Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-08-17

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 Sam,

I hope this letter finds you well. I am writing to bring to your attention a concern regarding working hours in your company.

To provide some context, I would like to reduce my working hours as I am interested in pursuing a part-time course at university. In addition to this, it will provides me to obtain new skills, knowledge and open my door to grab a promotion in your company.

Furthermore, I would like to work in the early morning shift, which is from 6 am to 1 pm. Apart from this, it will give me time to study a course in the evening, which is essential for me to get success.

It would be greatly appreciated if you accept my application of this working hours. Moreover, this will highly benefit your employer to have a chance to get more hours and earn more money.

Thank you for your time and consideration. I look forward to your prompt response.

Your faithfully,

Rinkesh Patel

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The letter addresses all three bullet points of the task. You clearly explain the reason for the request, specify the desired hours, and outline the benefits to the employer. However, the development of these ideas is somewhat limited. For instance, the benefit to the employer is stated in a slightly confusing way ('get more hours and earn more money'), which lacks professional clarity. While the tone is generally appropriate for a formal letter, the development of the argument regarding how your studies will specifically help the company could be more detailed and persuasive to fully meet the requirements of a higher band.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The letter is logically organized into clear paragraphs, each serving a distinct purpose. You use basic cohesive devices such as 'In addition to this', 'Furthermore', and 'Moreover' to link your ideas. While these transitions are functional, they are somewhat mechanical and repetitive. The progression of ideas is clear, and the letter follows a standard formal structure. To improve, you could vary your linking words and ensure that the flow between sentences feels more natural rather than relying on a predictable 'connector-plus-sentence' structure.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using phrases like 'pursuing a part-time course' and 'prompt response'. However, there are some awkward collocations and word choices that detract from the professional tone, such as 'open my door to grab a promotion' and 'accept my application of this working hours'. These errors do not impede communication, but they highlight a need for more precise and idiomatic language. Expanding your range to include more professional, business-appropriate terminology would help elevate your score.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors that affect the accuracy of your writing. Examples include 'it will provides me to obtain' (incorrect verb form and preposition usage) and 'application of this working hours' (incorrect preposition and pluralization). Additionally, the closing 'Your faithfully' is a common error; it should be 'Yours faithfully'. While the meaning remains clear throughout, the frequency of these errors prevents the writing from reaching a higher band. Focusing on subject-verb agreement and correct prepositional phrases will be beneficial.

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

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