Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · 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 6.5)

Dear Sir,

I am writing this letter to request you that I have opted for part time studies and wants to lessen my working hours.

This semester, I am taking three technical courses which requires immense coding and advanced knowledge. I need to dedicate at least eight hours to practice in order to achieve the highest grades which will give me an edge over the others in career growth.

I would prefer morning shifts from 9:00 a.m to 12:00 p.m. so that I can reach home by 1:00 p.m. as it takes one hour for commuting. After that I want to devote most of my time for studying.

Also, the courses I have taken will help in advancing my technical skills which I can apply at work. I am confident with such skills I can reduce the manual work and cutting down the labor cost to 40% atleast which will benefit our company and generating more value.

I hope you will take this into consideration and decrease my working hours.

Yours faithfully,

Shrishty Jain

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

The student covers all bullet points required by the task prompt. First, the letter clearly explains why the writer wants to reduce working hours, citing the need to take three technical courses and dedicate time to practice. Second, it specifies the desired hours, stating a preference for morning shifts from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. Third, it successfully describes how the studies would benefit the employer by advancing technical skills to reduce manual work and cut labor costs. The tone is appropriate for a formal letter to a boss. Ideas are relevant and fully developed, satisfying the criteria for a solid score.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The letter exhibits a clear logical organization with an appropriate opening and closing. Paragraphing is used sufficiently to separate distinct points, such as the reason for the reduction, the preferred hours, and the employer benefits. Cohesive devices are used to connect ideas, for instance, using 'Also' and 'so that' to link clauses. However, referencing and transitions are sometimes a bit mechanical, which prevents the response from reaching a higher band. Overall, the progression of ideas is easy to follow throughout.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary suitable for the task, such as 'technical courses', 'career growth', 'commuting', and 'labor cost'. There are some attempts at less common phrasing, but occasional inaccuracies occur, such as writing 'wants to lessen' instead of 'want to lessen' (concord error) and 'generating more value' instead of 'generate more value'. Spelling and word choice are generally sufficient for the message to be communicated clearly without causing strain for the reader.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The writer demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing relative clauses and subordinate structures like 'so that I can reach home...' and 'the courses I have taken will help...'. However, there are grammatical errors present, such as 'courses... which requires' (subject-verb agreement error with plural 'courses' and singular 'requires') and 'cutting down the labor cost to 40% atleast' (awkward phrasing). Despite these errors, they rarely impede communication, placing the response firmly at band 6.0.

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

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