Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · 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 6.5)

The line graph illustrates information about the number of jobs in four different sectors of the economy in the US, which are Manufacturing, Retail, Agriculture, and Healthcare, from 1960 to 2020.

Overall, Manufacturing provided a significant number of jobs initially but then declined over the period. Retail and Healthcare are the sectors that peaked at the end, starting to provide more jobs than Manufacturing. However, Agriculture, rather than increasing, decreased uniformly.

The line graph shows that Manufacturing reached a peak and provided 20 million jobs in 1980, far more than the others; then it fell uniformly and started providing about 14.5 million jobs in 2020, less than Retail and Healthcare. However, Retail and Health were providing far fewer jobs initially, about 5.2 and 2.5 million jobs in 1960. Both sectors increased their number of job opportunities and went to their peak in 2020, providing about 15.1 million jobs.

Agriculture was the only sector that decreased its job opportunities. It provided 5.1 million jobs in 1960. After this, it fell steadily and started providing about 2 million jobs in 2020, way less than the other three sectors.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

The response successfully addresses all parts of the task by selecting and reporting the main features of the line graph covering the four economic sectors in the US between 1960 and 2020. An overview is provided, capturing the overall trends such as the initial dominance and subsequent decline of manufacturing alongside the growth of retail and healthcare. Key features and comparisons are generally well-selected and supported by data figures, such as manufacturing peaking at 20 million jobs in 1980. However, some areas show a slight tendency to under-develop certain details or present minor data approximations that could be sharper to push the response into fully articulated territory. For instance, stating that retail and healthcare both provided 'about 15.1 million jobs' in 2020 overlooks slight divergences visible in the visual data. Overall, the content fully meets the requirements for this band level without relying on the prohibited word-count check.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The text maintains a coherent overall arrangement with a clear logical progression from an introductory overview to body paragraphs dedicated to specific sectors. Paragraphing is used adequately to structure the information, separating manufacturing, retail and healthcare comparisons from the distinct agricultural trend. Cohesive devices are employed reasonably well, with transition words such as 'Overall', 'However', and 'After this' guiding the reader through the data. Nevertheless, referencing and cohesion occasionally feel slightly mechanical rather than entirely natural or sophisticated. For example, the transition between discussing retail and healthcare together and then pivoting back to individual figures could be smoother. This demonstrates the solid organizational skills typical of this band while holding back from higher-level mastery where cohesion is completely unobtrusive.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully attempting less common economic and descriptive terms such as 'sectors', 'dominance', 'uniformly', and 'job opportunities'. Word choices generally convey the intended meaning without impeding communication. However, there are noticeable lexical inaccuracies and awkward collocations that prevent a higher rating. Phrases like 'fell uniformly' instead of 'steadily' or 'consistently', and referring to sectors 'going to their peak' rather than 'reaching a peak', show a limited grasp of precise collocation and natural phrasing. Spelling is generally accurate, but vocabulary flexibility remains constrained by reliance on straightforward descriptive words and occasional less-common word errors.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.5

The writing demonstrates a successful mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing relative clauses and subordinate structures like 'which are Manufacturing, Retail, Agriculture, and Healthcare' and 'while others followed a different path'. There is good control over tense usage for past data trends, spanning past simple verbs like 'reached', 'fell', and 'provided'. Some errors in grammar and punctuation persist, such as occasional awkward preposition usage or minor structural slips, but these rarely impede communication. The structures are sufficiently varied to show control over complex sentences, though they lack the wide, consistently error-free frequency required to push securely into higher band brackets.

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