Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-27
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)
Studying abroad has become a an increasingly popular choice now a days or having work place experience before a job has become overall requirment for any company.It has become an Topic of debate over few years whether university undergraduate courses should include this requirements or should continue with traditional studies.This essay will examine both perspective before i explaining why its disadvantages outweighs its advantages.
On the one hand,visiting abroad for study gives you much more exposure than their home country will ever be able to provide.It gives opportunity to learn new cultures and helps a person to transform himself a in new person.It provides personal as well as financial freedom which increase decision taking abilty of a human being . Having a real life work experience of course you are pursuing its helps us to gain experience of work life .We can use this experience in our work CV that can help us find higher paying jobs for our future.
But on another hand,their are people who cannot afford going abroad they cannot bear expenses of of living, traveling,food as its lot more expensive than their own country i myself had dream of studying abroad but due financial problems I didn't travel abroad.In india people face difficulties paying fees of their colleges how can they afford studying abroad and about work placment due to pressure of work placment student will not focus on the course they are pursuing they will not be able to study properly due this requirments.
In conclusion although studying abroad and having work place experience gives you more opportunites but requirments for these things will only take students backward rather than going forward in their life.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5
The student addresses the prompt by discussing both the advantages and disadvantages of including studying abroad or work placements in undergraduate courses, eventually taking a clear position that the disadvantages outweigh the advantages. Ideas are presented, such as cultural exposure, financial burdens, and potential distractions from academic studies. However, the development of these ideas is somewhat limited and relies heavily on generalisations rather than deep exploration. The conclusion abruptly introduces the final stance without fully synthesising the points. Overall, the response meets the core requirements of Task Achievement at a Band 5.5 to 6.0 level, leaning towards Band 6.0 because all parts of the prompt are addressed and a clear position is maintained throughout the essay.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0
The essay has a basic overall arrangement with an introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. However, paragraphing is poorly executed; the second and third body paragraphs contain multiple disparate ideas lumped together without clear separation. Furthermore, cohesive devices are frequently faulty, mechanical, or missing entirely (e.g., 'On the one hand', 'But on another hand'). Referencing is sometimes unclear, such as pronoun shifts between 'you', 'their', and 'us' within the same sentences. The lack of proper spacing after punctuation marks (periods and commas) heavily disrupts the visual flow and structural coherence of the text. These issues place the response firmly in the Band 5.0 range.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.0
The student demonstrates an adequate vocabulary range for the task, attempting some less common phrases such as 'financial burden' and 'exposure'. However, there are frequent errors in word choice, collocation, and spelling throughout the response. Examples include 'an increasingly popular choice now a days', 'work place experience', 'requirment', 'Topic', and 'abylty'. Repetition of key terms like 'studying abroad', 'experience', and 'requirments' is noticeable. While the meaning can generally be understood, the density of lexical errors and missing spaces between words prevents the response from achieving a higher band. This corresponds to a Band 5.0 level.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0
The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but control over grammar and punctuation is weak. Punctuation is a major issue, characterized by missing spaces after almost every period and comma, as well as run-on sentences like 'It has become an Topic of debate over few years whether university undergraduate courses should include this requirements or should continue with traditional studies.' There are frequent grammatical errors, including subject-verb agreement issues ('disadvantages outweighs', 'there are people who cannot afford... they cannot bear'), article misuse ('an increasingly', 'an Topic'), and awkward phrasing ('i myself had dream'). These recurring errors and structural faults align with a Band 5.0 descriptor.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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