Band 4.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 4.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-18
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 4.5)
In my perspective if my university sent me to study abroad or completing my internship in a work place i would see it as an advantageous decision due to the experience that i will obtain frome this work . First you will be more confident in yourself because you are taking the responsability of being a successeful person due to the challenges that will face you in the begining , secondly knowing new professors or co workers will help getting along with the lifestyle of occupation also you will be more skilled in your speciality since your univesity sent you to a well-known other university or work place and for me as i am studying dentistry that combine between theoritical and a demanding practical work i would be pleased if my university require me to do work placement because in you will see more cases and as well you will gain more information you will get more skilled more confident in applying your theoritical knoweldge in real life in real patients and also you will get use to what you have studied in univesity in fact of practical work , therfor going to study in a university abroad is such as an immense improvement due to helping you to enhance your scientific knowledge
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 4.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 4.0 |
| Overall | 4.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0
The response addresses the prompt by expressing a clear position that the advantages of studying abroad or doing a work placement outweigh the disadvantages, using the student's background in dentistry as a relevant example. However, the task achievement is constrained by two main factors. Firstly, the response fails to meet the minimum word count requirement of 250 words, coming in at only 213 words, which means ideas are not fully developed. Secondly, the prompt asks whether the advantages outweigh the disadvantages, yet the student focuses exclusively on the advantages and does not acknowledge or discuss any potential disadvantages. Ideas such as gaining confidence and improving practical skills are relevant but remain somewhat repetitive and under-developed due to the lack of extension and the missing counter-perspective. Therefore, the task is addressed only partially, warranting a Band 5.0.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 4.0
The entire response is written as a single, extraordinarily long, run-on sentence containing numerous clauses linked together by repetitive conjunctions like 'and', 'because', and 'also'. There is a complete lack of paragraphing, which makes the text visually daunting and difficult to navigate. Cohesive devices are either missing or misused, relying on rudimentary transitions like 'First' and 'secondly' without proper punctuation or sentence breaks. Although there is an underlying logical progression tracking from general confidence to specific dental practice, the absence of standard paragraph structure and the failure to use punctuation to guide the reader means that overall coherence is severely compromised. This corresponds to a Band 4.0 descriptor level, as information and ideas are not arranged in a coherent, reader-friendly manner.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.0
The student demonstrates a sufficient range of vocabulary to communicate basic ideas related to education and professional placement, using terms such as 'advantageous', 'internship', 'speciality', 'theoritical', and 'scientific knowledge'. However, there are frequent spelling errors ('completing' instead of completing, 'responsability', 'successeful', 'begining', 'univesity', 'theoritical', 'knoweldge', 'therfor'), morphological slips ('studying abroad or completing', shifting verb forms), and imprecise word choices. Less common vocabulary is attempted with limited success and noticeable errors that occasionally cause difficulty for the reader. While the vocabulary is adequate to express personal intent, the persistent spelling and word-formation errors place this firmly at Band 5.0.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 4.0
The grammatical range is extremely limited by the construction of the entire text as one gigantic, unpunctuated sentence. While there are subordinate clauses attempting complex structures (e.g., 'if my university sent me to study abroad... i would see it as an advantageous decision'), the complete lack of periods, capitalisation at sentence beginnings, and correct comma usage creates serious structural issues. Errors are extremely frequent, particularly run-on clauses, comma splices, and faulty agreement. Although the meaning can eventually be deciphered, the total absence of standard sentence boundaries and punctuation means that grammatical accuracy and control are severely lacking, aligning with the descriptors for Band 4.0.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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