Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-08-13

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 Mike,

I am writing this to seek your permission in terms of minimising my working hours due to the part-time course I enrolled to enhance my long term goals.

Firstly, I was always keen in learning new acumen’s which would render me various benefits in my professional and personal career in terms of promotions and increasing my monthly income. Therefore, I enrolled into Project management course at Loyalist evening college of Toronto. Hence, I am requesting you to shorten my working timing so that I can spend a few hours to learn new knowledge.

As I mentioned, my course starts at 4PM, I will be working from morning 9AM to 2PM with your given permission and this allows me ample of time to complete most of the SLA.

Finally, I am very confident that these course knowledge will definitely helpful to handle most of the project work, instead depending on the project manager to take appropriate decision.

I am looking for your favourable response.

Yours sincerely,

Anjali Reddy

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

The letter successfully addresses all three bullet points required by the prompt. You clearly explain the reason for the request (enrolling in a course), specify the desired working hours (9 AM to 2 PM), and articulate how the employer will benefit (improved project management skills). The tone is appropriate for a formal letter to a manager. To reach a higher band, ensure that the benefits to the employer are developed with more specific detail, perhaps by linking the course content directly to current company projects or efficiency goals, rather than just stating it will be helpful.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The letter follows a logical structure with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a closing. Paragraphing is used to separate the different requirements of the task. You use some cohesive devices such as 'Firstly', 'Therefore', 'Hence', and 'Finally' to link ideas. However, the flow is occasionally slightly mechanical. For instance, the transition between the request for hours and the explanation of the course could be smoother. Ensure that each paragraph focuses on one main idea to improve the overall progression of the argument.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, such as 'minimising', 'professional', and 'favourable'. However, there are some inaccuracies in word choice and collocation. For example, 'keen in learning new acumen’s' is incorrect; 'acumen' is a noun meaning sharpness of mind, not a skill to be learned. 'Shorten my working timing' is also slightly unnatural; 'reduce my working hours' would be more standard. Additionally, 'these course knowledge' is grammatically incorrect; it should be 'the knowledge gained from this course'.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are several grammatical errors. For example, 'I enrolled into Project management course' is missing articles ('a' and 'the'). 'Instead depending on' should be 'instead of depending on'. There are also issues with preposition usage, such as 'enrolled into' instead of 'enrolled in'. While these errors do not impede communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent a higher score. Focus on subject-verb agreement and the correct use of articles to improve accuracy.

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

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