Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · 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 5.0)

Dear Boss,

Hello Boss hope you are doing well, im writing this letter to let you know that from next month i would like to reduce my working hours in order to study part time.

Firstly, I would like to say that reducing my working hours can help me to study and secure my better future.

But also, I would like to let you know that my study timings will be in afternoon from 1pm so can you please adjust my timings specificely.

Lastly, I would like to say that studing parttime will increase my knowledge in my field so it can indirectly help our company's growth.

Hopping for the best.

Thank you

prajwal Dmonte,

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0

The candidate has addressed all three bullet points from the prompt: explaining why they want to reduce hours, specifying the required working hours, and describing the benefit to the employer. However, the response falls short of the minimum length requirement, containing only 115 words instead of the required 150. Consequently, the ideas are somewhat under-developed due to the brevity, which impacts the overall completeness of the task. While the tone is appropriate for a letter to a boss, the under-length nature of the response prevents it from achieving a higher band score under Task Achievement.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0

The letter attempts a conventional structure with a salutation, body paragraphs, and a sign-off. However, the paragraphing is poor, consisting mostly of single-sentence paragraphs which disrupts the logical flow and development of ideas. Cohesive devices are basic and repetitive, such as 'Firstly,' 'But also,' and 'Lastly,' leading to a somewhat mechanical progression. Referencing and paragraph transitions lack sophistication, giving the text a disjointed feel that prevents it from reaching a higher band. Overall arrangement shows basic organization, but cohesion is faulty.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The vocabulary used is generally adequate for the task, allowing the student to convey their basic message, but it remains very simple and repetitive. Phrases like 'reduce my working hours,' 'study part time,' and 'increase my knowledge' are functional but lack flexibility. There are noticeable lexical limitations and minor word choice issues, such as 'study timings' instead of 'class schedule' or 'study hours,' and 'Hopping for the best' instead of 'Hoping for the best.' The range is minimally adequate for the task.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The response demonstrates a mix of simple sentence forms and a few attempts at complex sentences. However, grammatical control is inconsistent. There are several punctuation and capitalization errors, such as missing capital letters on 'I' and at the beginning of sentences ('im writing', 'firstly', 'specificely'). Run-on sentences and comma splices also occur, as seen in 'Hello Boss hope you are doing well, im writing this letter...'. While communication is not severely impeded, the frequency of basic errors places this in the band 5 range.

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

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