Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-11-13

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 5.0)

Every university should offer the students, a period of time spent studying abroad or doing a work placement for undergraduate courses as it will help students a lot in different phases of their lifes.

Work placements are essential for every student in their undergraduate courses because it enhances their ability to perform better in their relevant field, such as in the medical field nurses and doctors have to complete a work placement where they need to have experience on how to handle patients and take care of them. Without relevant experience in the medical field, there will be higher chances of mistakes which can cost patient's life. Similarly, early childhood is a degree where you need to have some experience by doing a work placement because in this field you have to engage yourself with toddlers and childrens and take care of them, it's a really hard job and without having experience in this field can cost the centre and the parent's of the child as well. There are many more fields which requires a work placement, all university's should provide work placement's for the students as they will take alot of interest while completing their courses.

On the other hand studying abroad is a good option for the students and university's should provide the student, an opportunity to study abroad. Students learn alot in abroad because they are provided with alot of resources. In this digital era, student's can learn a wide range of new things and techniques in their relevant field. In the medical field you learn how to handle patients in a new ways.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

The response is relevant and gives reasons for including placements, especially the examples of medical students and early-childhood students. However, it addresses the question only partially: the task asks whether the advantages outweigh the disadvantages, but the essay mainly argues that these opportunities are useful and does not clearly compare benefits with drawbacks or state a consistent overall judgement. The study-abroad point is also brief and under-developed; the claim that students gain resources and learn new techniques needs a specific explanation or example. To strengthen the response, state clearly whether the advantages outweigh the disadvantages, discuss at least one realistic drawback, and explain why your position remains convincing. The length requirement is met; 12 words copied from the task prompt were not counted.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

There is some organisation: the first body paragraph focuses on work placements, and the next introduces studying abroad with “On the other hand.” The examples also give the reader a basic sense of the essay’s direction. However, the overall progression is limited because there is no developed comparison of advantages and disadvantages and no concluding paragraph to bring the argument together. Connections between ideas are sometimes repetitive or unclear, particularly the repeated claims that universities “should provide” placements or study-abroad opportunities. The second paragraph also shifts quickly from general resources to medical training without explaining the link. Use a clearer sequence—position, benefits, drawbacks, evaluation—and add linking sentences that show how each example supports your answer.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

The vocabulary is sufficient to communicate the main topic, and terms such as “work placement,” “undergraduate courses,” “relevant field,” and “digital era” are appropriate. However, the range is limited and several words or phrases are repeated, including “students,” “field,” “alot,” and “experience.” Some choices are imprecise or unnatural, such as “learn alot in abroad,” “take alot of interest,” and “handle patients in a new ways.” Spelling and word-form errors, including “lifes,” “childrens,” and “university's,” also reduce accuracy. Build a more varied set of expressions for educational and professional benefits, and check spelling and collocations carefully. More precise wording would make the examples clearer and the argument more convincing.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response attempts some longer sentences, including the examples about medical and early-childhood placements, but complex structures are often faulty and the range remains limited. Errors occur in agreement and sentence construction: “it enhances their ability” does not agree with the plural subject “Work placements,” while “all university's should provide” has an incorrect subject form. There are also problems with articles, plurals, and punctuation, as in “a new ways,” “patient's life,” and the comma after “students” in the opening sentence. These errors sometimes make the reader pause, even though the main meaning is generally recoverable. Practise accurate simple sentences first, then connect them with subordinate clauses, checking subject–verb agreement, articles, and apostrophes.

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