Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · 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 5.5)

Dear Manjinder Kaur,

I am writing to tell you about that I would join registered practical nursing course in next month, so I would not be able to work full time during my course duration.

As this moment, I am working full time as a personal support worker from Monday to Friday. However, when my study will be started ,I would only be available to work on weekends. Owing to this, I want to convert my position as a part time worker until my course will not complete.

Moreover, this course is not only for beneficial for me as it would make my career but also i will be work as a nurse in your company as there is short of medical staff.

I would appreciate it if you could detect my working hours , so I will join my course without any restiraction. Please let me know if you need any documentation as aevidence.

Your's faithfully,

Manpreet Kaur

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

You have addressed all three bullet points required by the task: explaining the reason for the request, specifying the desired hours, and highlighting the benefits to the employer. The tone is generally appropriate for a formal letter to a manager. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited. For instance, the explanation of how your studies would benefit the employer is brief and could be expanded to better persuade your boss. While the purpose of the letter is clear, the overall development of the arguments is basic, which prevents a higher score.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The letter is organized into logical paragraphs, which helps the reader follow your request. You use some basic cohesive devices such as 'Moreover' and 'However' to link your ideas. However, the flow between sentences is sometimes hindered by awkward phrasing, such as 'Owing to this, I want to convert my position'. Additionally, the referencing is occasionally unclear, and the transition between the explanation of your studies and the benefit to the employer could be smoother. The structure is functional but lacks the flexibility required for a higher band.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

You have a sufficient range of vocabulary to communicate your request, such as 'registered practical nursing course' and 'documentation'. However, there are several instances of imprecise word choice and collocation errors, such as 'detect my working hours' (instead of 'adjust' or 'reduce') and 'there is short of medical staff' (instead of 'a shortage of'). These errors do not prevent understanding, but they indicate a limited control over more sophisticated vocabulary and collocations. To improve, focus on learning common professional phrases used in business correspondence.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

You attempt a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors throughout the text. Examples include 'I am writing to tell you about that I would join' (unnecessary 'about that'), 'when my study will be started' (incorrect passive voice/tense), and 'i will be work' (incorrect verb form). Punctuation is also inconsistent, particularly with spacing around commas. While the meaning is generally clear, the high frequency of errors in basic sentence construction limits your score in this criterion.

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

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