Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-09-14
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,
I hope you will be fine there. I am writing for the reduction in my working hours beacuse I am doing part time study so managing time with job is difficult for me.
Actully, I am studing business management and my class time is in the evening. as I am perfoming my duty in office as a assisstance manager. Due to which I cannot balace time between job and study whcih make me disturb so I request you please give me some relaxation in form of reduce my working hour.
As I explain you there are some difficulties for fixing the proper time.So best time of working for me is 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM. From monday to friday. Through this timing i can manage my studies.
Most impostant part of my study is that I can smartly perform for you business when I will passed my degree in business management. Because my degree is related with business through whcih I will learn how to deal with compatitors and how to make profitable stratagies for business which woul be positive point for you business.
I hope you will consider my request so I am waiting for you positive response.
Your sincerly,
ABS
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response covers all three bullet points from the prompt: you explain that you want to reduce your hours to pursue part-time studies in business management, you specify the exact working hours (9:00 AM to 1:00 PM, Monday to Friday), and you describe how your studies will benefit your employer by helping you make profitable strategies and deal with competitors. The tone is appropriately formal for a workplace letter, and the purpose is clear throughout. Although the ideas are somewhat straightforward and lack deep elaboration, all parts of the task are adequately addressed, satisfying the requirements for a Band 6.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The letter is divided into logical paragraphs that separate the introduction, the reasons for the request, the proposed schedule, the benefits to the employer, and the conclusion. However, cohesion is sometimes faulty or mechanical. For instance, transitional phrases like 'Actully', 'Due to which', and 'As I explain you' are awkward and disrupt the flow of reading. Referencing is also occasionally unclear, such as 'which make me disturb'. Paragraphing is present and helps structure the letter, but overall logical progression and cohesive devices require better control.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.0
The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, though it is limited and contains numerous spelling and word-choice errors, such as 'beacuse', 'Actully', 'studing', 'assisstance manager', 'balace', 'whcih', 'compatitors', 'stratagies', 'woul', and 'sincerly'. You attempt less common vocabulary items related to business management like 'competitors' and 'profitable strategies', but the high frequency of inaccurate spelling and minor word-choice errors constrains the lexical score. Communication is not seriously impeded, but the errors are noticeable throughout the text.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The response displays a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, such as 'I am writing for the reduction in my working hours beacuse I am doing part time study so managing time with job is difficult for me.' However, there are frequent grammatical errors, including missing prepositions, incorrect verb forms ('when I will passed my degree'), subject-verb agreement issues, and awkward punctuation. While the meaning is generally understandable, the frequency of errors in both simple and complex structures keeps the score at this level.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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