Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-09-07

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 6.0)

Dear Erica,

I would like to inform you that I wanted to reduce my working hours because I am planning to pursue the part-time study further. I decided to take admission in the project management course to further improve my skills.

I would like to work from 7:00am to 8:00am since my classes are in the evening. I chose to do study in the evening, as I can focus better on work during the day.

I chose this course because I really wanted to work on my leadership, organisation and time management skills. In the future, I really want to focus on my career and achieve my dream job and this course assists me to fulfil my all the dreams . For my current job, project managemnet aids to manage the projects, build up new ideas and completing the task with ease.

I really appreiciate for considering and understanding my request.

Thank you,

Best regards,

Harpreet

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The letter addresses all three bullet points: the reason for the request, the specific hours, and the benefits to the employer. The tone is appropriate for a formal letter to a boss. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited. For example, the explanation of how the course benefits the employer is a bit generic. To achieve a higher band, you should provide more specific examples of how project management skills would directly improve your current workflow or team output. The request for only one hour of work (7:00 am to 8:00 am) is also slightly unrealistic for a standard part-time arrangement, which may affect the perceived logic of the proposal.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The letter is logically organized with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a closing. Each paragraph focuses on a specific aspect of the prompt. However, the use of cohesive devices is somewhat basic and repetitive. For instance, you use 'I chose' and 'I would like' multiple times at the start of sentences. Using a wider variety of linking words and transition phrases (e.g., 'Furthermore', 'Consequently', 'In addition to this') would improve the flow and make the connection between your studies and your work performance more explicit.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'pursue', 'management', and 'organisation'. However, there are some inaccuracies in word choice and collocation, such as 'take admission in' (should be 'enroll in') and 'fulfil my all the dreams' (which is awkward phrasing). Additionally, there is a spelling error ('appreiciate') and a typo ('managemnet'). To improve, focus on using more natural collocations and proofreading for minor spelling slips.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The letter uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are several grammatical errors. For example, 'I wanted to reduce' should be 'I would like to reduce' to match the present intent. The phrase 'I chose to do study' is grammatically incorrect; it should be 'I chose to study'. There are also issues with article usage and pluralization, such as 'fulfil my all the dreams'. While these errors do not impede communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent a higher score.

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

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