Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · 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 5.0)

Universities should offer time period in which their students who are still studying at the university could explore the outer world by giving them chance to go to some other country for the enhancement in their views or should provide them alternatives such as offering them internship for the better understanding of their courses and also to analyze the scope of their degree. It would undercover the disadvantages by its advantages.Here are some reasons how and why?

If educational institutions begins to give opportunities to their students to dicover other countries or providing them work chances in country, it helps them in gaining more information about future scope of their degrees and also to get better chances to secure good workplace and schlorships for masters programme.Providing these opportunities is also useful for the institution as the recognition of institution name worldwide through their students.

For instance, NUST university of Pakistan is offering a semester exchange program with the international educational institutions for its international recognition and also to provide its students to get best employment abroad and to help them to get better hold on their subjects. Same is the case with LUMS institute, it is also allowing its pupils to go to some other country's university for research purposes.

In conclusion, some students get chance who are not even eligible of it and then it would be a negative mark on institution's reputation but still Prons of studying internationally are more than its Cons that it shadowed its dark side.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses the prompt by discussing whether the advantages of studying abroad or doing a work placement outweigh the disadvantages. A position is stated in the introduction, asserting that the advantages outweigh the disadvantages. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited and repetitive. For example, the writer mentions that studying abroad helps in gaining information about the future scope of degrees and securing scholarships, but these points are not fully extended. Furthermore, the final paragraph introduces a new point about ineligible students getting chances, which confuses the conclusion rather than effectively synthesizing the arguments. Overall, the task is addressed, but the depth of argument aligns with Band 5.5 to 6.0, as some ideas remain underdeveloped.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0

The response has an overall structure comprising an introduction, body paragraphs with examples, and a conclusion. However, paragraphing is somewhat problematic; the introductory paragraph is followed by a confusing transitional sentence ('Here are some reasons how and why?'), and the conclusion abruptly introduces a negative point. Cohesive devices are sometimes used awkwardly or mechanically, such as 'For instance' and 'In conclusion', while referencing within sentences (e.g., 'It would undercover the disadvantages by its advantages') is often unclear and obscures the logical progression between ideas. Paragraphing and logical flow require tighter control to reach higher bands.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, attempting some less common words and phrases such as 'enhancement', 'educational institutions', and 'semester exchange program'. However, there are notable lexical errors and awkward collocations throughout the text, such as 'outer world' instead of 'outside world', 'work chances' instead of 'work opportunities', and 'Prons' instead of 'pros'. Phrases like 'shadowed its dark side' are also somewhat unnatural in an academic context. While the meaning usually remains clear, these persistent inaccuracies cap the lexical score at Band 5.0.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The essay displays a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but grammatical accuracy is weak. There are frequent errors in subject-verb agreement (e.g., 'If educational institutions begins'), article usage (e.g., 'the recognition of institution name'), and prepositional phrases (e.g., 'go to some other country for the enhancement in their views'). Run-on sentences and overly long clauses, such as the opening sentence, lack proper punctuation control. Although some complex structures are attempted, frequent grammatical errors impede fluency and cause occasional difficulty for the reader, placing this submission firmly in the Band 5.0 category.

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

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