Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · IELTS Summit Mastery · 2026-10-29

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)

Many young people decide to take a gap year instead of starting university to get work experience or just explore the world. I do agree with this thought stating that it benefits individuals when they return to education through the experience of non academic life. This is because individuals get to know about themselves, get the practical exposure and develop a sense of community service.

Firstly, individuals taking the study gap after completing the high school get time for themselves. They travel around the world and get to know about themselves. During this time, they tend to discover what holds their interest and that gives them clarity about what to pursue next.

Secondly, individuals get the practical exposure. During the gap time, they can do jobs and internships which can give them the practical exposure. This will broaden their horizon and will help them know the ground realities and also build their confidence. Like during my bachelors, I have few class fellows who had taken gap after their school life, they were more confident than me as they had exposure during that time.

Thirdly, many young people try to spend quality time by engaging in community service activities. They do volunteer work for different NGOs. This greatly develops a sense of community belonging and strengthens their bond with community. For instance, I have seen Gilgitis taking gaps to serve their community.

In a nutshell, I do belive that there are a lot of benefits of non academic life experience in terms of self awareness, practical exposure, and community service. But taking a huge gap can be harmful too.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

Your position is clear from the introduction: you agree that a gap year can help young people when they return to education. You address the main benefits through self-discovery, work experience and community service, and the examples about classmates and Gilgitis make the discussion relevant. However, the ideas are not developed equally. The self-discovery point is explained briefly, while the practical-exposure paragraph gives a clearer link to confidence and understanding working life. The community-service benefit would be stronger if you explained how it specifically supports later study, rather than only describing a sense of belonging. The final warning that a long gap can be harmful introduces a qualification but is not explained, so your position could be more fully supported.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall structure: an introduction, three body paragraphs signposted with “Firstly,” “Secondly” and “Thirdly,” and a concluding paragraph. This makes the main points easy to follow, and each body paragraph focuses on a distinct benefit. Some cohesion is mechanical, however, because the same sequencing pattern is used throughout and several sentences repeat “individuals” or “during the gap.” Connections between claims could also be clearer. For example, after describing community service, explain how the skills or perspective gained might help students in university. The final sentence about a “huge gap” feels abrupt because the essay has not discussed this drawback earlier. Linking it to a brief qualification in the body would create a more complete progression.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use an adequate range of vocabulary for the topic, including “practical exposure,” “broaden their horizon,” “clarity,” and “community belonging.” These choices help communicate the main ideas, and the reader can understand your examples. However, some expressions are imprecise or unnatural, such as “study gap,” “get to know about themselves,” and “taking a huge gap.” There is also repetition of “practical exposure” and “individuals,” which limits flexibility. Check spelling and word forms: “belive” should be “believe,” and “non academic” is better written as “non-academic.” Aim to use more precise collocations and vary repeated terms; this would make the argument sound more natural and controlled.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, including clauses with “which” and “as,” and most sentences communicate their meaning clearly. Some grammatical errors remain. For example, “I have few class fellows” needs an article (“a few”), while “they were more confident than me as they had exposure” would be clearer with a more carefully structured comparison. In “individuals taking the study gap after completing the high school,” the noun phrase and article use are awkward; a more accurate form would be “young people taking a gap year after completing high school.” There are also punctuation and sentence-boundary issues, such as the fragment-like opening “Like during my bachelors.” Practise accurate article use and integrate examples into complete sentences while retaining your range of structures.

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