Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-30

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)

As a global career paths become increasingly competitive, there has been ongoing debate over whether higher institutions should require every tertiary-level students to spend a period of time in studying overseas or undertaking a work placement. While this requirement is not without it drawbacks, I believe that its merits definitely surpass its potential drawbacks. This essay will examine the main benefits and associated drawbacks in forthcoming paragraphs with relevant examples.

One major benefit is personal growth. To be more precise, such experience offers invaluable hands-on experience, something that classroom-based learning may not provide. For instance, a engineer student on a placement with international firm could work directly on live project under experienced professionals , gaining practical knowledge that no textbook could offer. Moreover, it offers a chance to cultivate essential life skills such as communication and confident, as navigating unfamiliar environment naturally pushes students out their comfort zone.

Equally significant are the social and economical advantages such experience confer. Socially, living in foreign environment exposes students to diverse culture and broader their worldview and foster adaptability. Additionally, having international practical experience on a CV can considerably enhance employability, as employers increasingly value candidates who have demonstrated independence and adaptability. As an illustration, a business student completed work placement with a multinational company may stand out to the recruiters.

However, combining studies with work placement may causes emotional stress. Put it more vividly, by doing studies and work placement altogether may place immense pressure on student, leading to stress or burnout that disrupt academic performance. Furthermore, sometime it also impose financial strain, as accommodation and travel costs abroad are often substantial, placing a burden on students and their families. That said, university could mitigate these difficulties through support system such as scholarships and academic counselling.

In conclusion, although studying abroad or completing a work placement can bring financial or emotional strain, its benefits in terms of personal growth, social exposure and future career prospects outweigh these drawbacks.

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 making studying abroad or work placements mandatory for university undergraduates, and clearly states an opinion that the advantages outweigh the drawbacks. The ideas are relevant and generally well-developed. For instance, the discussion on personal growth, employability, emotional stress, and financial strain provides good support for the argument. However, some points are slightly repetitive or could have been extended with more precise elaboration. Overall, the position is clear throughout the essay, aligning well with the Band 7 descriptor where all parts of the task are addressed and a clear position is maintained.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The essay displays clear logical organisation and a generally smooth progression of ideas. Each paragraph has a clear central topic, moving appropriately from an introduction to personal growth, social and economic advantages, drawbacks, and a succinct conclusion. Cohesive devices such as 'To be more precise', 'Moreover', and 'Equally significant' are used effectively to guide the reader through the arguments, though referencing and article use are occasionally faulty, such as 'such experience confer' instead of 'such experiences confer'. Paragraphing is used sufficiently and appropriately, ensuring the overall arrangement remains coherent, which comfortably places this response in the Band 7 category.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The student demonstrates a sufficient range of vocabulary with some flexibility and precision, incorporating less common items such as 'employability', 'multinational company', and 'academic counselling'. However, there are noticeable word-choice and grammatical-form errors, including 'higher institutions' instead of 'higher education institutions', 'every tertiary-level students' instead of 'every tertiary-level student', and 'communication and confident' instead of 'communication and confidence'. There are also minor spelling or collocation slips like 'international firm' missing an article and 'broader their worldview' instead of 'broaden their worldview'. Because the vocabulary is adequate and attempts less common items despite occasional inaccuracies, a Band 6.0 is appropriate.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The response features a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, including conditional or relative clauses like 'employers increasingly value candidates who have demonstrated independence'. However, there is a cluster of grammatical inaccuracies throughout the text, such as subject-verb agreement errors ('a global career paths', 'causes emotional stress'), missing articles ('a engineer student', 'international firm'), and awkward phrasing ('by doing studies and work placement altogether'). While these errors do not impede overall communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent the essay from reaching a higher band, making Band 6.0 the most accurate description of the grammatical control shown here.

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