Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · 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 5.5)

It is often argued that every university undergraduates should get a period of time which they can spend studying abroad or by doing a part-time job. I believe that the advantages of this outweighs the disadvantages because getting time to do extra work can be beneficial for the overall development of a person. In addition, this will be helpful for them in their practical life.

On one hand, an opportunity to study in another country or gain practical work experience can be valuable for an individual in their practical life. They can become more responsible in taking care of themselves as well as paying attention towards their studies. As a result, the person performing multiple tasks at a time can perform well later in their life. Furthermore, studying overseas can open many opportunities for a person. Such as an individual can get more job opportunities and career options after graduation. Thus, they may have better chances of securing a well-paid job in the future. To illustrate, an individual goimg overseas to study and the work part-time jobs will have a better future.

On the other hand, there can also be several drawbacks of universities providing undergraduates with the time period so that they can learn overseas. Studying abroad can be financially challenging, as students may have to pay high tuition fees, accommodation costs, and travel expenses. This can be difficult for students who go to study far from their families as they can not get habitual to new environment that easily. As a result, they face many difficulties in their early shifting stages. Moreover, some students may struggle to adjust to a different culture and academic environment, which can negatively affect their studies. Therefore, some students may find it difficult to focus on their studies during the adjustment period. For instance, this can put financial pressure on new students who go first time to overseas.

In conclusion, i believe that the advantages of going to abroad during university hours can be beneficial for people in their practical life and well-being.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

The student addresses all parts of the task by discussing both the advantages and disadvantages of including a study abroad or work placement period in university courses, and clearly states a personal position in the introduction and conclusion. Ideas are relevant, mentioning financial challenges, cultural adjustment, and career benefits. However, the development of some ideas tends to be repetitive and lacks depth. For instance, the discussion on practical life and career benefits is somewhat generalized rather than fully extended with concrete examples. Minor logical leaps occur, such as the concluding sentence in the second paragraph ('an individual goimg overseas to study and the work part-time jobs will have a better future'). Overall, the task is addressed adequately, placing this response at Band 6.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The essay is generally coherent with a clear overall arrangement into introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate advantages and disadvantages. Cohesive devices such as 'On one hand', 'On the other hand', 'Furthermore', and 'In conclusion' are utilized to structure the response, though some transitions feel a bit mechanical. Referencing is occasionally unclear, such as pronoun use in 'so that they can learn overseas'. Progression is present, but the logical flow within paragraphs could be tightened to achieve a higher band. Overall, the cohesive and organizational features meet the requirements for Band 6.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, demonstrating an attempt to incorporate less common items and subject-specific collocations such as 'practical work experience', 'financial challenges', and 'academic environment'. However, there are noticeable word choice and collocation errors, such as 'every university undergraduates' (grammatical error in vocabulary choice), 'goimg' (typographical error), and 'work part-time jobs'. The range of vocabulary is sufficient to communicate the main points, but inaccuracies in word formation and phrasing restrict the score to a Band 6.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing relative clauses and conditional-like structures ('This can be difficult for students who go to study...'). However, there are frequent grammatical errors and awkward phrasing throughout the text, including subject-verb agreement issues ('every university undergraduates should get') and prepositional errors ('go to abroad', 'go first time to overseas'). Punctuation is generally acceptable, and while errors are noticeable, they rarely impede overall communication. These features align well with the Band 6 descriptors.

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