Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · 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 5.5)

The given graph depicts the data regarding the jobs present in manufacturing, retail, agriculture and healthcare sector in the US economy, between 1960 and 2020. The unit used to measure number of jobs per year is in millions.

It is clear from the graph that the jobs in retail and healthcare sector increases with succeeding years, whereas a slight fluctuation is seen in manufacturing and agriculture sector. In terms of job market, the healthcare sector rose drastically, while a sudden drop is seen in manufacturing sector.

The graph clearly represents the similarity of how the the demand for retail and healthcare related job sector rose to nearly 16 million (starting from, around 6 and 2 million to nearly doubling each year). The manufacturing domain saw the greatest set back after 1980 dropping from 20 million jobs to around 12 million jobs. Likewise, agriculture sector noticed a dip on 1980 from nearly 6 million jobs to 3million jobs and it was maintained steadily till the year 2000 but then it again started decreasing to around 2 million by the year 2020.

Hence, it is clear that the healthcare and retail sectors are the growing ones.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

The student covers all four sectors (manufacturing, retail, agriculture, and healthcare) and attempts to report main features and comparisons over the 1960-2020 period. The overview in the second paragraph correctly identifies the overall upward trends in retail and healthcare, and fluctuations/declines in manufacturing and agriculture. However, there are some inaccuracies in reporting specific data points. For instance, the student states that retail and healthcare jobs 'rose to nearly 16 million (starting from around 6 and 2 million to nearly doubling each year)', which is confusing and inaccurate regarding the trajectory. Additionally, manufacturing is said to drop to 'around 12 million' by 2020, whereas the graph indicates approximately 13 million. Despite these minor data reading discrepancies, the key trends are captured, and the task is adequately addressed overall.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response is arranged into logical paragraphs, beginning with an introduction, followed by an overview, body details, and a concluding summary. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'It is clear from the graph', 'In terms of job market', and 'Hence'. However, some cohesive links and phrasing are awkward or repetitive, such as the repetitive use of 'It is clear'. Paragraphing is present and appropriate, but overall cohesion occasionally feels mechanical or slightly disjointed, particularly in the third paragraph where multiple trends are bundled together without smooth transitions.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The vocabulary is adequate for the task, successfully using domain-specific terms such as 'manufacturing', 'retail', 'agriculture', 'healthcare', and 'millions'. The student attempts some less common vocabulary and phrases ('fluctuation', 'rose drastically', 'greatest set back'), though some collocations and word forms are awkward or slightly inaccurate, such as 'jobs present in manufacturing... sector' instead of 'in the manufacturing sector' and 'set back' written as two words instead of 'setback'. Spelling is generally accurate, but the lexical range remains somewhat restricted and repetitive.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The student demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, such as relative clauses and introductory dependent clauses ('The given graph depicts...', 'It is clear from the graph that...'). There are, however, several grammatical errors throughout the text. For example, subject-verb agreement issues occur: 'the jobs in retail and healthcare sector increases' instead of 'increase'. Article errors are also present, such as 'in retail and healthcare sector' missing pluralisation or articles, and 'how the the demand'. Punctuation is generally acceptable, and these errors do not impede overall communication.

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