Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-11-05

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some people believe that professionals, such as doctors and engineers, should be required to work in the country where they did their training. Others believe they should be free to work in another country if they wish.

Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Some people argue that skilled workers, such as physicians and mechanical or civil engineers, should be legally bound to practise in their own nation, while others maintain that these individuals should have the liberty to work or practise abroad.

Some people think that they should work in their own country and serve their nation which will lead to development. That's a valid point because it helps the country to seek a place in development and to maintain its position in the tech industry to compete with other nations. But it also has some consequences, such as other backward nations that don't have skilled professionals, which would face many hurdles in developing their country to stand among the modern world. For instance, if a country has 10,000 physicians and its neighboring poor country has 2000 physicans and they are running out of doctors, then it would lead to national instability while the other developed neighbors grow more and more.

On the other hand, it is strongly debated that highly qualified professionals should not be forced to remain in the country against their own will; otherwise, it will lead to workplace dissatisfaction, and it also reduces productivity and innovation. People argue that professional individuals should be free to grow their careers and they should be allowed to practice where they want. It leads to some good and bad consequences, like they will learn new skills from abroad and they can implies these skills in their future career. For example, people who leave their country for good education come back with high skills.

In conclusion, I believe that workers should be free to work where they want and which satisfy them.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You discuss both views and state your position in the conclusion: you support professionals being free to choose where they work. The first body paragraph gives a relevant reason for requiring service at home—national development—and recognises that poorer countries may lack professionals. The second explains possible benefits of working abroad, including learning new skills. However, the discussion is only partly developed: the example comparing doctor numbers does not clearly show why professionals should be legally required to stay, and the return-home example does not fully support the claim about freedom to work abroad. Explain the consequences of each policy more directly and develop your own view with a specific reason or example. Your position is present, but it would be clearer if stated and maintained throughout.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, one paragraph for each view, and a conclusion. Phrases such as “On the other hand” and “In conclusion” help signal the main stages, and the ideas generally remain relevant to the topic. However, progression within paragraphs is sometimes unclear. In the first body paragraph, the move from national development to poorer neighbouring countries needs a clearer link to the argument about compulsory service. The second paragraph also shifts from dissatisfaction to learning skills and then to returning home without fully explaining how these points connect. Use topic sentences that state each paragraph’s main claim, and add clearer links between reasons and examples. This would make the organisation feel less like a sequence of separate points.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use some topic-appropriate vocabulary, including “skilled workers,” “workplace dissatisfaction,” “productivity,” and “innovation,” and you attempt more formal phrasing such as “legally bound.” This gives you enough range to discuss the issue, but several word choices and collocations are inaccurate or awkward, which limits precision. For example, “seek a place in development” and “stand among the modern world” do not express the intended ideas naturally; “compete in the technology industry” and “become part of the modern world” would be clearer. There is also a spelling error in “physicans,” and “implies these skills” appears to use the wrong verb. Aim for accurate, natural combinations rather than adding formal-sounding phrases, and check spelling and word forms carefully.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and more complex sentences, including a conditional example beginning “if a country has 10,000 physicians” and a sentence explaining that being forced to stay “will lead to workplace dissatisfaction.” Meaning is generally understandable, but errors in sentence construction and agreement recur. For example, “it also reduces productivity and innovation” has an unclear subject, while “they can implies these skills” has an incorrect verb form. The conclusion, “workers should be free to work where they want and which satisfy them,” also has faulty clause structure and agreement. Practise building sentences with a clear subject and verb, and check that relative clauses and coordinated phrases match grammatically. More accurate control of these structures would make your arguments easier to follow.

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