Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-09-21

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/Madam,

I hope you are doing well. I am writing this letter for reducing my working hours in order to study part time.

I have recently enrolled in a part time course of Business Management programme, which is related to my current position in the company. This lead to enhance my leadership skill, management skill, strategic planning and data analyst. Consequently, I need to focus more in study rather than earning money.

However, due to my academic commitment, I would like to adjust my working schedule to 9:00 AM to 2:00 PM, Monday to Friday, which would help me to focus on my part time course along with work.

Additionally, this course aids to our company's growth efficiently after the course completion. Moreover, these skills help me to become more productive, ultimately, work can be done with more perfection.

I sincerely value your support in this matter and looking forward to hear from you.

Sincerely,

Happy Patel

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The candidate covers all three bullet points required in the prompt successfully. The letter explains the reason for reducing working hours by mentioning enrollment in a part-time Business Management program, specifies the desired working hours (9:00 AM to 2:00 PM, Monday to Friday), and describes the benefits to the employer, such as enhanced leadership skills and increased productivity. The tone is appropriate for a formal request to a boss. All parts of the task are adequately addressed, meeting the expectations for Band 6.5 to Band 7.0.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The letter is logically organised with a clear beginning and ending. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate different points, such as reasons for the request, proposed hours, and benefits to the company. Cohesive devices are generally used well, with transitional phrases like 'However', 'Additionally', and 'Moreover' helping to guide the reader. However, some referencing is slightly mechanical. Overall, the organisational structure is clear and provides a logical progression throughout the text, corresponding to a Band 7.0.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary suitable for the task, including terms like 'academic commitment', 'leadership skill', and 'strategic planning'. However, there are some noticeable word choice and collocation errors, such as writing 'for reducing my working hours' instead of 'to reduce my working hours' and 'focus more in study' instead of 'focus more on my studies'. Less common vocabulary is attempted with varying success, which places the lexical score firmly at Band 6.0.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, such as the relative clause in 'which is related to my current position'. However, there are several grammatical errors throughout the text, including tense and preposition misuse, such as 'This lead to enhance' instead of 'This leads to enhancing' and 'looking forward to hear' instead of 'looking forward to hearing'. These errors do not impede overall communication, but they occur frequently enough to prevent the score from reaching Band 7.0.

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

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