Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Summit Mastery · 2026-08-17

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 5.5)

It has been observed that numerous youngsters prefer to take a short break after competing their school and before starting their higher education in order to get some work experience or to travel. The experience of this non academic life offers merits to the students when the come back to persue education. I agree to this statement to a large extent but there are some demerits of it as well that are elaborated in the ensuing paragraph.

Initially, the perspective of the young people nowadays is somehow different from the aged people as they think that taking some time in persuing the studies might help them to minimize their stress level as well as travelling after school life might unwind them. Such as, it is valid theory that after hectic routine people may need some time to fell refresh and relax it may improve and enhance their mindful skills. Furthermore, having a break and focusing on some skillful activities might be beneficial for the professional life of an individual. For instance, working in a mechanic shop might enhances a person's knowledge about cars and its funtions that might be helpful in future.

On the contrary, there are some demerits of this academic break as well, for the reason that if the individual get a long period break it might cause the destruction of his habit of studing.

In the conclusion to conclude that, taking break after school might be beneficial in some ways. Nevertheless, taking break for long tenure might have destructive consequences.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses the prompt by discussing the benefits and drawbacks of a gap year. However, the development of ideas is limited. While you mention stress reduction and skill acquisition, these points are not fully extended or supported with sufficient depth. The counter-argument regarding the 'destruction of study habits' is mentioned but remains underdeveloped. To reach a higher band, you need to provide more detailed explanations and perhaps a more concrete example to support your claims. The position is clear, but the overall response feels brief and lacks the depth required for a higher score.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organized into paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the structure. You use some cohesive devices like 'Initially', 'Furthermore', 'On the contrary', and 'Nevertheless'. However, the flow between sentences is sometimes mechanical, and the logical progression is occasionally interrupted by awkward phrasing. For instance, the transition into the conclusion is repetitive ('In the conclusion to conclude that'). Paragraphing is present, but the body paragraphs are quite short, which limits the logical development of your argument. Improving the variety of linking words and ensuring smoother transitions would enhance the coherence of your writing.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

Your vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, but it lacks the precision and range required for higher bands. You use some basic terms like 'youngsters', 'good', and 'bad' (implied by demerits). There are also some spelling and word-choice errors, such as 'competing' instead of 'completing', 'persue' instead of 'pursue', and 'funtions' instead of 'functions'. While these errors do not significantly impede communication, they demonstrate a limited control over more sophisticated vocabulary. To improve, focus on using more precise academic collocations and ensure accurate spelling of key terms.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors throughout the text. Examples include 'if the individual get a long period break' (subject-verb agreement), 'the experience of this non academic life offers merits to the students when the come back' (typo/grammar), and 'might enhances' (incorrect verb form). Punctuation is also inconsistent, particularly with comma usage. While the meaning is generally clear, the frequency of these errors prevents the essay from reaching a higher band. You should focus on subject-verb agreement and consistent verb tense usage.

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

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