Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-09-16

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 Sir ,

I wanted to tell you something that I want to tell me for a long time . I wanted you to reduce my working hours . As far as you know , I am a student , However its get a little bit challaging for me to balance my studies and job. If I work in the evening then it must be better for me to do study in the morning and do my work in the evening . I can do work 5 to 6 hours along with my studies. It will be benficail for the employer beacuse then everybody will be avaliable to do work . They will do it in morning and , I will do it in evening hours. If I do part time studies and gain more knowledge then I will be able to share my knowledge with the teamates. It will be very greatfull for me ,If you allow me.

Tayyiba

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The candidate addresses all three bullet points required by the prompt. You successfully explain why you want to reduce your hours by stating you are a student and it is challenging to balance work and studies ('its get a little bit challaging for me to balance my studies and job'). You also clearly specify the desired working hours ('I can do work 5 to 6 hours... do study in the morning and do my work in the evening') and describe how your part-time studies would benefit the employer ('share my knowledge with the teamates' and ensuring continuous coverage). However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited and basic. The tone is generally appropriate for a letter to a boss, although certain expressions are a bit informal. Overall, the task is adequately fulfilled, corresponding to a Band 6.0.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0

The letter lacks proper paragraphing, as almost the entire body is condensed into a single block of text alongside the opening and closing, which disrupts the visual and logical organisation. While the ideas follow a logical sequence from explaining the issue to proposing hours and benefits, the use of cohesive devices is frequently mechanical or faulty (e.g., repetitive use of 'I wanted' and basic conjunctions like 'and', 'However'). Referencing is sometimes unclear, such as the pronoun shift in 'It will be benficail for the employer beacuse then everybody will be avaliable to do work. They will do it in morning and , I will do it in evening hours.' These organizational and cohesive shortcomings place this criterion at a Band 5.0.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The vocabulary used is relatively basic and repetitive, with frequent spelling errors such as 'challaging' (challenging), 'benficail' (beneficial), 'avaliable' (available), and 'teamates' (teammates). The candidate attempts some less common vocabulary items (e.g., 'balance my studies', 'gain more knowledge'), but the spelling inaccuracies and occasional awkward word choices (e.g., 'It will be very greatfull for me') impede the precision of the message. The range is minimally adequate to convey the intended meaning, matching the criteria for a Band 5.0.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The response features a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, though complex structures often contain errors. For instance, the sentence 'If I work in the evening then it must be better for me to do study in the morning and do my work in the evening' contains redundant phrasing ('do study') and awkward modal usage ('must be better'). There are also recurring punctuation and capitalization issues (e.g., spaces before commas, repetitive initial sentence structures). While communication is generally maintained despite the grammatical faults, the frequency of errors prevents the writing from reaching a higher band, making Band 5.0 appropriate.

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

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