Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-09-17

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 Maaz,

I am writing to ask you about something if I can cut my working hours for some time because I want to study a part-time course starting next month.

I would like to change my working hours to 20 hours per week. Specifically, I want to work from Tuesday to Thursday, from 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM. This schedule will allow me to attend my classes on Mondays and Fridays while still completing my main duties at work.

I believe my studies will directly benefit our company. The course focuses on digital marketing and project management, which will help me manage our client projects more effectively and improve our online presence. By learning new strategies, I can work more efficiently and help our team in different areas to achieve better results.

Thank you for considering my application. I look forward to hearing from you.

Yours sincerely,

Alex hail

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The response successfully covers all three bullet points required in the task instructions. The writer clearly explains the motivation behind the request, stating 'I want to study a part-time course starting next month'. Furthermore, the letter specifies the exact hours requested: '20 hours per week... from Tuesday to Thursday, from 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM.' Finally, the benefit to the employer is well-articulated, highlighting digital marketing and project management skills that will 'improve our online presence' and help 'manage our client projects more effectively'. The tone is appropriately formal for a workplace letter, and the purpose is sustained throughout. Ideas are fully developed, satisfying all requirements for this band level.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The letter exhibits a clear, logical organisation with a natural progression from the initial request to the specific schedule and the subsequent benefits for the company. Paragraphing is used appropriately, with each paragraph serving a distinct and clear purpose. Cohesive devices such as 'Specifically', 'This schedule', and 'By learning new strategies' are utilised effectively to guide the reader through the text. Referencing and substitution are well managed, ensuring that relationships between ideas are clear. Although referencing at the opening ('ask you about something if I can') is slightly clumsy, the overall structural framework remains coherent and easy to follow.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The student demonstrates an adequate to good range of vocabulary suitable for a professional request. Phrases like 'digital marketing and project management', 'main duties', and 'online presence' show appropriate workplace collocations. Less common items are attempted with reasonable success, such as 'efficiently' and 'consideration'. However, there are minor awkwardnesses in word choice, notably the opening phrase 'ask you about something if I can cut', which lacks stylistic polish. Spelling and word formation are generally accurate, and vocabulary errors do not impede communication.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.5

The writer uses a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, including conditional and temporal clauses such as 'This schedule will allow me to attend my classes... while still completing my main duties' and 'By learning new strategies, I can work more efficiently.' There is good control over punctuation and sentence boundaries. While the majority of sentences are grammatically sound, there is a minor structural flaw in the opening sentence ('ask you about something if I can cut'), which contains redundancy. Overall, grammar and punctuation are controlled well enough to ensure smooth communication with only occasional non-systematic slips.

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