Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-08-26

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 6.0)

Nowadays, some people believe that all university undergraduates should include a period of time spent studying abroad or doing a work placement. There are many advantages of it. Although, I believe that the advantages outweigh the disadvantages.

There are several necessary advantages of this approach. Firstly, studying abroad can help students gain knowledge and experience of what they are studying theoretically. They have to interact with people from different cultures, races and languages. There they gain understanding of how to communicate with people of other countries and how to form relations with them. Secondly, work placement provide valuable experience to students to gain knowledge for there practical life. Instead of relying on theoretical knowledge, students can apply what they have learned in real work places and gain develop useful professional skills. For example, a university student studying business can successfully complete work placement in a company and learn how to deal with customers and how to handle different projects.

However, there are also some disadvantages. The main concern is that studying abroad or completing a work placement may increase financial burden on students especially students from low-income families. Accommodation, travel and other living expenses can be expensive. In addition, spending time away from university reduce student attention and interest from studies. Nevertheless, these disadvantages can be reduced through financial support form universities and by carefully organizing work placement according to degree programs.

In conclusion, although compulsory studying abroad or doing a work placement can create many financial issues and academic challenges but I believe that disadvantages outweigh the drawbacks by providing a lot of opportunities.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response addresses all parts of the prompt, providing arguments for both the advantages and disadvantages of mandatory study abroad or work placements. The position is clear from the introduction and maintained throughout. However, the development of ideas is somewhat basic. For instance, the point about 'financial burden' is mentioned but could be more deeply explored with specific examples of how universities might mitigate these costs. The conclusion is slightly repetitive, as it restates the prompt's premise rather than synthesizing the main arguments effectively. To reach a higher band, ensure that each supporting point is fully extended with more nuanced analysis.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is logically organized into clear paragraphs, each with a distinct focus. Cohesive devices such as 'Firstly', 'Secondly', 'However', and 'In conclusion' are used to guide the reader through the argument. While the progression is generally clear, some transitions feel slightly mechanical. Additionally, the referencing is occasionally imprecise, such as in the phrase 'advantages of it' in the introduction, where the pronoun 'it' lacks a clear antecedent. Overall, the paragraphing is appropriate, and the flow of ideas is easy to follow, meeting the requirements for a solid band 6.5 or 7.0.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is adequate for the task, allowing the student to express ideas clearly. There is an attempt to use topic-specific language like 'theoretical knowledge', 'professional skills', and 'financial burden'. However, the range is somewhat limited, and there are occasional errors in word choice and collocation, such as 'gain develop useful professional skills' (a redundant construction) and 'reduce student attention and interest from studies' (which is slightly unnatural). To improve, the student should focus on using more precise collocations and a wider variety of academic vocabulary to demonstrate greater flexibility.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are several grammatical errors that occur throughout the text. Examples include 'work placement provide' (subject-verb agreement error), 'knowledge for there practical life' (incorrect homophone 'there' instead of 'their'), and 'support form universities' (typo). Additionally, the sentence 'Although, I believe that...' is grammatically incorrect as 'Although' should not be used as a standalone conjunction at the start of a sentence in this context. The student demonstrates a reasonable grasp of grammar, but more attention to proofreading and sentence construction is needed.

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