Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-09-02

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some people believe that it is best to accept a bad situation, such as an unsatisfactory job or shortage of money. Others argue that it is better to try and improve such situations.

Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Most of the people in today's world accept a bad situation, by relying on an unsatisfactory job or shortage of money. While others believe that to try and enhance such situations.

One of the main reason is to adopt a bad situation is to secure a job. In a competitive job market, it is now very difficult to shift a job from one company to another. In addition, there is a risk involve in leaving one settle work to look for other employment, because there are chances of becoming unemployed. Another reason is that, now a market is more saturated and opportunities are low, in response there is a high competition to attain a high-salaried job. So that a person who have already facing financial problems due to the unsatisfactory job, hesitate to apply for other better options. I believe it is better to at least try once and take a chance.

On the other hand, other people who disagree with this approach, are aware of such issues but they still persuade to take risks. Because in a business it is a famous quote, that 'Bigger the risk, bigger the profit'. Taking challenges not only test the capability of individual, but also taught many lessons. For example, this notion helps in developing self-believe, boost the confidence and most of the prominent is that it push the limits and ultimately give you a self experience to how to tackle and survive in different situations.

In my opinion, although there is a fear of losing a job in a process of trying and improving bad situations. However it is significant step for self-growth and to improve life-style. If succeed in attaining better position may helps to reduce many problems.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses both sides of the argument and provides a clear personal opinion. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited. For instance, the explanation of why people accept bad situations is repetitive, focusing mainly on job security without exploring the 'shortage of money' aspect mentioned in the prompt. The second body paragraph attempts to discuss the benefits of taking risks, but the points are somewhat generic. To reach a higher band, you should provide more specific examples or deeper analysis of the consequences of these choices. The introduction is also slightly underdeveloped, as it does not clearly paraphrase the prompt or outline the essay structure.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, and there is a clear progression of ideas. You use some cohesive devices, such as 'In addition', 'On the other hand', and 'For example'. However, some transitions feel mechanical or are used incorrectly, such as starting a sentence with 'So that a person...' or 'Because in a business...'. Additionally, the referencing is occasionally unclear, and some sentences are fragmented, which disrupts the flow of the argument. Improving the variety of linking words and ensuring that each sentence connects smoothly to the next would enhance the overall coherence.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, but it lacks the precision and range required for higher bands. You use some basic terms like 'bad situation' and 'good' repeatedly. There are also some issues with word choice and collocation, such as 'shift a job' (instead of 'change jobs'), 'settle work' (instead of 'stable job'), and 'self experience' (instead of 'personal experience'). While the meaning is clear, the lack of more sophisticated or academic vocabulary limits the score. You should focus on learning collocations and more precise synonyms for common words.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

There is a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but the accuracy is inconsistent. You have frequent errors in subject-verb agreement (e.g., 'a person who have already facing'), article usage, and verb forms (e.g., 'it push the limits' instead of 'it pushes'). Some sentences are grammatically incomplete or poorly structured, such as the opening sentence which lacks a main verb. While these errors do not completely impede communication, they occur frequently enough to impact the clarity of your writing. Focusing on basic grammatical accuracy and proofreading for subject-verb agreement would be highly beneficial.

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

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