Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-11-14

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 5.5)

Some people believe that all university students should have to study in another country or get job experience through an internship. I believe the benefits of these work or study experiences are much greater than any drawbacks.

One major advantage is gaining practical, real world work experience through internships. For example if a student is graduated so he/she has already covered their theory section, but for practical hands on practice if proper training is provided it can enhance their skills very well. It is very necessary for every graduate, because without practical knowledge they will be unable to perform well in their society. Going abroad they can strengthen their international networking with professionals which can also results some fruitful experience sharing and problem solving. If graduates go to foreign country to complete their part of education is also very helpful, as they can learn from top class teachers, beside this they can get access to advance labs to perform their experiments.

Major drawbacks are the required funds with the universities which can fulfil these expences. If universities charge more the students, than it can affect the studies of many undergraduates. Due to high expenses it becomes impossible for universities that they can provide these facilities to every graduate. Living and travelling abroad is very expensive which neither universities can provide to every graduate nor every student can afford this.

In conclusion, studying abroad and providing internships by universities to graduates can make them practically strong in their respective fields. They can build international networking and can get hands on practice on advance technologies.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

Your position is clear from the introduction: you believe the benefits outweigh the drawbacks, and the conclusion returns to this view. You address both sides by discussing practical experience, international connections and access to facilities, then the costs to universities and students. These are relevant points, but some are more fully explained than others. The internship example explains how practical training could help graduates, while the claims about learning from “top class teachers” and using advanced laboratories are asserted rather than supported with a specific example or explanation. The disadvantages are also mainly financial. To strengthen the response, explain more precisely how the benefits apply to all students and consider how universities might reduce the cost or address unequal access.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall structure: an introduction, a paragraph on benefits, a paragraph on drawbacks and a conclusion. This makes the main line of argument easy to follow. You also use signposting such as “One major advantage,” “Major drawbacks” and “In conclusion.” However, the benefits paragraph contains several ideas—internships, networking, overseas teaching and laboratory access—without clearly separating or developing them, so progression within it is less controlled. Some links are also awkward or unclear, particularly “beside this” and the shift from students to “graduates.” Consider grouping related benefits into distinct points and using clearer references and transitions to show how each example supports your position.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use a relevant range of vocabulary, including “practical,” “international networking,” “problem solving,” “experiments” and “expenses,” which helps communicate the main ideas. There are also attempts at more specific expressions such as “hands on practice” and “access to advance labs.” However, several word choices and collocations are inaccurate or unnatural, which limits precision: “strengthen their international networking” and “fruitful experience sharing” do not sound idiomatic, while “advance labs” should be expressed differently. Spelling errors such as “expences” are noticeable, and “real world” and “hands on” need standard hyphenation when used as modifiers. Aim to learn vocabulary in natural word partnerships and check spelling and word forms during revision.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and complex sentences, including conditional and reason clauses, as in “If universities charge more the students, than it can affect the studies of many undergraduates.” This shows an effort to vary sentence structure, and the overall meaning is generally understandable. However, some errors recur in verb forms, agreement, articles and sentence construction. For example, “if a student is graduated” is not a correct verb pattern, and “which can also results” has incorrect agreement and verb form. In “If universities charge more the students,” the article and clause punctuation are also problematic. Review these patterns and break up the long sentence beginning “For example” so that its relationships are clearer. More consistently accurate complex sentences would improve control.

See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.

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