Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-22

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 5.0)

The line graph illustrates job ratio in four different sectors in US from the year 1960 to 2020.

In 1960, manufacturing sector provided 15 millions jobs and retail and agriculture sector gives almost 7 millions job while, healthcare sector provide only 3 millions job roughly. Moreover , in 1980, manufacturing sector and reaches to 20 millions job, and retail sector rise to 10 millions job, while healthcare only provides 5 million jobs and the least job provider sector is agriculture by only 4 million jobs aproximately.

However, the manufacturing sector decline to 17 millions job significantly but, retail sector rises to 15 million jobs and 12 million job are alloted by healthcare sector. Furthermore, manufacturing , retail and healthcare sector located at 13 million jobs in year 2020, in addition, the agriculture is the lowest provider for job opportunities.

Overall, retail and healthcare sector providing the more jobs to individuals while, healthcare sector is the least provider for job in every year. Even though, the manufacturing sector has a rising trend but after few time span its started declining.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0

The student attempts to cover all four sectors across the years provided, satisfying the basic requirements of Task 1. However, there are notable inaccuracies in reading the data from the graph. For instance, the student states that in 2020, the manufacturing, retail, and healthcare sectors all 'located at 13 million jobs', whereas the graph clearly shows retail and healthcare at 16 million and manufacturing at 13 million. Furthermore, the overview contains a contradictory and confused summary, claiming that healthcare provides 'more jobs' while simultaneously stating it is the 'least provider for job in every year'. This places the response within the Band 5 descriptor, as the information is sometimes inaccurate, and the main trends are not fully or correctly reported.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0

The response is structured into distinct paragraphs representing an introduction, body paragraphs for different time periods, and an overview. However, the logical progression is hindered by frequent referencing errors and awkward cohesive devices, such as starting sentences with 'Moreover', 'However', and 'Furthermore' without logical justification for contrast or addition. The conclusion is internally contradictory ('retail and healthcare sector providing the more jobs... while, healthcare sector is the least provider'), which disrupts the overall coherence of the text. Paragraphing is attempted, but paragraph boundaries and internal sequencing require better control to achieve a higher band score.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The vocabulary used is adequate for basic communication, featuring common terms related to graphs and economic sectors such as 'sector', 'trend', and 'jobs'. However, there is a very limited and repetitive range, with persistent word-choice and collocation errors (e.g., 'job ratio' instead of 'number of jobs', 'provided 15 millions jobs' with pluralisation errors on the noun modifier, and 'alloted' instead of 'accounted for' or 'provided'). Less common vocabulary is attempted with frequent inaccuracy. Spelling is generally acceptable, but lexical control remains restricted to a Band 5 level due to limited flexibility and frequent awkward phrasing.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, incorporating time markers and relative clauses. However, grammatical accuracy is weak, with frequent basic errors throughout the text. Examples include subject-verb agreement issues ('retail and agriculture sector gives'), incorrect plural forms with numbers ('15 millions jobs'), and prepositional errors ('in US' instead of 'in the US'). Tense consistency is also poorly managed, shifting awkwardly between past and present reference points. Because these frequent errors cause occasional difficulty for the reader and simple sentences are often flawed, the response aligns best with Band 5 descriptors.

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.