Band 4.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 4.5 · IELTS Summit Mastery · 2026-11-03
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 4.5)
Many young people choose to take a year out between finishing school and starting university for personal reasons. I do bot agree to this approach because of a few reasons.
1. I think if you are not getting admission into a university on time, it is a waste of your precious time. You can always enjoy alongside study and after you graduate.
2. By taking one year off from academics you are pushing yourself 1 year back from the rest of your collegues.
3. In many government sectors, there is an upper age limit for applying to certain jobs, It you are taking one year off from academics, it can cause you problems later on like not being able to apply for a job opportunity because you are over the upper limit 1 year earlier.
4. By taking one year off academics, you are behind all of your collegues and friends who continue to focus on their study and academics.
5. Government policies may not be the same for admission criteria into the top universities after 1 year so you may or may not have same chance which you have now.
6. You will be having difficult time enjoying the 1 year off when your friends are getting admissions in top universities, there are chances you may go into depression because of this.
7. Your parents may not like this idea as well because most parents want their children to progress and succeed in academics.
8. You will be one year behind in starting your dream career.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 4.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 4.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 4.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.5
Your position is clear: you disagree with taking a gap year, and you give several relevant concerns, including delayed career entry, age limits for some jobs, and possible changes to university admission policies. However, most points are listed rather than explained or supported with examples, and some claims—such as the risk of depression—are asserted without showing why they are likely. The response also does not engage sufficiently with the stated benefits of gaining work experience or travelling, so the discussion addresses the task only partially. The response contains 242 words, which is 8 words below the required minimum; the 15 words copied from the prompt were not counted. Develop fewer reasons in more depth and acknowledge the opposing view before explaining your position.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.0
The numbered list makes your reasons easy to identify, and the ideas generally relate to your disagreement. However, the response has no developed paragraph structure or clear progression from an introduction through supporting discussion to a conclusion. Several points repeat the same idea: points 2, 4, and 8 all focus on being behind peers or starting a career later. The repeated opening “By taking one year off” also makes the organisation feel mechanical, while links between ideas are limited. Group related reasons into body paragraphs, use transitions to show how each point supports your position, and finish with a brief conclusion that restates your view.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.0
You use enough topic-related vocabulary to communicate your main concerns, including “upper age limit,” “admission criteria,” and “dream career.” However, the range is limited and several expressions are repetitive or imprecise, such as “one year off from academics,” “behind all of your colleagues,” and “enjoy alongside study.” There are also noticeable spelling and word-choice errors, including “collegues” and “bot,” which can distract the reader. Aim for more precise phrases and vary repeated wording—for example, distinguish between delaying university entry, falling behind peers, and postponing career progression. Check spelling carefully and choose collocations that sound natural in an academic essay.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0
Your meaning is usually understandable, and you attempt some longer structures, such as the conditional sentence beginning “If you are taking one year off from academics.” However, the response relies heavily on simple sentence patterns and numbered statements, so grammatical range is limited. Errors occur in sentence construction and punctuation: “I do bot agree to this approach” has an incorrect form, and “It you are taking…” does not form a correct clause. The sentence about job opportunities also runs on and uses inconsistent capitalisation after a comma. Practise building accurate complex sentences with clear clauses, and review verb forms, articles, and punctuation before submitting.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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