Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · 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 5.0)

All university students has right to choose whether studying abroad or doing a work placement. there are some advantages and the disadvantages for both choices. University has different major courses. the students spent about four years to graduate from the university. Each field of study has its challenge. After spending for years in university, if the students choose to continue studying abroad, I think they will have more experience. they will get more insight because studying abroad means they have to adapt to environment, new culture, new people, new perspective and new custom. The disadvantage of this choice is going to feel home sick. It's not same with your original country. You have to face the challenge a head by yourself. Everything

around must fit with your financial and condition.

The second choice is doing a work placement. I think after graduate you will implement the knowledge you got from the university to practice in working area. The advantage is payroll. At first, maybe you will get minimum wage because you are newbee or lack of experience. But shortly, you will master your job and it wil benefit you as personal branding then your salary will increase rapidly. The disadvantage, ai think you will get bored and cant increase your ability since you are doing same job every single day.

The conclusion of this essay, I would say if you choose to get more experience and excitement, you should spend studying abroad and if you have financial issues, you should take placement test for working.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You discuss both studying abroad and work placements, and you identify relevant benefits and drawbacks, such as cultural exposure, homesickness, pay and repetitive work. However, the task asks whether the advantages of making one of these experiences part of every undergraduate course outweigh the disadvantages. Your response mainly describes the two options and gives advice about choosing between them, rather than clearly comparing their overall advantages and disadvantages or stating a consistent answer to the question. For example, the conclusion recommends studying abroad for excitement or a placement for financial reasons, but does not say whether the policy should apply to all students. Develop a direct position and support it with specific explanations or examples.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable sequence: an introduction, a discussion of studying abroad, a paragraph on work placement, and a conclusion. This helps readers follow the two options. However, progression is limited because the paragraphs mostly list points rather than build a comparison that leads to a clear answer. Some links are abrupt or unclear, such as moving from the placement’s pay to “personal branding” and then to salary increases. The conclusion also introduces financial issues without connecting them clearly to the overall question. Use topic sentences that state each paragraph’s main point, and link benefits and drawbacks explicitly with transitions such as “By contrast” or “Although this may…”.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use some relevant vocabulary for the topic, including “adapt to environment,” “new culture,” “minimum wage,” and “financial issues.” These choices make the main subject understandable, but the range is limited and several word choices or collocations are inaccurate or unclear. For instance, “payroll” does not express the benefit of earning a salary, “newbee” is not appropriate in this context, and “placement test for working” does not mean a work placement. “Personal branding” is also not clearly connected to the point about gaining experience. Aim for more precise academic phrasing, such as “earn an income,” “inexperienced,” and “work-placement opportunity,” and check spelling and collocations before submitting.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt some longer sentences and conditional structures, for example, “if the students choose to continue studying abroad, I think they will have more experience.” However, sentence forms are limited overall, and frequent errors in agreement, verb forms, articles and sentence boundaries sometimes make the meaning difficult to follow. Examples include “All university students has,” “After graduate,” and “The conclusion of this essay,” where the grammatical structure is incomplete or incorrect. Capitalisation and punctuation are also inconsistent, including lowercase sentence openings and the unfinished “Everything around must fit with your financial and condition.” Practise accurate simple sentences first, then combine them with controlled clauses; check subject–verb agreement and use complete sentences throughout.

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