Band 7.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

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

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 7.0)

Dear Sir or Madam,

My name is Harmandeep Singh, working as an administrative assistant at your company. I am writing regarding my working hours and would like to reduce them in order to study part-time.

I enrolled at college in a payroll assistant diploma and my schedule requires attendance three days a week. It will not be possible to work seven days a week as I am a single parent.

I request that you reduce my hours to 24 hours per week on any day between Thursday and Sunday so that I can work and study both efficiently. Furthermore, I can assure you that I will cover my pending work smoothly.

Also, my educational credentials would enhance my skills and contribute towards your organization. As you know, our payroll specialist is retiring soon, I will be happy to learn new job duties if you insist.

I hope to hear from you soon.

Yours faithfully,

Harmandeep Singh

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

The letter addresses all three bullet points of the prompt effectively. You clearly explain the reason for the request (part-time study), specify the desired hours (24 hours, Thursday to Sunday), and provide a professional justification for how the employer will benefit (payroll skills). The tone is appropriate for a formal letter to a manager. To reach a higher band, you could further develop the benefit to the employer by explicitly linking your new payroll knowledge to specific tasks you could take over, rather than just mentioning the retiring specialist.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The letter is logically organized with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a formal closing. Each paragraph focuses on a specific aspect of the prompt. You use some cohesive devices such as 'Furthermore' and 'Also' to link ideas. However, the transition between the second and third paragraphs could be smoother, and the use of cohesive devices is somewhat basic. Improving the variety of linking words and ensuring better flow between sentences would help achieve a higher score.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'administrative assistant', 'educational credentials', and 'payroll specialist'. The language is generally accurate and appropriate for a formal business context. There are no significant errors in word choice that impede communication. To improve, try to incorporate more precise collocations or slightly more sophisticated vocabulary, such as 'professional development' instead of 'learn new job duties'.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.5

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, such as 'I request that you reduce my hours... so that I can work and study'. While the grammar is generally clear, there are minor errors, such as 'I enrolled at college in a payroll assistant diploma' (should be 'in a... program' or 'for a... diploma') and 'work and study both efficiently' (which is slightly awkward phrasing). The majority of sentences are error-free, but more variety in complex structures would enhance the score.

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

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