Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-02
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)
All university undergraduate courses should include a period of time in which students can go abroad for studies or they can do a work placement. This essay will discuss both advantages and disadvantages of this period of time.
On the one hand, this argument can have several advantages for the students. If they would be allowed for work placements then they can manage there fees own and from part time jobs they can also reduce the burden of fees on there parents. Furthermore, parents will not have to pay the fees for there child courses and they can use that money in other purposes. Moreover, through part time jobs learners can also develop new skills. For example, if a student does a job in restaurant then after some period he will come to know, how to manage restaurants and later he can open his own restaurant. Studying abroad students can develop there communication skills better as they meet all kind of people from whole world.
On the other hand, they can also achieve convenient qualification from abroad. But in some cases there are also slight drawbacks of this perspective as to go abroad, high bank statement is required so, instead using that money to go abroad they can utilize their money in there country for courses. Studying abroad can highly cost them. In addition, if they will get a period of time to do work placement then maybe students can face difficulties in education after returning to their studies.
As far I am concerned, there are more benefits of getting students a free time in which they can do part time job and study abroad. The advantages of this would outweigh the disadvantages.
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 essay addresses the prompt by discussing both advantages and disadvantages, and a clear position is stated in the conclusion. However, the development of ideas is somewhat superficial. For instance, the argument regarding 'managing fees' is repetitive, and the point about 'convenient qualification' is vague and lacks clear explanation. While the response covers the requirements, the ideas are not fully extended or supported with sophisticated reasoning. To reach a higher band, you should provide more nuanced arguments and ensure that each point is logically linked back to the core question of whether the benefits outweigh the drawbacks.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay is organized into clear paragraphs, and there is a logical progression of ideas. You use some cohesive devices such as 'On the one hand', 'Furthermore', and 'In addition' to link your points. However, the use of these devices is sometimes mechanical, and the flow between sentences can feel a bit disjointed. For example, the transition between the benefits of part-time work and the drawbacks of studying abroad is abrupt. Improving the variety of your linking words and ensuring that each paragraph has a strong topic sentence would enhance the overall coherence of your writing.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary used is generally adequate for the task, but it lacks the range and precision required for higher bands. There are several instances of word-choice errors and awkward collocations, such as 'manage there fees own' (manage their own fees) and 'convenient qualification'. Additionally, there is a recurring issue with homophones, specifically the confusion between 'there', 'their', and 'they're'. While your meaning is clear, the lack of variety and the persistent spelling/usage errors limit your score. Expanding your vocabulary to include more academic collocations would be beneficial.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
You demonstrate a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but the accuracy is inconsistent. There are frequent grammatical errors, particularly with subject-verb agreement, article usage, and prepositional phrases (e.g., 'in restaurant' instead of 'in a restaurant'). The sentence 'If they would be allowed for work placements then they can manage there fees' contains an unnecessary conditional structure. While these errors do not prevent the reader from understanding your message, they occur frequently enough to impact the overall fluency. Focusing on basic sentence construction and proofreading for common errors will help improve your accuracy.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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