Band 7.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-09-03

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 7.5)

Dear Mr. Mark,

I am writing to request a reduction in my working hours as I have recently got an offer letter in a part-time course in Supply Chain and Management at one of the prestigious university. I believe that by enrolling this course, would benefit my core skills in supply-chain field and ultimately leading to our company's success in long term.

At the moment, I work in morning shift starting from 9 AM to 5 PM. However, I would like reduce my working hours from 9 AM to 2 PM on Monday to Thursday. This schedule would allow me to attend my evening classes and completing any assignments given by professors as well as preparing for an examination on bi-weekly basis.

I also believe that my studies would benefit the company in various ways like managing inventory for products, digitizing the stocks for real-time alerts, and communication skills with vendors. I would also be able to apply the skills I will be gaining from my studies directly to my work.

I would be grateful if you could consider my request. I am happy to discuss a suitable arrangement that would minimize any kind of inconvenience to the company.

Yours Sincerely,

Viral Siddhapura

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 8.0

The letter successfully addresses all three bullet points in the prompt. You clearly explain the reason for the request (part-time study), specify the desired hours (9 AM to 2 PM, Monday to Thursday), and provide relevant examples of how the company will benefit from your new skills. 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 the connection between your studies and the company's specific needs is even more explicit, perhaps by linking the course content more directly to current company challenges.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.5

The letter is logically organized with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a polite closing. Each paragraph has a central focus, which helps the reader follow your argument easily. You use some cohesive devices such as 'At the moment', 'However', and 'I also believe', which help to link your ideas. The paragraphing is appropriate for a formal letter. To improve further, try to vary your transition signals slightly more to avoid a repetitive structure, and ensure that referencing (e.g., 'this course') is always precise to maintain a smooth flow of information.

Lexical Resource — Band 7.0

You demonstrate a good range of vocabulary relevant to the professional context, such as 'reduction', 'prestigious', 'digitizing', and 'inventory'. There are some minor collocation issues, such as 'got an offer letter in a part-time course' (should be 'received an offer for a part-time course') and 'enrolling this course' (should be 'enrolling in this course'). Despite these minor inaccuracies, the vocabulary is sufficient to convey your meaning clearly and professionally. To achieve a higher score, focus on using more precise collocations and slightly more sophisticated academic or business terminology.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.5

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, which is appropriate for this task. There are some grammatical slips, such as 'at one of the prestigious university' (should be 'universities') and 'would benefit my core skills... and ultimately leading to' (should be 'would benefit... and ultimately lead to'). Additionally, 'completing any assignments' should be 'complete any assignments' to maintain parallel structure with 'attend'. While these errors are noticeable, they do not impede communication. Increasing the frequency of error-free complex sentences will help you move into the higher band range.

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

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