Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-09-28

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 Boss,

Hopefully, you are doing well and are healthy by the grace of god. I am writing this letter to request a reduction in my working hours because I am pursuing part-time studies.

At present, I am working 40 hours a week, but I want you to reduce that to 25 hours only. Ideally, I would be truly grateful if you could give me 9 am to 2 pm from Monday to Friday. Therefore, I can have enough time for my part-time study in the evening as well as on the weekend.

I also believe that my part-time study would benefit the company. This will improve my communication skills, teamwork, and technical skills. In addition, gaining new knowledge could help me in the future to take on more responsibilities.

I would be grateful if you could consider my request. Hopefully, you understand my concern and do your best for me.

Yours faithfully,

Kevin

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.0

The student has successfully covered all parts of the task prompt. First, the letter clearly explains the reason for reducing working hours by mentioning that Kevin is pursuing part-time studies. Second, it specifies the desired hours, requesting a reduction to 25 hours a week and specifically asking for 9 am to 2 pm from Monday to Friday. Finally, it outlines how these part-time studies will benefit the employer, noting that the knowledge gained will improve communication skills, teamwork, and technical skills, enabling the employee to take on more responsibilities in the future. The tone is appropriately formal for a letter to a boss, and all bullet points from the prompt are fully addressed with relevant details, meeting the requirements for a Band 7.0.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

The letter exhibits a clear logical organization with a natural progression from the initial greeting and purpose of the letter to specific hours and company benefits. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate each main point, such as the working hours request and the professional benefits. Cohesive devices are used adequately, for instance, 'At present', 'Ideally', and 'In addition', although referencing could be slightly smoother in places. The overall structure follows standard business correspondence conventions well, ensuring the reader easily follows the progression of ideas, supporting a solid Band 7.0 performance.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully communicating meaning. Phrases like 'pursuing part-time studies', 'truly grateful', and 'take on more responsibilities' demonstrate an appropriate register for a workplace request. However, there are some minor informalities and slightly repetitive expressions, such as 'Hopefully, you are doing well and are healthy by the grace of god' and the repeated use of 'Hopefully' at the start of paragraphs. While less common lexical items are attempted with general success, occasional inaccuracies keep the response at a Band 6.0 level.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

The response demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, such as 'I am writing this letter to request a reduction in my working hours because I am pursuing part-time studies.' There is good control of basic structures, and punctuation is generally accurate. However, there are minor grammatical and stylistic slips, such as the introductory sentence ('healthy by the grace of god' is overly conversational) and a slight misuse of a cohesive linker ('Therefore, I can have enough time...' where 'So that' or 'This way' would be more appropriate). These errors are non-systematic and do not impede communication, comfortably placing the grammar at a Band 6.5, rounded to 6.0 for overall consistency.

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

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