Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · 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 6.0)

Dear Sir Mueen Awais,

I am writing to inform you that I can reduce my working hours because I want to study a part-time course starting next month.

To balance my work responsibilities and my studies, I would like to reduce my schedule to 24 hours per week. I propose working on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM. This schedule will allow me to attend my university classes on Mondays and Fridays while to make it ensure about, I am present during our busiest workdays.

I believe this course will bring benefits to our company. I will study digital marketing, which will help me improve our company's social media pages and attract more customers. The skills I learn will help me work more efficiently and support our team better.

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 prompt. You clearly explain your motivation to reduce hours ('because I want to study a part-time course'), state the exact hours and schedule you wish to work ('reduce my schedule to 24 hours per week... Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays'), and describe how your studies will benefit your employer ('study digital marketing, which will help me improve our company's social media pages'). The tone is appropriate for a formal business letter to a supervisor. The ideas are relevant and well-developed, fully satisfying the requirements for this criterion at a Band 7.0 level.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The letter exhibits a clear logical organisation and progression. The paragraphing is used appropriately, with each paragraph serving a distinct function: stating the purpose, detailing the schedule, explaining the company benefits, and signing off. Cohesive devices such as 'To balance my work responsibilities' and 'This schedule will allow me' are used effectively to link ideas. Although there is a minor mechanical phrasing glitch in the first paragraph ('while to make it ensure about, I am present'), the overall progression is clear throughout. This corresponds well to a Band 7.0 descriptor.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

You demonstrate a sufficient range of vocabulary for the task with some flexibility and precision, using terms such as 'responsibilities', 'schedule', 'efficiently', and 'digital marketing'. You attempt less common lexical items with general success, although there are a few word choice and collocation slips, notably 'study a part-time course' instead of 'take a part-time course' and the slightly awkward phrasing 'while to make it ensure about, I am present'. However, these vocabulary errors do not impede communication, placing the response firmly at a Band 6.0 level.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The writing demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, such as conditional and infinitive clauses ('This schedule will allow me to attend...'). There are good error-free sentences present, particularly in the final paragraph. However, grammatical inaccuracies do occur, most notably the awkward structure 'while to make it ensure about, I am present' in the second paragraph, which detracts from syntactic accuracy. Despite these occasional errors, punctuation and grammar are generally controlled, and meaning is rarely obscured. This performance aligns with the Band 6.0 descriptors.

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