Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-08-22

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)

In the modern world, all university should have an undergraduate program which include a where students should spent a period of time spent studying outside the country or doing a work placement. although this trend has several drawback, but advantage outweigh them in long run.

On the first hand, university plays and important role for learning undergraduate course, but spending a time studying abroad creates stress and depress to that children. For example, a boy named Ram went to study abroad, but because of staying away form his friend and family, he was very stress and was feeling lonely, because of this he can't focus on his study. Moreover, doing a work placement can also create more competition on there work experience.

On the other hand, study abroad can also give exposure of working with different people, which help them a lot to learn from their experience. For Instance, A boy named Raju had gone to study abroad, he had met many different people from which he had learned a lot like , due to this his overall skills had developed very much.

Students doing a work placement will get more advantage of getting work experience, so that they can learn very easily. Doing a work placement at the time of undergraduate courses will help them to develop their skills, this student will innovate new technology in future, which will help that country in overall growth.

In conclusion, there are many advantages of studying abroad or doing a work placement which are exposure and work experience which help to develop skills and overall country's development . But there are some disadvantage which are more stress and loneliness and also create more competition.

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response5.0
Coherence and Cohesion5.0
Lexical Resource5.0
Grammatical Range and Accuracy5.0
Overall5.0

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0

The response addresses the task to some extent by discussing both the advantages and disadvantages of studying abroad or doing work placements. However, it lacks depth in analysis, with only two main disadvantages and two advantages presented, which do not adequately back up the claim that advantages outweigh disadvantages. For instance, the evidence provided, such as personal anecdotes of "Ram" and "Raju," are not developed sufficiently to robustly support the argument. Overall, a clearer structure and more examples could enhance task achievement.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0

The coherence and cohesion of the essay is somewhat lacking. Ideas are presented but not always clearly linked. For example, the transition between discussing stress and competition in the first paragraph and the advantages of studying abroad in the second is abrupt. Moreover, the use of phrases like "On the first hand" and "On the other hand" is accurate, but the paragraphs do not flow smoothly, which impacts the readability of the essay. A stronger use of cohesive devices would improve the overall structure.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The lexical resource is limited, with some instances of inappropriate word choice such as "stress and depress" which should be revised to "stress and depression". Additionally, phrases like "more competition on there work experience" contain errors and should be phrased as "more competition in the job market". More varied vocabulary and precise word choices would elevate the writing. Some attempt at complex vocabulary is noted but it remains inconsistent and at times unclear.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

Grammatical accuracy demonstrates notable issues with sentence structure and verb forms, like "children" instead of "students" and "spent" instead of "spend". Errors such as subject-verb agreement and misfit tenses diminish the clarity of expression. For example, "he can't focus on his study" could be better expressed as "he couldn't focus on his studies." While basic sentence structures are utilized correctly, the presence of errors affects the overall grammatical range and accuracy.

Overall feedback

Overall, the essay presents a relevant argument about studying abroad or gaining work experience but lacks depth and clarity in analysis. To improve, focus on strengthening your arguments with detailed examples and clearer connections between points. Additionally, enhance coherence by using a variety of cohesive devices that help link your ideas more effectively. Pay attention to vocabulary choice and grammatical accuracy, as they significantly influence clarity and readability. Aim for a broader range of vocabulary and aim to fix grammatical errors for improved expression.

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

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