Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-08-11

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)

After the establishment of a number of universities and their innovation, it is not yet possible for the universities to include a period of time to study in the foreign countries or to work . In my point of view ,all the universities should pay heed on it .It provides a number of benefits to the youth. It's advantages exceeds it's disadvantages .I will clear my idea in the following paragraph. Firstly, i will like to talk about the idea of studying in the foreign countries . The youth experiences different things .They come to know , how to survive in the abroad without family? How to become independent ? It leads to the realization of the sense of responsibility in the them .It will help them to become mature and make them able to understand the values. It bad impact is only the family-sickness .Students start missing the family members and their motherland .But,this sacrifice does not go in vain. It pays them in the form of maturity and experience,that helps them growing in the life. Let me tell you about one of my friends who is studying in a university that offers such programs.She is way more mature and well-mannered as compare to the others. Secondly, the work placement ,it helps the students to support their parents or at least help them to earn apart of their studies expenses. They will know about the importance of the money,when they have to suffer for every single penny .It's only disadvantage is that they have to work like beast of burdens. They have to burn the mid night oil.For instance,my own brother has to do a part time job and he suffers a lot but he became responsible. To sum up all my discussion,I will say that its benefits are way more than it disadvantages.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses the prompt by discussing both the advantages and disadvantages of mandatory study abroad or work placements. However, the development of ideas is somewhat superficial. For example, the argument regarding 'family-sickness' and working like 'beast of burdens' lacks depth and could be better supported with more nuanced academic reasoning. While the position is clear throughout, the essay would benefit from a more balanced exploration of the counter-arguments to reach a higher band. The introduction is slightly confusing, as the opening sentence suggests it is not possible for universities to include these programs, which contradicts the subsequent argument.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organized into clear paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the progression of ideas. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'Firstly', 'Secondly', and 'To sum up', though some transitions feel mechanical or slightly forced. The referencing is generally clear, but there are instances where the flow is interrupted by awkward phrasing, such as the transition between the benefits and the drawbacks of work placements. Paragraphing is present, but the internal structure of the paragraphs could be more cohesive to better link the supporting examples to the main points.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is adequate for the task but lacks the precision and variety required for higher bands. There is some reliance on informal or slightly unnatural phrasing, such as 'pay heed on it' and 'beast of burdens'. While the student attempts to use some topic-specific vocabulary, such as 'work placement' and 'maturity', the range is limited. There are also minor errors in word choice and collocation, such as 'family-sickness' (homesickness) and 'growing in the life', which occasionally hinder the natural flow of the writing.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors that affect clarity. Issues include incorrect article usage (e.g., 'in the abroad'), subject-verb agreement errors (e.g., 'It's advantages exceeds'), and punctuation mistakes, such as unnecessary spaces before commas. While the meaning is generally clear, the frequency of these errors prevents the essay from reaching a higher band. The student attempts complex sentences, but they are often marred by inaccuracies, such as 'as compare to the others' instead of 'compared to others'.

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

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