Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-19

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)

Every university undergraduate courses have to add a time to utilize in studying foreign or doing a work placement. Although there are several benefits of studying in abroad because of experiencing other culture , I believe in its disagreement.

On the one hand, some masses are in its favor because of viewpoint experiencing other culture. This is due to fact that people get chance to enhance their knowledge by visiting abroad for their education. They get able to adapt their culture, language, and tradition, individuals can also research about that place and learn more about it. For instance, by doing study in different nation the language barrier get decrease and masses can also make their career stable at that particular place. Therefore, individuals get chance to experience other culture.

On the other hand, I believe in its drawback becuse of financial condition. To elaborate, every student have not a strong financial background, some students study in university on their scholarship basis by which they may face many problems for studying in foreign and few students would not be able to continue their study by which they may stay unemployed for their entire life. Another major reason for my disapproval is parents permission. To justify, many parents would not send their child to the abroad for their higher education because of their safety concerns, they may feel more concious about their chidren. For example, if this viewpoint regulated in society than many students will not get able to achieve higher education by which they have to do labour work for running their house. Thus, some learners may not get able to continue their study if study held in abroad.

To conclude, some masses believe in former statement but I believe in its disapproval because of financial condition and parents permission.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response addresses the prompt by expressing a clear position against making study abroad or work placements mandatory, supporting this view with reasons such as financial constraints and parental concerns. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited and repetitive. For instance, the discussion on financial problems mentions scholarships and unemployment, but the argumentation lacks depth and specific real-world examples, relying instead on generalized statements like "many students will not get able to achieve higher education by which they have to do labour work." While the main parts of the task are covered, the support tends to over-generalize, aligning the response with Band 6 descriptors where relevant ideas are presented but remain somewhat under-developed.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay displays a coherent overall arrangement with a clear introduction and conclusion, and body paragraphs separated into opposing viewpoints. Cohesive devices such as "On the one hand," "On the other hand," "For instance," and "To conclude" are used to structure the text, though some transitions feel a bit mechanical or formulaic. Paragraphing is utilized appropriately to separate distinct arguments. However, referencing and logical progression are sometimes hindered by awkward phrasing and repetitive sentence openings, such as starting multiple sentences with "To elaborate" or "To justify." Overall, the organizational structure is clear enough to merit a Band 6, though cohesion can be made more flexible and natural.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The vocabulary used is adequate to communicate the writer's ideas, but the range is limited and frequently repetitive. Words like "culture," "study," "foreign," and "abroad" are used repeatedly without much variation. There are also noticeable lexical errors and inaccurate word choices throughout the text, such as "Every university undergraduate courses have to add" (courses has), "studying in abroad" (studying abroad), and "belief in its disagreement" (disagreement instead of opposition or disapproval). These errors reflect a Band 5 level where vocabulary is minimally adequate for the task, but frequent inaccuracies and limited lexical flexibility prevent the response from reaching a higher band.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The essay demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, but grammatical accuracy is weak throughout. There are frequent errors in subject-verb agreement and preposition usage, such as "Every university undergraduate courses have" instead of "Every university undergraduate course has," and "send their child to the abroad." Furthermore, many complex structures are faulty or awkwardly phrased, such as "This is due to fact that people get chance" and "if this viewpoint regulated in society than many students will not get able to achieve." These persistent errors can cause some difficulty for the reader and align the grammar with Band 5 descriptors, where attempts at complex structures are often flawed and errors occur frequently.

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

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