Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-14

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 UNIVERSALLY ACKNOWLEGED THAT MODERN TECHNOLOGY HAS BROUGHT ABOUT A SIGNIFICANT CHANGES IN A WAY PEOPLE LIVE AND WORK. SIMILARLY ALL UNIVERSITY undergraduate courses should include a period of time spent studying abroad or doing a work placement. THOUGH IT COMES WITH BENEFITS, YET DRAWBACKS ARE INEVITABLE. HOWEVER, THIS EASSY PONDERS UPON POSSIBLE MERITS AND DEMERITS OF THIS PHENOMENON.

AT THE OUTSET, THE PROMINENT ADVANTAGE CAN BE STATED AS, STUDENTS CAN DEVELOP THEIR COMMUNICATION SKILLS AND SOCIAL SKILLS AS LIVING IN ANOTHER COUNTRY ALLOWS YOUNG INDIVIDUALS TO INTERACT WITH PUPILS FROM DIFFERENT CULTURE AND BACKGROUNDS AS A RESULT THEY CAN BECAME MORE CONFIDENT AND INDEPENDENT. FOR INSTANCE: AN INDIAN STUDENT WHO STUDIES IN UK MAY HAVE TO COMMUNICATE WITH INTERNATIONAL STUDENT, ANAGE DAILY TASKS AND ADOPT NEW EDUCATION SYSTEM.

NEXT COMES OTHER PROS LIKE IF STUDENT GET A CHANCE TO WORK IN A COMPANY AS AN INTERNT IT MAY HELPS TO IMPROVE THIER WORK SKILLS AS MOST OF THE UNIVERSITY FOCUSSING ONLY ON THEORITICAL KNOWLEGE AND MOST OF THE STUDENTS DO NOT KNOW HOW TO IMPLEMENT SUCH KNOELEGE INTO THEIR FIELD SO IF THE GOES THROUGH PRACTICAL STUDIES IT HELPAS TO UNDERSTAND THE REAL PROBLEMS AND LEAR WHO TO TACKLE SUCH PROBLEMS LIKE IF AN ENGINNER STUDENTS DO AN INTERNSHIP HAVE MUCH KNOWLEGE ABOUT THE FIELD AS COMAPRED A STUDENT WHO ONLY FOCUS ON THEORY PORTION.

ON CONTRARY, IT RAISES SOME ISSES ALSO LIKE STUDYING ABOARD CAN BE EXPENSIVE BECAUSE STUDENT HAVE TO PAY FOR FEES, TRAVEL , ACCOMMODATION AND OTHER LIVING EXPENSIVES. MOREOVER, SOME INDIVIDUALS FEEL HOMESICKNESSOR FIND IT DIFFICULT TO ADOPT A NEW CULTURE. NEVERTHELESS, UNIVERSITIES CAN REDUCE SUCH ISSUES BY PROVIDING SCHOLARSHIPS AND PROPER SUPPORT FOR INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS.

TO CONCLUDE, EVEN THOUGH IT HAS FEW DEMERITS, MERITS SEEMS TO BE OUTWEIGHED BUT STILL RATINAL APPROACH MUST BE FOLLOWED IN ORDER TO IMPROVE IT BENEFICICAL FOR MANKIND.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response addresses all parts of the task by discussing both the advantages and disadvantages of including study abroad or work placements in undergraduate courses, and presents a clear position that the advantages outweigh the disadvantages. Ideas are extended with some examples, such as an Indian student studying in the UK and engineering internships. However, some arguments are repetitive and border on over-generalization, particularly regarding how universities focus only on theoretical knowledge. The opening paragraph contains a slightly disjointed introduction regarding technology that is not fully integrated into the prompt's theme, but the core response remains relevant and well-directed.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is divided into appropriate paragraphs, starting with an introduction, body paragraphs for pros and cons, and a conclusion. Cohesive devices are utilized, such as 'AT THE OUTSET', 'NEXT COMES OTHER PROS LIKE', and 'ON CONTRARY', although some of these transitional phrases are rather unnatural or overly conversational. Logical progression is generally maintained throughout, but referencing and linking within sentences are occasionally faulty or overly mechanical, such as running multiple clauses together without proper punctuation or conjunctions.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The student attempts a range of vocabulary suitable for an academic essay, including terms like 'phenomenon', 'internship', 'homesickness', and 'rational approach'. However, there are numerous lexical and spelling errors that detract from the precision of the writing, such as 'EASSY' for essay, 'BECAME' for become, 'ANAGE' for manage, 'INTERNT' for intern, 'THEORITICAL KNOWLEGE' for theoretical knowledge, 'LEAR' for learn, and 'RATINAL' for rational. These errors show a lack of control over word formation and spelling, capping the lexical score.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The essay displays a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but it is heavily marred by persistent grammatical errors and punctuation issues. Many sentences are extremely long run-on sentences lacking proper punctuation, such as the second body paragraph which strings together multiple clauses with 'so if the goes through...'. There are also frequent slips in verb forms, articles, and agreement, such as 'student have', 'expensives', and 'merits seems'. These structural inaccuracies frequently require the reader to pause, placing it firmly in the Band 5.0 range.

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

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