Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

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

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 Manager,

I am writing to you that I am going to start my part-time studies from the next month. I have enrolled in six months Hotel management course. So, I want to reduce my working hours on the store. As restaurant is busy on weekends, so I have picked Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday classes. On these days I can work only four to five hours in the morning because I chose evening classes. However, it is beneficial for your business as well because I will learn how to manage restaurant business and how to serve customers. Furthermore, after this course I will be able to manage the restaurant staff efficiently. Moreover, You always want to change the infrastructure of the restaurant, I am going to learn it as well in this course.

I hope you understand my situation and help me into it. I can understand, it is bit difficult to manage the staff schedule but I will make sure that I work more after my studies.

Regards,

Gagandeep

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The letter covers all three bullet points required by the prompt. You clearly explain the reason for the request (enrolling in a hotel management course), specify the desired hours (Monday to Wednesday mornings), and outline the benefits to the employer (improved staff management and operational knowledge). The tone is generally appropriate for a formal letter to a manager. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited; for instance, the mention of 'changing the infrastructure' is vague and could have been explained more clearly to show how it benefits the restaurant. Overall, the task is addressed adequately, though further elaboration on the benefits would have strengthened the response.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The letter follows a logical progression, moving from the purpose of the letter to the specific request and finally the benefits. Paragraphing is used, though the second paragraph is quite long and could have been split to improve readability. You use some cohesive devices like 'Furthermore', 'Moreover', and 'However', which help connect ideas. However, some transitions feel a bit mechanical or repetitive. The referencing is generally clear, but the flow between sentences could be smoother to create a more natural, professional tone. Overall, the structure is coherent and easy to follow.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'enrolled', 'efficiently', and 'infrastructure'. However, there are some inaccuracies in word choice and collocation. For example, 'reduce my working hours on the store' is unnatural; 'at the restaurant' would be better. Similarly, 'help me into it' is not a standard way to request support. While your vocabulary is sufficient to convey your meaning clearly, it lacks the precision and flexibility required for a higher band score. Expanding your range to include more professional collocations would be beneficial.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors. For instance, 'I am writing to you that I am going to' is awkward; 'I am writing to inform you that' would be more accurate. There are also issues with articles ('the restaurant' vs 'a restaurant') and prepositions ('on the store'). Some sentences are slightly disjointed, such as 'As restaurant is busy on weekends, so I have picked...'. While these errors do not impede communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent a higher score. Focusing on subject-verb agreement and article usage will improve your accuracy.

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

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.