However, there are some inaccuracies in word choice and collocation, such as 'join school again' (instead of 'return to school' or 'enroll in a course') and 'isn't having employees' (instead of 'does not have'). Additionally, there are some minor errors in capitalization, such as 'Advance Microsoft Excel' and 'wednesday'. While these errors do not impede communication, they indicate a need for more precision and attention to formal writing conventions.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.5

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors. These include consistent failure to capitalize the personal pronoun 'I', missing articles (e.g., 'the' before 'Microsoft excel'), and awkward phrasing like 'is going to be start'. Punctuation is also inconsistent, particularly with comma usage. While your meaning is always clear, the frequency of these minor errors prevents the writing from reaching a higher band. Focusing on subject-verb agreement and standardizing your use of articles will significantly improve your accuracy.

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