Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-15

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)

All university undergraduate programs should include international education or doing a work placement. Although it has some drawbacks, I believe the benefits are more significant.

On the one hand, many people believe studying abroad is expensive and requires too much time. Most times, having an international academic experience is majorly for people in high or middle socio-economic status. Individuals from low social class might be unable to fund it. Therefore, not all students can afford an international education. In addition, some people believe the time allocated to work placement is unnecessary, students can use that time in the lecture room. For instance, a student who learns slowly will prefer to attend lectures more often than internship , Consequently, work placement consumes a lot of students' time.

On the other hand, international education increases student knowledge about their course. Aside formal learning, student also learn their foreign languages, culture and ethnicity. For example, students who have an international educational training will have a vast knowledge about their courses. Furthermore, work placement is important in tertiary education because it prepares the students for life after school. Work placement provides experience needed by the students, it also allows students to have a practical knowledge about their courses. In other words, work placement teaches undergraduate how to communicate and act in an official setting. To illustrate, an undergraduate who has done a year placement will act more professionally when employed. As a result, studying abroad and doing a work placement provides practical experience and knowledge to the students.

In conclusion, studying abroad or doing a work placement have it disadvantages such as its high cost and the amount of time it required. However, I think the advantages of hand-on practical and extensive knowledge outweigh it.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

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 throughout. The arguments are relevant, such as financial constraints and time consumption on the negative side, and enhanced practical knowledge and professional preparation on the positive side. However, some ideas are a bit repetitive and under-developed, particularly in the discussion of disadvantages. For instance, the point regarding socio-economic status is introduced but not fully extended. Nevertheless, the main position is supported and conclusions are drawn, aligning well with the descriptors for Band 6.5.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay displays a coherent overall arrangement with a clear introduction and conclusion. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate opposing viewpoints, with transitional phrases like 'On the one hand' and 'On the other hand' guiding the reader effectively. However, cohesion at the sentence level is sometimes faulty or mechanical, as seen in comma splices (e.g., 'internship , Consequently') and slightly repetitive referencing. Paragraph organisation is logical, maintaining progression throughout the essay, which justifies a solid Band 6.0 performance.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully attempting less common items such as 'socio-economic status', 'internship', and 'professionally'. However, there are noticeable word-choice and collocation errors, such as 'Aside formal learning' instead of 'Besides formal learning' and 'have it disadvantages' instead of 'have its disadvantages'. There are also minor spelling and pluralisation slips ('undergraduate' instead of 'undergraduates'). Despite these inaccuracies, communication is never impeded, which places the vocabulary squarely at Band 6.0.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The response features a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating attempts at conditional and dependent clauses (e.g., 'a student who learns slowly will prefer...'). However, there are frequent grammatical errors in punctuation, article usage, and subject-verb agreement, such as 'amount of time it required' instead of 'amount of time it requires', and comma splices linking independent clauses. While these errors are noticeable and detract from precision, they rarely impede overall communication, supporting a Band 6.0 score.

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

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