Band 7.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-05

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 7.0)

The line graph gives information about employment opportunities in four sectors of the economy in the US between 1960 and 2020. Overall, manufacturing offered the highest number of jobs, while agriculture declined steadily. The retail and healthcare sector increased significantly.

In 1960, manufacturing sector started the strongest, offering 15 million jobs, while retail and agriculture sector offered 6 million jobs. Healthcare sector ranked the last among all four sectors, offering nearly 3 million jobs.

Next year, in 1980, manufacturing sector boomed and reached the highest level of jobs offerings, with 20 million jobs being offered, while retail and healthcare sectors increased substantially, offering 10 million jobs and 5 million jobs, respectively. In contrast, agriculture sector declined and ranked the last, with only 4 million jobs being offered.

Subsequently, in 2000, manufacturing sector declined significantly, offering nearly 17 million jobs, whereas, retail and healthcare sector surged, reaching 15 million jobs and 11 million jobs, respectively, while agriculture sector remained steady, with 4 million jobs offers.

Lastly, in 2020, manufacturing sector declined further, only offering 13 million jobs, while retail and healthcare sector boomed, both offering 16 million jobs. Agriculture sector declined slightly, dropping to 3 million job offers.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.0

The response successfully addresses all parts of the task by reporting the main features, trends, and comparisons across the four sectors between 1960 and 2020. The overview provided in the introduction captures the overarching trends well, such as manufacturing starting highest and agriculture declining. The student selects and accurately reports key data points, such as manufacturing peaking at 20 million in 1980 and the sharp rise in healthcare and retail. However, there is a slight tendency to over-generalise or state minor chronological figures without always fully extending the implications of the data, which keeps the response at this solid level rather than achieving a higher band. A few minor data points diverge slightly from the gridlines, but this does not detract from the clear coverage of the visual prompt.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

The text demonstrates a clear logical organisation and progression throughout. The response is divided into logical paragraphs, with an introductory overview followed by a chronological breakdown of the decades (1960, 1980, 2000, and 2020). Cohesive devices are used fairly flexibly, such as 'whereas', 'while', and 'in contrast', which help to establish comparisons between the sectors. Paragraphing is used appropriately to group information by time period. While the flow is generally smooth, referencing could occasionally be tighter to avoid minor mechanical transitions like 'Next year, in 1980', which slightly affects the natural progression of timeframes, though the overall progression remains clear and coherent.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.5

The vocabulary used is adequate and shows a sufficient range for the task, allowing the student to describe trends with some precision. Phrases such as 'increased substantially', 'declined steadily', and 'surged' demonstrate an attempt to use less common items with an awareness of style. However, there are some minor inaccuracies in word choice and collocation, such as 'jobs offerings' instead of 'job offers' or 'job opportunities', and 'manufacturing sector started the strongest' rather than 'started at the highest level'. These minor slips in word form and collocation do not impede communication, but they prevent the vocabulary from reaching a higher band of precision and natural control.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 7.0

The response features a good mix of simple and complex sentence forms, incorporating subordinate clauses and comparative structures effectively (e.g., 'while retail and healthcare sectors increased substantially, offering 10 million jobs...'). There are frequent error-free sentences, showing good control of past tense verbs for historical data. Minor errors persist, such as occasional missing articles (e.g., 'Healthcare sector ranked the last') and slight awkwardness in preposition use inside grammatical patterns. Punctuation is generally well-managed, and these minor grammatical slips rarely impede communication or obscure the intended meaning of the report.

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.