Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-08-22

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 Mrs. Kathy,

I am writing to request you to reduce my working hours. As I recently joined advanced English part-time course to improve my communication skills.

As you may already aware, I am looking for career growth at my workplace, which motivates to improve my interpersonal skills. Currently, in your restaurant I am working as a full- time employee with open availability. However, after joining my course, I would not be available any time with random shifts for the next six months. I would greatly appreciate it if could accept my new part-time availability for few months.

Fortunately, I am still available for opening shifts, such as 6 am to 2 pm. I would be grateful if you could consider with best fit for these opening shifts. My course timing are from 3 pm to 7 pm 4 days a week. Having these shifts provide me a sufficient time to reach home and attend my online classes.

If I successfully completed this part-time course, it would be beneficial for both my personal and professional lives. This is mainly because by improving my communication skills, I would be more confident to communicate with guests. Consequently, our productivity will improve with more satisfied customers.

I would appreciate it if you could consider my request at your earliest convenience.

I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Yours Sincerely,

Rashim

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 (an English course), specify the preferred working hours (6 am to 2 pm), and articulate the benefits to the employer (improved communication with guests leading to higher productivity). The tone is appropriate for a formal letter to a manager. The ideas are well-developed and the purpose of the letter is clear from the outset. To reach a higher band, ensure that all minor grammatical slips do not distract from the clarity of your request, but overall, the task requirements are fully met.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

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, which helps the reader follow your argument easily. You use some cohesive devices such as 'However', 'Consequently', and 'This is mainly because', which help to link your ideas. While the flow is generally good, some transitions could be smoother. For instance, the jump between the introduction and the second paragraph is slightly abrupt. Overall, the paragraphing is appropriate and the progression of ideas is logical throughout the text.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You demonstrate a sufficient range of vocabulary to convey your message clearly. Phrases like 'at your earliest convenience' and 'career growth' are appropriate for a formal business context. However, there are some minor inaccuracies in word choice and collocation, such as 'joined advanced English part-time course' (should be 'joined an advanced English part-time course') and 'consider with best fit' (should be 'consider me for the best fit'). While these errors do not impede communication, they indicate a need for more precise control over articles and prepositional phrases to reach a higher band.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, which is good. However, there are frequent minor grammatical errors, particularly with articles ('joined advanced English course'), verb tense consistency ('If I successfully completed' should be 'If I successfully complete'), and subject-verb agreement ('course timing are' should be 'course timings are'). While these errors are noticeable, they rarely impede the reader's understanding of your request. To improve, focus on proofreading for basic grammatical accuracy, specifically regarding singular/plural agreement and the correct use of articles before nouns.

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

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