Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-10-28

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)

In Contemporary society, some people believe that professionals, such as doctors and engineers, should be work in their country where they received their education and training, while others think that they should be free to work abroad. From my perspective, professionals should have freedom to choose where they want to work.

On the one hand, professionals should work in the country where they were trained because government often spends a lot of money on their education. If these professionals leave the country, the country may face a shortage of skilled workers. For instance, if many doctors move abroad, local hospitals may not have enough staff to treat patients as a result, people may find it difficult to receive a proper medical care. therefore, working in their own country can help professionals support their communities.

On the other hand, i believe professionals should be free to work in another country if they wish working another country can provide better salaries , improved working skills and conditions and also more career opportunities. They can also learn new skills and gain valuable experience. To ilustrate, an engineer who works abroad may learn new skills , modern techniques and improve theie professional knowledge, later they may use these skills to benefits their home country. if they return. Therefore, people should have the right to choose their carrer path.

In conclusion, although professionals workings in their own country can help prevent shortage of skilled workers. I believe they should be free to work abroad. government should improve salaries and working condition to encourage skilled people to stay instead of force them to remain.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You discuss both views and state your position clearly: you support professionals’ freedom to choose where they work. The points about publicly funded training and possible shortages explain the case for staying, while better pay, conditions and career opportunities support the opposing view. However, some ideas are only briefly developed; for example, the claim that overseas experience may benefit the home country is not explained beyond saying professionals could use new skills later. The conclusion adds a practical suggestion about improving pay and conditions, but this could be linked more explicitly to your argument. The response is 245 words, so it is five words below the 250-word minimum; the 23 words copied from the task prompt are not counted.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall arrangement: an introduction, one paragraph for each view, and a conclusion. The progression from the reasons for staying to the benefits of working abroad is easy to follow, and signposts such as “On the one hand,” “On the other hand,” and “In conclusion” help the reader. Cohesion is sometimes mechanical, however, and some links between sentences are unclear. In the second body paragraph, “if they wish working another country” runs into the next idea without a clear sentence boundary, while “if they return” is separated from the example it qualifies. Use full stops and linking phrases more carefully, and make references such as “these skills” unmistakably connected to the preceding point.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use enough topic-related vocabulary to communicate the main ideas, including “shortage of skilled workers,” “career opportunities,” and “valuable experience.” There are also attempts at more specific language, such as “modern techniques” and “professional knowledge.” However, spelling and word-choice errors are noticeable and sometimes make the reader pause: “ilustrate,” “theie,” “benefits,” and “carrer” are inaccurate, and “improved working skills” does not express the intended benefit naturally. Some wording is repetitive, particularly “skills” and “work.” Aim for more accurate collocations and proofread spelling; this would make your vocabulary more precise and help you express the argument with greater flexibility.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and complex sentences, including conditional structures such as “If these professionals leave the country” and a relative clause in “an engineer who works abroad.” These forms help explain causes and possible outcomes. However, several sentence-boundary and clause-structure errors reduce accuracy. For example, “if they wish working another country if they wish” lacks a clear grammatical connection, and “people may not have enough staff to treat patients as a result, people may find it difficult” joins two independent clauses incorrectly. There are also errors with articles and verb forms, as in “a proper medical care” and “professionals workings.” Use complete sentences, check verb forms and articles, and punctuate clauses carefully while continuing to practise complex structures.

See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.