Band 7.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.0 · IELTS Summit Mastery · 2026-07-31

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

A huge number of students choose to study English independently on a self- study basis rather than attend a formal course. However, without the assistance of a teacher, students often find it difficult to manage their studies.

To what extent do you agree or disagree ?

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

Student answer (Band 7.0)

The debate of being self-employed or being an employee of a multinational company is contentious. While working for self provides flexibility and recognition, working in an organization provides certainty and job security. In my opinion, establishing and running a successful business is far more rewarding than working for someone else.

To commence with, the primary catalyst behind the phenomenon of choosing to do business rather than doing a job is the sense of ownership along with work flexibility which can bring a significant change in an individual's life. To expound, since self-employment equips people to

set up business strategies, hire subordinates and choose their own work schedule , it not only gives them control over their workplace but also the convenience to work on their own

terms. For instance, most of the graduating university students prefer to be self-employed instead of working under a manager in an organization. Hence, the above example vividly illustrates how entrepreneurship is prioritized over a job at a company.

On the contrary, the driving factor behind the notion of choosing jobs is employment security which prevents any formidable situation. To elaborate, other demographics believe that being self-employed involves a lot of uncertainty, whereas working for an organization provides a secure

future without the risk of loss during times of global recession, this is because giant companies have numerous resources to

overcome losses but a small business may collapse in difficult circumstances. Thus, the aforementioned reason substantiates why some individuals prefer to work in an institution.

To conclude, although business ownership offers unlimited freedom which is the underpinning to support self-employment, working with an organization has its own perks such as job security. In my opinion, self-employment is fruitful in the long run.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response is completely off-topic. The prompt asks for a discussion on the challenges of self-studying English versus formal education, but the essay discusses the merits of self-employment versus working for a company. Because the student failed to address the specific topic provided, the response cannot be awarded a passing score for task achievement. While the essay is well-structured and presents a clear position on the topic of employment, it does not engage with the prompt's core subject matter regarding language learning or educational methodology. Consequently, the content is irrelevant to the task instructions.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.5

Despite the off-topic content, the essay demonstrates a good level of coherence and cohesion. The response is logically organized into clear paragraphs, each with a central theme. The student uses a variety of cohesive devices such as 'To commence with', 'To expound', 'On the contrary', and 'To conclude' to guide the reader through the argument. The progression of ideas is logical within the context of the essay's chosen topic. Paragraphing is used appropriately, and referencing is generally clear throughout the text.

Lexical Resource — Band 7.0

The student displays a sufficient range of vocabulary to express complex ideas. There is an attempt to use less common lexical items such as 'contentious', 'catalyst', 'subordinates', 'underpinning', and 'substantiates'. While the vocabulary is well-suited for an essay on employment, it is not relevant to the prompt provided. However, the control of word choice and collocation is generally accurate, and the language used is sophisticated enough to convey the intended meaning clearly without significant errors.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 7.5

The essay exhibits a good variety of complex sentence structures, including conditional clauses and relative clauses. There is a high frequency of error-free sentences, and the grammar is generally accurate. Punctuation is used effectively to manage the flow of the text. While there are minor slips, such as the phrasing 'working for self' (which should be 'working for oneself'), the overall grammatical control is strong and does not impede communication.

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