Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · IELTS Complete Catalyst · 2026-11-01

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

In many countries these days, the number of people continuing their education after school has increased, and the range of courses available at universities and colleges has also increased.

Do you think this is a positive or negative development?

You should use your own ideas, knowledge and experience and support your arguments with examples and relevant experience.

Student answer (Band 6.5)

Higher education is getting popular among students. Universities are also providing more courses than before. In my opinion this is a positive trend that can help students get a high paying job and pursue their own interest.

University degree ensures higher salary and better job prospects. Students who enter the job field just after completing school have limiting career options. They are not considered for higher positions, as they do not have enough experience. After studying at university, students can gain more knowledge and expertise. So, by continuing education and excelling in a subject could give them more choices and progress. For example, generally a student who only went to school would not be considered for the position of CFO, because that position would need specific academic background and skill sets. Whereas a university graduate in finance could easily get the job after working for some years.

In the past, universities and colleges only offered certain courses. So, the students who were not interested in them would not continue their studies and look for alternatives. But now educational institutions foster different interests. There are subjects for science, commerce and arts. As a result, students can pursue their passion in any field. The wide range of subjects inspire students to study further. For example, in the past only students from science or finance stream would go to university. Whilst now even artists go to university to learn skills and techniques.

In conclusion, higher education and more course choices give people opportunity to have better careers and follow their interest.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.0

Your position is clear from the introduction: you consider the growth in higher education and course choice positive. You address both developments and support them with relevant examples, including the finance graduate progressing towards a CFO role and artists attending university to develop their skills. These examples help extend your main points rather than merely listing benefits. The discussion is generally relevant, though some claims are broad—for instance, that a university degree “ensures higher salary” and that school leavers are not considered for higher positions. Qualifying these claims and explaining more precisely how expanded course choice benefits individuals or society would make the argument more fully developed and persuasive. The conclusion appropriately restates your view.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

The response has a clear, effective structure: an introduction states your view, two body paragraphs develop separate benefits, and the conclusion summarises the argument. Ideas progress logically within each paragraph, and linking expressions such as “As a result,” “For example,” and “In conclusion” help readers follow the reasoning. The contrast between past and present in the second body paragraph is also easy to understand. To strengthen cohesion further, vary the way you connect ideas rather than relying on familiar transitions, and make some links more explicit. For example, the move from students’ interests to the claim that a wider range of subjects encourages further study could explain the cause-and-effect relationship in more detail. Overall, paragraphing and progression are clear.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of vocabulary to discuss education and employment, including “career options,” “expertise,” “academic background,” and “pursue their passion.” These choices communicate your ideas clearly, and the topic vocabulary is generally appropriate. However, some wording is imprecise or collocates awkwardly: “higher education is getting popular,” “limiting career options,” and “foster different interests” do not sound fully natural in context. Repetition of “students,” “university,” and “courses” also limits flexibility. Aim to use more precise alternatives and vary references to learners and institutions. Greater control of collocation and a broader range of natural academic phrasing would make the vocabulary more fluent and exact.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.5

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, including subordinate clauses such as “Students who enter the job field…” and “because that position would need…”. Most sentences are understandable, and errors rarely obstruct the message. Some grammatical issues remain, however. In “In my opinion this is a positive trend,” punctuation after the introductory phrase is needed; “by continuing education and excelling in a subject could give them” lacks a clear grammatical subject; and “The wide range of subjects inspire students” has a subject–verb agreement error. There are also occasional problems with articles and sentence construction. Review agreement and ensure that each clause has a clear subject and verb. More consistently accurate complex sentences would demonstrate stronger control.

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