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)

Now a days, many undergraduates curriculam include gaining internship experiences or studying at any international university. For many universities, gaining work experiences has become part of their syllabus. However there are both prons and cons to deciding to do this.But In my perspective, the advantage like gaining better work oppourtunities may overlook some of the drawbacks.In this esaay I will discuss some of the reasons why internship are important and some of the challenges to be overcome.

One of the positives of gaining practical knowledge side by side with traditional course outline is that it helps in enhancing and shaping the practical skills of individuals. For example, many students related to field of computer sciende required hands on experience as it will help them to learn technology more depthly. This can make students more proficient in their field.

Secondly, it hepls in gaining confidence and self-awareness and also helps them to be prepared according to market standards as everything is evolving on daily basis due to technology.Take team meeting as an example it improves confidence as well as enahnce creativity of individual that they can't gain just by sitting in traditional classrooms.

Turning to other side of the argument, it may sometime cause over pressure and many students may feel burdenized and can't manage their course and internship greatfully. This often leads to mental and physical issues like depression and obessity.

All things considered, work experience are essnetial for undergraduate students it helps in fost practical skills and self-confidence that eventually helps in better job opportunities after graduation. Personally I believe that the benefits in terms eventually outweigh any negatives.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses the prompt by discussing the advantages and disadvantages of studying abroad or doing a work placement during undergraduate courses. The writer takes a clear position in the introduction and concludes by stating that the advantages outweigh the disadvantages. Ideas are presented regarding practical skills, confidence, and drawbacks like pressure and stress. However, some arguments lack full extension and rely on general statements. For instance, the mention of 'computer science' and 'team meeting' provides some support, but the development remains somewhat brief. Despite these minor limitations, the main parts of the task are adequately covered, aligning well with the Band 6 descriptor.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay displays a coherent overall arrangement with a clear introduction, body paragraphs addressing both sides, and a conclusion. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate distinct ideas, such as practical skills, confidence, and negative impacts. However, cohesion at the sentence level is sometimes faulty or mechanical. There are awkward transitions like 'Turning to other side of the argument' and repetitive use of connective phrases. Referencing is occasionally unclear, and punctuation errors near the beginning affect readability. Progression is visible, but the flow is occasionally disrupted by phrasing issues, which places this text solidly in Band 6.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, attempting less common terms such as 'curriculum', 'proficient', and 'self-awareness'. However, there are notable spelling errors ('curriculam', 'oppourtunities', 'esaay', 'hepls', 'enahnce', 'essnetial', 'fost') and collocation inaccuracies ('study at any international university', 'burdenized', 'greatfully'). Word choice is at times simplistic or imprecise. While communication is not severely impeded, these repeated lexical and spelling errors prevent the response from achieving a higher band, making Band 5.5 a fair assessment.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing structures like conditional and relative clauses. However, there are frequent grammatical errors throughout the text, including tense inconsistencies, missing articles, and run-on sentences ('Take team meeting as an example it improves confidence as well as enahnce creativity...'). Punctuation and capitalization are also problematic in places, such as 'Now a days' and 'But In my perspective'. Although these errors do not completely obscure the meaning, they occur with enough frequency to restrict the score to Band 5.0.

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

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