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)

Internships and educational trips internationally should be a part of undergraduate study courses for learners in all universities. I contend that the advantages of this would outweigh the disadvantages.

At the beginner level, university students are more anxious and less confident, though including an educational trip or doing work placements can play a beneficial role in their development. In the present world, it is very crucial for a scholar to be independent and confident in himself, and these things in the undergraduate courses assist him. Furthermore, when a student spends time alone abroad, studying and figuring life all alone, he gets the advantage of learning things through practical examples.

For instance, when I was an undergrad, I was sent to Europe for a month for educational purposes, though it was a hard pill to swallow to live alone in a new place with new individuals , the experience has changed me in the best way possible. I got a chance to do a work placement in my undergrad years, which helped me gain practical experience.

Students get exposure and eventually do well in their studies, while students who are just forced to study hard without any practical work lose interest in their courses and fail to maintain their grades. Courses without other curriculum make learners readers who are likely to move on from one chapter without understanding and practising it to the next chapter. Additionally, these students lack self-confidence and find it difficult to ask for help.

Ultimately, the advantages of undergraduate courses with internships and educational trips outweigh the disadvantages. Therefore, all of the universities should include such things in their courses.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

The response addresses all parts of the task by discussing both the advantages and disadvantages of including study abroad or work placements in undergraduate courses, while maintaining a clear overall position that the advantages outweigh the disadvantages. Ideas are extended with some personal experience, as seen in the example of spending a month in Europe. However, the development of disadvantages is somewhat limited and leans towards over-generalisation, such as the claim that students without practical work fail to maintain grades or lack self-confidence. This places the response comfortably at Band 6.0, as it addresses all parts of the task with relevant ideas, though some aspects are under-developed.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

There is a clear overall progression throughout the essay, moving from an introduction to supporting body paragraphs and a concluding summary. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate distinct ideas. Cohesive devices are employed to connect points, such as 'Furthermore', 'For instance', and 'Additionally', although referencing is occasionally imprecise (e.g., 'these things' or 'such things'). The arrangement of ideas is coherent overall, though some transitions between sentences feel slightly mechanical. This aligns well with the Band 6 descriptors for coherence and cohesion.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully attempting less common items and idiomatic phrases such as 'hard pill to swallow' and 'practical experience'. However, there are some inaccuracies in word choice and collocation, such as 'educational trips internationally' instead of 'international study trips' and referring to university students as 'scholars' where 'students' is more appropriate. Spelling and word choice errors do not impede communication, making Band 6.0 a fair and accurate assessment for this criterion.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

The response demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, such as conditional and relative clauses ('when a student spends time alone abroad...'). There are several grammatical errors and punctuation flaws present, including comma splices and minor agreement issues (e.g., 'all of the universities should include such things'). Despite these errors, the majority of sentences are understandable, and communication is rarely impeded. This performance corresponds to a Band 6.0, reflecting a mix of sentence structures and controllable error frequency.

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

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