Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-08-05

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 6.0)

Dear sir,

I am writing to firmly request you to reduce my working hours as I am pursuing study for part time. I just received my schedule for my classes and I got all the class after 12:30 pm from Monday to Thursday. In addition to that, our working hours are most busy on the same time and I will have to attend the classes on campus.

From the next week, I will not be able to work on this time and days. However, you can schedule me for weekends from 10:00 am to 11:00 pm because of bus schedule is different on weekends.

The major benefit from my studies will be on customer attention and prompt service which are two main aspects for the business. Moreover, it will help me to do better on basic manners and also I can help my co-workers whoever wants to improve their relations with consumers.

I hope you can understand my situation and let me know if you need anything from myside.

Yours faithfully,

Jay

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

You have addressed all three bullet points in the prompt: explaining the reason for the request, specifying the desired hours, and describing the benefits to the employer. The tone is generally appropriate for a formal letter to a boss. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited. For instance, the explanation of how your studies benefit the employer is quite vague, mentioning 'customer attention' and 'basic manners' without specific detail. To reach a higher band, you should expand on these points with more concrete examples of how your new skills will directly improve business operations or productivity.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The letter is logically organized into clear paragraphs, each serving a distinct purpose. You use some cohesive devices such as 'In addition to that,' 'However,' and 'Moreover' to link your ideas. While the progression of information is easy to follow, some transitions feel slightly mechanical. Additionally, the referencing is occasionally unclear, such as in the phrase 'work on this time and days,' which could be more precisely phrased. Overall, the structure is coherent and the paragraphing is appropriate for a formal letter.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'pursuing,' 'aspects,' and 'consumers.' However, there are some inaccuracies in word choice and collocation that prevent a higher score. For example, 'customer attention' is not the standard term for 'customer service,' and 'do better on basic manners' is quite informal and imprecise. The vocabulary is sufficient to convey your meaning clearly, but it lacks the precision and flexibility required for higher bands. Expanding your repertoire of professional collocations would be beneficial.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While your meaning is generally clear, there are several grammatical errors throughout the text. Examples include 'I am pursuing study for part time' (should be 'part-time studies'), 'our working hours are most busy on the same time' (should be 'at the same time'), and 'whoever wants to improve' (should be 'who want to improve'). These errors are frequent but do not impede communication. To improve, focus on subject-verb agreement, correct preposition usage, and consistent verb tense application.

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

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