Band 4.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-11-05

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

All university undergraduate courses should include a period of time spent studying abroad or doing a work placement.

Do you think the advantages of this would outweigh the disadvantages?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Student answer (Band 4.5)

Most university undergraduate courses must consist of a periods of time spent studying abroad or doing a work placement in their field. In my opinion, opting for a work placement should be included. However, by just including period of time spent studying abroad motivates students to focus better on their course.

Firstly, studying abroad has it's drawbacks, it is not an affordable option for everyone. For example, some courses cost is significantly higher than others and scholarship is not easy to obtain. Moreover, homesickness is something students have to deal with on daily basies. For instance, due to being homesick they are prone to get demotivate and fail their courses. Also, is it not an easy task for an International student to get a job. Thus, they might have to face financial troubles, which might also be devastating for them mentally and physically.

Secondly, opting for placements

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 3.5

You identify relevant disadvantages of studying abroad, including cost, homesickness and difficulty finding work, and you state that work placements should be included. However, the response does not clearly answer whether the advantages of requiring either option outweigh the disadvantages. The opening shifts between supporting placements and claiming that studying abroad motivates students, without establishing a consistent overall position. The placement paragraph is unfinished, so the advantages are not explained or supported, and the discussion remains very limited. The response contains 137 words, below the required 250; 10 words copied from the task prompt were not counted. To improve, state your position directly and develop both sides with explanations and examples before reaching a clear conclusion.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.0

There is a basic attempt to organise the response: the opening introduces the topic, and “Firstly” and “Secondly” signal separate points. The first body paragraph also groups several disadvantages together, with examples introduced by “For example” and “For instance.” However, the overall progression is incomplete: the second paragraph stops at “Secondly, opting for placements,” leaving the argument unfinished and without a conclusion. The opening’s ideas are also difficult to connect, as the preference for placements is followed by a separate claim about studying abroad motivating students. Build a complete sequence—position, developed arguments, and conclusion—and use linking phrases to show how each point supports your answer.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use a reasonably varied set of topic-related expressions, including “scholarship,” “homesickness,” “financial troubles,” and “devastating … mentally and physically.” These choices help communicate the disadvantages of studying abroad. Some wording, however, is inaccurate or awkward: “a periods of time,” “on daily basies,” and “get demotivate” reduce precision, while “some courses cost is significantly higher” is not a natural way to express the idea. The vocabulary is sufficient to convey the main points, but greater accuracy in collocation, word forms and spelling would make the argument clearer and more fluent. Practise checking whether each phrase is idiomatic in its sentence, rather than relying on topic vocabulary alone.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response attempts some sentence variety, including a conditional construction in “if … they are prone to get demotivate” and a relative clause in “which might also be devastating for them.” However, control is uneven, and several errors affect sentence structure and accuracy. For example, “studying abroad has it's drawbacks, it is not an affordable option” joins two independent clauses incorrectly, and “some courses cost is significantly higher” has faulty sentence structure. There are also errors in articles, plurals and agreement, such as “a periods” and “scholarship is not easy to obtain.” Aim to form complete, correctly punctuated sentences and check agreement and verb forms. More accurate control of these patterns would make your ideas easier to follow.

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