Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-08-15

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 Mariusz,

I am writing this letter to request to reduce my current working hours of 37.5 per week to 21 hours per week for 6 months.

Next month onward, I am going to start my French classes, which required at least 3 days in person lectures.

I would request you to make this amendment in schedule in effect from first week of September, 2026 to Mar 2026 and after that I could be available as a regular full-time employee. I would prefer morning hours from 9:30am to 4:30pm in weekends with Monday to work so that I can keep my schedule aligned with my college schedule.

As you know, we are short of bilingual employees in office because of which sometimes we have to ask third- party service provider to provide translators on temporary basis. After this course I could do that. I will really help us.

Thank you for your kind consideration,

Yours faithfully.

Ashish Dhyani.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The letter addresses all three bullet points required by the prompt. You clearly state the reason for the request (French classes), specify the desired hours, and explain the benefit to the employer (bilingual support). However, the development of these points is somewhat limited. For example, the explanation of how your studies benefit the employer is brief and could be expanded to sound more professional. The tone is generally appropriate for a formal request, though the structure of the dates and the specific scheduling request (mentioning 'weekends' while also asking for 'Monday') is slightly confusing, which impacts the clarity of your proposal.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The letter follows a logical progression, moving from the request to the justification and finally the benefits. Paragraphing is used, though the paragraphs are quite short. Cohesive devices are present, such as 'Next month onward' and 'As you know', but the flow between sentences is occasionally mechanical. The transition between the scheduling request and the justification for the employer could be smoother. Overall, the message is easy to follow, but the use of linking words is somewhat basic and could be more varied to improve the flow of the argument.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'amendment', 'bilingual', and 'consideration'. There are some minor inaccuracies in word choice, such as 'required' instead of 'requires' and 'in office' instead of 'in the office'. The phrase 'I will really help us' is slightly awkward; a more natural expression would be 'This will be of great benefit to the company'. While the vocabulary is sufficient to convey your meaning clearly, it lacks the precision and sophistication required for a higher band score.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are several grammatical errors, such as 'which required' (should be 'which requires'), 'in effect from first week' (missing article 'the'), and 'in weekends' (should be 'on weekends'). Additionally, the date range 'September, 2026 to Mar 2026' is logically inconsistent, which creates confusion. While these errors do not prevent the reader from understanding your request, they occur frequently enough to suggest a lack of control over complex structures. More attention to subject-verb agreement and preposition usage is needed.

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

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