Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-10-20

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.Raj,

I am writing to this letter infrom you to reduce my working hours from upcoming week since I will plan to pursue short term course.

Firstly I need to reduce my working hours since I am going to start a course related to my future development as a software engineer. The reason for this that the some classes will be online during my working hours monday to wednesday dawn to dusk which are mandotary to my course participation.

Therefore I need to cut my working hours and I need to inform you I would like to work thursday to saturday.Hence,I prefer to resign my duties someone else in our team due to my absent.

This course will be help me to build my future career and its is crutial desicion as my first step to gain subject related practical which are mandotory to for my progression and also it is good opprtunity enhance my skills such as coding,web advertising and web design.I will hope you will understand my situation.

I look forward to hearing you soon.

Best regards,

Sakuntha Niluminda.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You address the three main points: you explain that the course supports your development as a software engineer, request a Thursday-to-Saturday schedule, and mention skills that could be useful to your employer. The purpose of the letter is clear, and the request is relevant. However, the proposed hours are not fully specified, and the sentence about asking someone else to take over your duties is unclear. The benefit to the employer is also less developed than the personal benefit to you: explain how coding, web advertising, or design skills could help the company. A clearer, more specific request and a stronger link between your studies and workplace needs would make the response more complete.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The letter has a recognisable structure, with an opening request, explanatory paragraphs, and an appropriate closing. Sequencing words such as “Firstly” and “Therefore” help show the relationship between ideas, and the reader can generally follow your purpose. However, some connections are mechanical or unclear. For example, “Therefore I need to cut my working hours” repeats the opening, while “Hence, I prefer to resign my duties someone else” does not clearly explain the arrangement you are proposing. The long final paragraph combines your career goals, course requirements, and skills without clearly separating the employer benefit. Use paragraphs for distinct points and make links between them more precise.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use vocabulary relevant to work and study, including “working hours,” “course,” “software engineer,” and “skills,” and you attempt more specific terms such as “coding” and “web design.” This gives you enough language to communicate the general message. However, noticeable spelling and word-choice errors reduce precision, including “infrom,” “mandotary,” “crutial,” and “opprtunity.” Some phrases are also unnatural, such as “short term course” and “gain subject related practical.” Choose standard collocations and check spelling carefully; for example, describe the course as “a short-term course” and say that it will help you “gain practical, subject-specific experience.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentences, including explanations with “since” and a relative clause in “skills such as coding, web advertising and web design.” The overall meaning is usually recoverable, but some grammatical errors make individual sentences difficult to interpret. For example, “I am writing to this letter infrom you to reduce” has an incorrect sentence pattern, and “This course will be help me” uses an incorrect verb form. There are also problems with articles and sentence construction in “the some classes” and “The reason for this that.” Practise clear request structures, such as “I am writing to ask if I could reduce my hours,” and check verb forms and sentence boundaries.

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

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