Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-10-01

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 manager

I am writing to request for less working hour because i just got part time into the admission in Nursing school.

The main reason is that i can not cope with school and work together, i just need some spare time to enble me study properly for my academic success. for instance last week i was given about five assignments with a project i was not able to work on any of the project, due to the high demand of my job.I am quite sure that it will affect my performances this semester.

The classes are held from friday to sunday just to hours lecture. Although another timetable is out indicating that starting from the next semester will be have addition of thing. It had not been easy.

I would appreciate it if you could asign some days off so i could have enough time to study.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Yours sincerely

Vivian

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.5

The response addresses the task only partially. While the writer attempts to cover all bullet points, the ideas remain limited and under-developed. For instance, the explanation of why working hours need to be reduced relies heavily on general statements rather than clear, well-supported points. Furthermore, the requirement to state which hours the student would like to work is handled very vaguely by mentioning 'some days off' rather than specifying a concrete schedule, and the benefit to the employer is entirely omitted from the letter. To improve to a higher band, all parts of the prompt must be fully developed and supported with relevant details, ensuring that the employer's benefit is explicitly described.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

There is some organisation in the letter, but it lacks a clear overall progression. The response is divided into paragraphs, but the logical flow between ideas is occasionally disrupted by abrupt transitions and limited cohesive devices. Referencing and linking are basic and sometimes inaccurate, such as the sudden shift into discussing specific assignments and class schedules without smooth connectors. To move to a higher band, the writer needs to organise information more logically throughout the response, ensuring that cohesive devices are used more accurately and naturally to guide the reader through the progression of ideas.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

The vocabulary used is limited but minimally adequate for the task. The writer attempts some less common words, such as 'performance' and 'admission', but struggles with word choice, word form, and collocation, resulting in noticeable errors like 'request for less working hour' and 'part time into the admission'. Additionally, there are minor slips in spelling and phrasing that reflect a basic lexical range. To achieve a higher band, the student should expand their vocabulary to include more precise, natural phrasing and idiomatic expressions suitable for a formal request letter, while improving accuracy in word forms and collocations.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The writing displays a very limited range of structures, relying mostly on simple sentences, while attempts at more complex structures are often faulty. There are frequent grammatical errors throughout the text, including issues with article usage, prepositions, and verb tenses, such as 'i just got part time into the admission', 'due to the high demand of my job.I am', and 'will be have addition'. Punctuation and capitalisation errors are also present. To reach a higher band, the writer needs to increase the variety of grammatical structures used and significantly reduce the frequency of errors to ensure greater accuracy and clarity.

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

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