Band 7.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 7.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-30
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 different economic sectors in the United States over a 60-year period from 1960 to 2020.
Overall, it is clear that the service-oriented sectors—namely retail and healthcare—experienced substantial growth throughout the period, eventually overtaking traditional industries. Conversely, manufacturing showed a pattern of initial growth followed by a steady decline, while agriculture consistently employed the lowest number of people.
In 1960, manufacturing was the dominant sector, employing 15 million people. This figure peaked at 20 million in 1980 before experiencing a continuous drop over the next four decades, finishing at approximately 13 million by 2020. Agriculture started with 5 million workers in 1960, but this number dipped to 3 million in 1980 and remained stable until 2000, before a final decrease to around 2 million by 2020.
In contrast, retail and healthcare showed strong upward trajectories. Retail employment rose steadily from 6 million in 1960 to peak at roughly 16 million in 2020. Healthcare began as the smallest sector with only 2 million jobs in 1960, but it witnessed the most dramatic growth, climbing consistently to reach about 16 million by 2020, matching retail as the top employment sector by the end of the timeframe.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 7.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 7.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 7.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 7.5 |
| Overall | 7.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.5
The student fully addresses all parts of the task by accurately summarising the main features and making clear, relevant comparisons across the four economic sectors over the 60-year period. The overview is well-crafted, effectively highlighting the overall trends such as the growth of service-oriented sectors and the decline of manufacturing and agriculture. Specific data points—such as manufacturing peaking at 20 million in 1980 and healthcare rising from 2 million in 1960—are cited accurately and align closely with the visual data. The response meets all requirements for Task Achievement at a high level.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.5
The response is logically organized with a clear overall progression from introduction to overview, followed by detailed body paragraphs. Paragraphing is used appropriately, separating the declining sectors from the growing ones effectively. Cohesive devices are handled well (e.g., 'Conversely', 'In contrast'), ensuring smooth transitions between ideas without being obtrusive. Referencing throughout the text is clear, making the relationships between data points easy to follow.
Lexical Resource: Band 7.5
The student demonstrates a wide and flexible vocabulary appropriate for an academic task, utilizing terms such as 'service-oriented sectors', 'substantial growth', 'upward trajectories', and 'continuous drop'. Less common lexical items are used naturally and with good awareness of collocation (e.g., 'dominant sector', 'employment numbers'). There are no notable spelling or word choice errors, supporting clear and precise communication.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 7.5
The response exhibits a wide range of complex sentence structures used with a high degree of accuracy. The majority of sentences are error-free, and clauses are integrated smoothly (e.g., 'Agriculture started with 5 million workers in 1960, but this number dipped to 3 million in 1980 and remained stable until 2000...'). Control over punctuation, verb tenses for past data, and modifiers is strong, with only very occasional, non-systematic slips.
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