Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · 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 6.0)

I believe it is an incredible idea to make students spend some time studying abroad or doing a job during their undergraduate but it should not be mandatory. There are many positive and negative aspects of this.

Firstly, let's talk about advantages. I think studying abroad makes you responsible and mature. You also feel confident when you're doing the things all by yourself because when we are at home, we are depending on our family members for our daily chores. For instance, before university when i was living with my parents, my mother and sister used to do my laundary and make food for me. My sister also used to make my bed. I was the spoiled kid. But when i moved to another city to start my university, i started doing things all by myself which made me so much responsible. I started managing my day and time. Now, i feel like i am a better person. Doing job helps you grow professionally. You learn about the office environment and work management. It can help students to feel confident at their jobs when they will start working after their graduation.

There are also a few disadvantages. Sometimes, students start ignoring studies when they live alone. Now, they are living alone so they don't have anyone to restrict them. So, they start wasting so much time and it can be devastating for their career. Doing a job during degree is good but when students start earning, they might prefer money over education and continue their jobs. It is very hard to manage full-time jobs with your university when you are an undergraduate student. As a result, many students start missing classes and their performance becomes worse.

As a conclusion, i would say it is a good decision to include these things in the courses but we should also educate our students how to take benefit from these and don't harm their career.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

Your position is clear: you support including overseas study or work experience, but argue that it should not be compulsory. You address both benefits and drawbacks, and the personal example about becoming more independent after moving away from home gives relevant support. The professional benefits of a job and the risks of neglecting study are also pertinent. However, the response does not fully resolve the question of whether the advantages outweigh the disadvantages: the conclusion calls the idea good but does not explicitly compare the two sides or explain why the benefits are stronger. Some points, such as students preferring money to education, would be more convincing with further explanation or a specific example. Make the comparison explicit and develop the less-supported claims.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a coherent overall structure, moving from an introduction to advantages, disadvantages and a conclusion. Paragraphing helps the reader follow the main stages, and signposts such as “Firstly,” “There are also a few disadvantages” and “As a conclusion” make the organisation clear. Within paragraphs, however, some links feel mechanical or repetitive: several sentences begin with “I” or “you,” and “So” is used repeatedly to connect consequences. The shift between studying abroad and moving to another city is understandable, but the example could be tied more explicitly to the broader point about overseas study. Use a wider range of linking and referencing, and make the relationship between each example and its main idea clearer.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use enough vocabulary to communicate the main ideas, including relevant terms such as “responsible,” “professionally,” “office environment” and “performance.” The personal example also gives you opportunities to describe independence and work experience. However, the range is often general or conversational, with repeated words such as “good,” “things,” “students” and “job.” Some choices are imprecise or unnatural, including “take benefit from these” and “doing a job during degree.” There are also spelling errors, such as “laundary,” which reduce accuracy. Aim for more precise academic collocations and vary repeated vocabulary; for example, describe work experience as developing “professional skills” and explain how students can “benefit from” a placement.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You use a mix of short statements and longer sentences, including clauses with “because,” “when” and “as a result,” so the response is not limited to simple sentence patterns. Most ideas remain understandable despite some grammatical errors. For example, “when they will start working” uses an unsuitable future form after “when”; “when they start working” is more natural. In “how to take benefit from these and don't harm their career,” the structures are not parallel, and the pronoun reference is unclear. Capitalisation is also inconsistent, as in “i.” Review verb forms in time clauses, parallel constructions and punctuation, while continuing to use complex sentences. Greater control of these patterns would make the writing smoother and more accurate.

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