Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · IELTS Summit Mastery · 2026-08-12

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Write about the following topic:

Many young people choose to take a year out between finishing school and starting university in order to gain work experience or to travel. The experience of non-academic life this offers benefits the individual when they return to education.

To what extent do you agree or disagree?

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

Student answer (Band 6.0)

Nowadays, many students prefer to take a one year study-break after completion of their school. Some people think that it is beneficial to take a year out to gain work experience or to travel before enrolling in university. However, others argue that it will waste student's time and distract them from studies. I strongly agree with the prior statement that non-academic life in terms of work experience or traveling would benefit the pupils in their higher studies.

On one hand, proponents believe that it is important for individuals to have a work or travel experience before starting university. As, it will provide them practical information about different fields, subjects, languages, and cultures. It will helps them to choose the courses of university as well as their career path. For instance, people who choose to do internships or short-time jobs in software houses or hospitals before beginning further studies, have experimental knowledge about their subjects. It will supports them to understand the concepts more efficiently. In addition, individuals having work experience can do part-time jobs, earn money, and sponsor their education. It will makes them confident, financially independent, and allow them to grow professionally.

On the other hand, opponents say that taking gap for an year from academics will waste students' time and make them less interested in studies. As, they will get distracted from education and will be more interested to make money. For instance, students who do jobs, have money to use anywhere without depending on their parents. They enjoy that freedom and do not want to leave that opportunity.

In my opinion, although some people can be distracted from studies while taking a year out before starting higher studies, that could be addressed by counselling by elders. However, taking a break and getting work experience or traveling would benefit in long term, as they would be able to select their courses more wisely and apply their practical information during studies would give them more productive outcomes.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response addresses all parts of the prompt, clearly stating a position in the introduction and maintaining it throughout. The ideas are relevant, particularly the discussion on practical experience and financial independence. However, the development of ideas is somewhat repetitive; for example, the benefits of work experience are mentioned in both the second and fourth paragraphs. While the position is clear, the supporting arguments could be more deeply explored with more specific, nuanced examples rather than general statements about 'software houses or hospitals'. Overall, the response meets the requirements for a Band 6.5, as it addresses the task well but lacks the depth of development required for a higher band.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is logically organized into four paragraphs, with a clear introduction, two body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Cohesive devices such as 'On one hand', 'In addition', and 'However' are used to guide the reader. However, the use of these devices is sometimes mechanical or slightly awkward, such as starting sentences with 'As,' which is grammatically incorrect and disrupts the flow. Referencing is generally clear, but the transition between the counter-argument and the author's opinion could be smoother. The paragraphing is appropriate, but the internal cohesion within paragraphs could be improved by varying the sentence structure and linkers.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is adequate for the task, allowing the student to express their ideas clearly. There is an attempt to use topic-specific vocabulary like 'internships', 'financially independent', and 'proponents'. However, there are some inaccuracies in word choice and collocation, such as 'experimental knowledge' (likely meaning 'practical experience') and 'taking gap for an year' (should be 'taking a gap year'). The range is sufficient for the task, but the lack of more sophisticated or precise vocabulary prevents a higher score. The errors do not impede communication, but they are noticeable.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The student uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are frequent grammatical errors, particularly with subject-verb agreement (e.g., 'It will helps them', 'It will supports them', 'It will makes them') and article usage (e.g., 'taking gap for an year'). These errors are persistent throughout the text. While the student attempts complex sentences, the control over these structures is inconsistent. The punctuation is generally correct, but the grammatical slips are frequent enough to limit the score to a 6.0, as they occasionally distract from the fluency of the writing.

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