Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · IELTS Summit Mastery · 2026-09-19

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 6.5)

It is increasingly common for school leavers to take gap year to work or travel before starting higher education .I largely agree that this non accademic experience provides significant personal and professional benefits when returning to study .

Firstly, taking time out fosters reliance and practial life skills .Leaving the structured secondary school environment to manage real world responsiblities such as budgeting earned wages or navigating unfamiliar cultures instills a strong sense of independence Consequently,when these indivisuals enroll in university ,they are often better prepared to handle living on their own and managing academic commitments alongside daily life .

Secondly ,practical work experiences or travel frequently enhances academic focus and carrier clarity.Experiencing non- academic life expose individuals to diverse working environments.For instance ,a student working in entry level roles acquires vital soft skills like time managements,team work and problem solving .This practial foundation enable them to appreciate their university courses more deeply and approach their studies with clearer goals.

However,a potential drawbacks is the risk of losing academic momentum .Students who away from academic routine may find it challenging to readjust to formal writing, research,and examination pressure .Furthermore, some may become accustomed to earning an income ,leading to a diminished desires to return to study altogether.

In conclusion , I largely agree that taking a year off between school and university offers invaluable real world experiences and maturity .Although it carries a risk of academic discipline ,the personal growth gained generally the initial challenges of returning to formal edu

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response addresses all parts of the task, presenting a clear position throughout that taking a gap year is beneficial for personal and professional growth. The ideas are extended and supported, such as discussing how travel and work build soft skills like time management and teamwork, and acknowledging the counter-argument regarding academic momentum. However, a specific penalty must be applied to Task Achievement because the response falls one word short of the 250-word minimum, containing 249 words according to the official length check. Despite this minor length infraction and a slightly cut-off concluding sentence, the main arguments are well-developed and the position remains clear throughout. Therefore, a band score of 6.0 is warranted.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The essay displays a coherent overall arrangement with a clear paragraphing structure. Each body paragraph opens with a logical signpost (e.g., 'Firstly', 'Secondly', 'However', 'In conclusion') to guide the reader through the progression of ideas. Cohesive devices are generally used appropriately, such as 'Consequently' and 'For instance'. However, some minor mechanical errors in cohesion and referencing occur, and punctuation around discourse markers is sometimes faulty, such as missing spaces after commas and periods. Paragraphing is used sufficiently to separate the introduction, two supporting points, a counter-argument, and a conclusion. Overall, the logical progression is clear enough to merit a solid band 7.0 for this criterion.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully attempting less common items such as 'academic momentum', 'carrier clarity', and 'soft skills'. There are, however, several spelling and word-choice errors that detract from precision, including 'accademic', 'reliance' instead of 'self-reliance', 'practial', 'indivisuals', and a typo in 'carrier' instead of 'career'. Despite these occasional inaccuracies, the vocabulary is sufficient to allow the message to come across clearly. The lexical range and control align well with the descriptors for Band 6.0.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, incorporating relative clauses and conditional structures. There are instances of frequent grammatical and punctuation errors, particularly spacing issues before and after punctuation marks, missing articles, and subject-verb agreement slips (e.g., 'potential drawbacks is', 'Experiences... expose', 'enable them'). Despite these errors, the complex structures used do not impede overall communication. The frequency and nature of the grammatical errors fit comfortably within the Band 6.0 descriptors, showing adequate control without achieving the consistent error-free output of Band 7.

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