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)
It is recommeded , all undergraduate programmes should have a period of time to study abroad or doing a work placement. while the benefits of this advancement includes social experience and improving communication skill and better. life experience, the potential drawbacks such as financial stability cannot be overlooked. In my opinion, the advantages outweigh the disadvantages.
On the one hand, the advantages of studying abroad or working during undergraduation course involves untrod expouser to the social life and getting work experience ahead of starting actual working life. As, if the students get a chance to study abroad, they will learn about beyond the acedmic life, learning about new culture and language and it will also improve their confidence and communication skills. Workin A gob will make them financial independent having an experience of work will me improve their working skills. For example, in USA the
students get work at the university campus which is a good way of making money for them.
On the other hand,
One substantial drawback of this advancement is that the scholars may get distracted from their actual goal and spend their all time working while studying abroad may make them independent it can also lead to a bad path for instance, the students studying abroad from India is facing discrimination.
In conclusion, although the student get distracted from their studies, the actual benefit such as financial independence and better social and working life and improvement in communication skills clearly outweigh the drawbacks in my view.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response addresses the prompt and maintains a clear position throughout. However, the development of ideas is inconsistent. While the benefits are mentioned, the explanation of the drawbacks is somewhat superficial and lacks logical depth. For instance, the point about discrimination is introduced but not clearly linked back to the argument regarding whether the advantages outweigh the disadvantages. The ideas are relevant, but the supporting evidence, such as the mention of students in the USA or India, is underdeveloped and lacks sufficient detail to fully support the claims made. To reach a higher band, you should aim to expand on your arguments with more cohesive reasoning and specific examples.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay is organized into paragraphs, and there is a clear attempt at logical progression. You use basic cohesive devices like 'On the one hand' and 'On the other hand' to signal shifts in the argument. However, the flow between sentences is sometimes mechanical, and there are instances where the connection between ideas is weak, such as the abrupt transition in the second paragraph regarding work experience. Referencing is occasionally unclear, and the paragraphing is somewhat fragmented, particularly with the single-sentence paragraph structure used in the second half of the essay. Improving the use of linking words and ensuring smoother transitions would enhance the overall coherence.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The range of vocabulary is adequate for the task but lacks precision and sophistication. There are several spelling errors, such as 'recommeded', 'acedmic', 'Workin', and 'A gob', which detract from the quality of the writing. You rely on somewhat repetitive or simple phrasing, such as 'good way of making money' and 'bad path'. While you attempt to use some topic-specific vocabulary like 'financial independence' and 'undergraduation', the overall lexical control is limited. To improve, focus on using more precise academic collocations and ensure careful proofreading to eliminate basic spelling mistakes that hinder the professional tone of the essay.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The essay contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors that occasionally impede readability. Issues include subject-verb agreement (e.g., 'the benefits... includes'), awkward phrasing (e.g., 'untrod expouser'), and punctuation errors, such as the misplaced comma after 'recommeded'. Some sentences are grammatically incomplete or poorly constructed, such as 'Workin A gob will make them financial independent having an experience of work will me improve their working skills.' While the meaning is generally understandable, the high frequency of errors in basic grammar and sentence construction limits the score. Focusing on sentence structure and proofreading for basic errors is essential.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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