Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-08-30

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 Sir or Madam,

I hope you are doing well. I am writing this letter to requesting you to please reduce my working hours. Actually, i join the part time course for my upbringing therefore it will difficult to maintain everything together so can u please change my working hours. Moreover, it will helpful for me to focus on my studies as well as i also focus on our company's work.

Furthermore, it will essential course for our company as well. Also, this course is teach me about more things which is more beneficial for our industry's future. The course also teach me how can i increase our company's profit and reputation in market.

However, my course is starts from next month for that i only work three days full time two days pat time. Here i mentioned my schedule Monday to Wednesday i will available for time, Thursday and Friday i have classes until 1:00 PM so after that i am available for work. Thus, please adjust my shifts according to that.

Thank you for your time and i hope you understands my situation and make mt schedule according to that.

Your sincerely,

Vish

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

You have addressed all three bullet points required by the task. You explained the reason for the request (part-time study), specified the desired hours, and described the benefits to the employer. However, the development of these ideas is somewhat limited. For example, the explanation of how the course benefits the company is repetitive and lacks specific detail. To improve, try to elaborate more on the specific skills you will acquire and how they directly translate to workplace efficiency. The tone is generally appropriate for a formal letter, though it occasionally slips into informal phrasing.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The letter is organised into clear paragraphs, which helps the reader follow your argument. You use some cohesive devices such as 'Moreover', 'Furthermore', and 'However'. However, the use of these devices is sometimes mechanical or slightly inaccurate, such as using 'However' to introduce a paragraph about your schedule, which does not contrast with the previous paragraph. Additionally, some sentences are disjointed, and the flow between ideas could be smoother. Improving the variety of linking words and ensuring they are used to show logical relationships will help you achieve a higher band score.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

Your vocabulary is adequate for the task, allowing you to communicate your needs clearly. You use some relevant business-related terms like 'industry', 'profit', and 'reputation'. However, there are several instances of awkward word choice and minor errors, such as 'upbringing' (which refers to how a child is raised, not professional development) and 'pat time' (a spelling error). The range of vocabulary is somewhat limited and repetitive. To improve, focus on using more precise professional terminology and ensuring correct word forms.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

You demonstrate a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors throughout the text. Common issues include subject-verb agreement ('my course is starts'), incorrect verb forms ('is teach me'), and missing articles or prepositions. There are also punctuation errors, such as the use of 'u' instead of 'you' and inconsistent capitalization of 'i'. While these errors do not completely impede communication, they are frequent enough to distract the reader. Focusing on basic sentence construction and proofreading for verb tenses will significantly improve your accuracy.

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

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