Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · 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 6.0)

Dear Mr. Smith,

As I am planning to study part-time, I am writing to request you about reducing my working hours.

Although I enjoy working full-time and overtime, I would like to decrease my working hours to support my short-term education. The education is all about practical welding practice in which I will have an opportunity to gain hands on experience related to both TIG and MIG welding.

Because of the course requirement of being present physically, I could not be able to work ten hours of shifts, instead I would like to cut it down by eight hours. So that, I could manage employment and education simultaneously.

This course not only bring benefits to personal level, but also have a positive impact on our organization. First, management might not have to find an appropriate employee as a welder. I will also apply my knowledge

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You explain that you want to study practical welding and give a relevant reason for reducing your hours: the course requires you to attend in person. You also begin to describe a benefit to the employer, namely that the organisation may not need to recruit another welder. However, the request is incomplete: “cut it down by eight hours” does not clearly state the specific hours or schedule you would like to work, and the employer benefit is left unfinished at “I will also apply my knowledge”. The response is also five words below the required minimum. Develop the proposed schedule and complete the explanation of how your new skills would help the organisation to address all parts more fully.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The letter has a generally understandable sequence: you introduce your request, explain your study plans, describe the scheduling difficulty, and then turn to the employer’s potential benefit. Paragraphing helps distinguish these points, and linking expressions such as “Although” and “First” show an attempt to connect ideas. Some connections are less clear or mechanical, however. “So that” begins a fragment rather than linking smoothly to the previous sentence, while “This course not only bring benefits…” promises a second point that is not completed. The final sentence also stops abruptly, disrupting the progression. Use complete sentences, finish each point, and make the requested work schedule a distinct, clearly signposted detail.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of task-related vocabulary, including “part-time,” “practical welding,” “hands on experience,” and the specific terms “TIG and MIG welding.” These details make your reason for studying clear. There are also attempts at more formal phrasing, such as “positive impact on our organization,” though some word combinations are inaccurate or unnatural: “request you about” and “cut it down by eight hours” do not express the intended request precisely. “Short-term education” is also unclear in this context. Choose conventional workplace expressions and state the reduction and proposed schedule directly. Check compound forms such as “hands-on” and use vocabulary that clearly distinguishes the course from the skills you will gain.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and complex sentence forms, for example the opening clause beginning “As I am planning…” and the contrast introduced by “Although.” The main ideas are usually understandable, but some grammatical errors affect clarity. “I could not be able to work” combines incompatible forms; use either “I could not work” or “I would not be able to work.” In “This course not only bring benefits,” the verb does not agree with the singular subject, and the sentence remains incomplete. “So that, I could manage…” is a fragment, and the comma after “So that” is unnecessary. Aim to control these structures and punctuate complete sentences consistently while retaining your attempts at complex sentences.

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

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