Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-01

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 6.5)

The line graph presents the number of jobs in four areas of the economy in the US from the year 1960 to 2020. The lines represent the sectors manufacturing, retail, agriculture and healthcare respectively.

Overall, the healthcare sector saw the largest increase in job number and retail saw the second largest. Munufacturing jobs increased initially but went down later on, whereas, agriculture remained more or less the same.

Healthcare was the sector with the least amount of jobs in 1960 at around 2.4 million. It since saw a gradual increase upto 5 million till 1980. After that the rise was even sharper and reached approximately 16 million in 2020 when it was the sector with most number of jobs along side the retail sector.

Retail sector also saw a sharp increase from 1960 to 2000 going from about 5.1 million to 15 million. But somewhat stagnated in the next 20 years.

Manufacturing started as the sector with most jobs in 1960 and it rose very sharply in the next 20 years. The amount reached 20 million which the highest recorded amount in any sector at any time in the given data. but in the next forty years it continued to decline and eventually reached around 13 million becoming 3rd place in the number of jobs criteria in 2020.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

The response successfully addresses all parts of the task by presenting an overview of the trends and reporting key features for each of the four sectors across the period. For instance, the writer correctly identifies that manufacturing started as the largest sector in 1960 and peaked before declining, while healthcare and retail experienced significant growth. However, some ideas are slightly under-developed or lack full contextualisation, keeping the response at this level. The overview captures the main trends well, but certain details could be more thoroughly supported with precise data comparisons to push into higher bands.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The essay presents a coherent overall arrangement with a clear division into an introduction, an overview, and separate body paragraphs for different sectors. Information flows logically from general trends to specific data points. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'whereas' and 'after that', but some referencing and linking can occasionally feel a bit mechanical or repetitive. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate ideas, which contributes to the logical progression throughout the text, meeting the requirements of this band fully.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, successfully conveying information about trends, such as 'gradual increase', 'sharpest', and 'decline'. The writer attempts less common vocabulary items and phrases like 'stagnated' and 'highest recorded amount'. However, there are occasional spelling and word-choice errors, such as 'Munufacturing' and awkward phrasing like 'number of jobs criteria'. These minor inaccuracies do not impede communication, but they prevent the vocabulary score from reaching higher bands where greater precision and stylistic control are required.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.5

The response demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing structures like relative clauses and comparative forms effectively. There are some errors in grammar and punctuation, such as missing articles ('the retail sector also saw', 'becoming 3rd place') and a punctuation slip in 'data. but in the next'. However, these errors are relatively infrequent and rarely impede communication, reflecting a good control of sentence structures that aligns well with the expected standard for this band.

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