Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-10-15

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 5.5)

Dear Mr.Asmat,

I hope you are doing well. I am writing to inform you about my study, which I am going to start in the evening from the next month.That is why, I would like to request you to reduce my working hours.

I had applied for CPR and First Aid courses to rescue station and I have seleted for this course. The study of these courses is quite difficult because I will have to do practical training along the study. As a result, continuing the full-time job will not achieve me these courses progress.

My classes will be start from 3pm to 8pm. If I perform duty from 8am to 2pm, which would be 6 hours, then it would be more convenient for me to get ready for joining my classes. Because I would be need 30 minutes for preparing my les

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.0

You explain that you have been selected for CPR and First Aid courses and give a proposed work schedule of 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., so the reason and preferred hours are identifiable. However, the letter does not explain how your studies would benefit your employer, leaving one required point unaddressed. The explanation of why the courses require reduced hours is also brief, and the final sentence is cut off, so the practical arrangement is not fully clarified. In addition, the response is 143 words, below the required 150. To strengthen the letter, complete all three points, explain a specific workplace benefit such as improved emergency-response skills, and develop the request with a clear closing.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The letter has a generally understandable sequence: you introduce the request, explain your course, and then state the hours you would prefer. Paragraphing helps distinguish these stages, and links such as “That is why” and “As a result” show how the ideas relate. However, the progression is interrupted by the unfinished final sentence (“Because I would be need 30 minutes for preparing my les”), and the benefit to your employer is absent, so the letter does not reach a complete conclusion. Some linking is also mechanical, particularly the repeated cause-and-effect framing. Finish the final explanation and add a closing paragraph that summarises the request and invites your boss to discuss the arrangement.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant vocabulary for the situation, including “working hours,” “practical training,” “full-time job,” and “classes,” which makes the main topic clear. There are also attempts at more specific terms such as “CPR and First Aid courses.” However, several word choices and collocations are inaccurate or unnatural, including “rescue station,” “selected for this course,” and “achieve me these courses progress.” Spelling errors such as “seleted” and the incomplete “les” also reduce precision. Aim for standard workplace and study expressions, and check spelling carefully. For example, say that you have been accepted onto a course and that continuing full-time work may make it difficult to keep up with your studies.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and more complex sentences, including a reason clause (“because I will have to do practical training”) and a conditional schedule (“If I perform duty from 8am to 2pm…”). The overall meaning is usually recoverable, but some errors affect clarity and control. Examples include “My classes will be start” and “I would be need,” where the verb forms are incorrect, as well as “I will have to do practical training along the study,” which has an awkward grammatical construction. The sentence beginning “Because” is also left incomplete. Review future forms, modal verb patterns, and sentence completion; for instance, use “My classes will start” and “I would need 30 minutes to prepare.”

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

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