Band 7.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-08-19

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The graph below gives information about the number of jobs in four sectors of the economy in the US between 1960 and 2020.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

Number of jobs in four sectors of the economy in the US, 1960-2020

Student answer (Band 7.5)

The line graph illustrates the changes in employment numbers across four economic sectors in the United States between 1960 and 2020.

Overall, it is apparent that manufacturing was the dominant sector in 1960 but experienced an overall decline. Conversely, both healthcare and retail witnessed substantial increases, with healthcare showing the most dramatic growth. Agriculture, meanwhile, remained the smallest sector throughout the period.

In 1960, manufacturing employed approximately 15 million people, which was the highest figure among the four sectors. It increased to a peak of around 20 million in 1980 before declining steadily to about 13 million in 2020. By comparison, both retail and healthcare started at much lower levels, with 6 million and 2 million jobs respectively. However, they experienced consistent growth throughout the period. Retail rose to roughly 16 million by 2020, while healthcare saw the most dramatic increase, climbing to approximately 15 million. As a result, both sectors overtook manufacturing by 2020.

In contrast, agriculture was the only other sector to see a decline. It fell gradually from 5 million jobs in 1960 to just 2 million in 2020, making it the smallest sector by the end of the period.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.5

The response effectively addresses all parts of the task. You have provided a clear overview of the trends and successfully selected key features, such as the peak in manufacturing and the significant growth in healthcare. Comparisons are made throughout, such as noting that retail and healthcare overtook manufacturing by 2020. The data is accurately reported, and the summary is well-balanced, covering all four sectors appropriately. You have fulfilled the requirements of an Academic Task 1 response by highlighting the main trends and supporting them with relevant data points.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.5

The response is logically organized with a clear introduction, an overview, and two body paragraphs that group the information effectively. Cohesive devices such as 'Conversely', 'By comparison', and 'In contrast' are used naturally to guide the reader through the comparisons. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the trends of the growing sectors from the declining ones. The progression of ideas is smooth, and each sentence contributes to the overall clarity of the report.

Lexical Resource — Band 7.0

You demonstrate a good range of vocabulary appropriate for describing trends, such as 'dominant sector', 'substantial increases', 'dramatic growth', and 'declining steadily'. The language is precise and fits the context of an economic report well. There are no spelling errors, and the word choice is consistently accurate. To reach a higher band, you could incorporate slightly more sophisticated collocations or varied synonyms for 'increase' and 'decrease' to show even greater flexibility.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 7.5

The writing is highly accurate with a variety of complex sentence structures. You use subordinate clauses effectively, such as 'which was the highest figure among the four sectors' and 'making it the smallest sector by the end of the period'. Punctuation is used correctly throughout, and there are no significant grammatical errors. The control over tense and subject-verb agreement is consistent, making the text very easy to read and professional in tone.

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