Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-01

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)

Majority of institutes bachelor's degree programs ought offer a period of time allocate to study overseases or proving a job opportunities. However, this phenomenon comes with both the advantages and the disadvantges. I firmly believe that merits of this situation surpass demerits. My stance will be discussed in the upcoming paragraphs with valid reasons and appropriate examples.

To begin with, there are several benefits this situation. The primary and most significant reason is that it increases personal Growth and soft skills development. Studying abroad offers to student learn about different culture, languages, and living environments, boosting confidence and resilience. Learners can build many valuble life living skills such as problem-solving, intercultural communication, teamwork, and time management. Additionally, another advantage is that it enhances employability and career Readiness. Undergraduate students learns both practical and theoritical knowledge. For example, internships allow students to build industry contacts, leading directly to job offers post-graduation.

On the other hand, as opposed to the merits there are numerous drawbacks that cannot be overlooked. One major drawback is it creates higher financial burden and Inequality. Tuition fees, accommodation, travel expenses, and visa costs for study abroad can create significant financial hardship. Furthermore, living abroad can lead to homesickness, language barriers, and mental health challenges.

In conclusion, while this situation presents certain pitfalls such as caused much financial pressure and uneven equality. It offers numrous benifits including personal Growth and soft skills development and employbilities. Upon careful analysis, it is evident that the boons of this situation outweigh the pitfalls, making this favourable scenario overall.

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 including study abroad or work placements in undergraduate courses, and a clear position is maintained throughout, concluding that the benefits outweigh the drawbacks. However, some ideas are more fully developed than others, which is characteristic of this level. For instance, the discussion on personal growth and employability provides some relevant expansion with examples like internships building industry contacts. Conversely, the counterarguments regarding financial burdens and mental health challenges are introduced but remain somewhat under-developed, lacking specific elaboration or concrete examples. To reach a higher level, every main idea introduced in the body paragraphs needs equally thorough extension and support, ensuring the counter-arguments are weighed with the same depth as the supporting arguments.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The essay presents a coherent overall arrangement with a clear, traditional structure divided into an introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Information and ideas are generally organized with a logical progression, moving from benefits to drawbacks and culminating in a clear summary. Cohesive devices are used to connect ideas, such as 'To begin with', 'Additionally', and 'On the other hand', although some of these transitional phrases feel slightly mechanical or formulaic. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate distinct themes. To move up to the next level, the progression between sentences could be made smoother and more natural, reducing reliance on standard transitional formulas and ensuring that referencing within and between paragraphs is consistently clear and unobtrusive.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully attempting less common lexical items such as 'intercultural communication', 'employability', 'employbilities', and 'financial burden'. However, there are noticeable limitations in lexical control, including frequent errors in word formation, spelling, and word choice. Examples include 'overseases' instead of 'overseas', 'valuble' instead of 'valuable', 'theoritical' instead of 'theoretical', and 'numrous benifits' instead of 'numerous benefits'. Furthermore, awkward phrases like 'proving a job opportunities' and 'caused much financial pressure and uneven equality' impede precision. While communication is not severely hindered, these inaccuracies prevent the lexical resource from achieving a higher level, which requires greater precision, a wider flexible range, and a higher degree of spelling accuracy.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The response displays a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, attempting structures like conditional and relative clauses. There are, however, several grammatical and punctuation errors present throughout the text. These include subject-verb agreement issues and structural errors in clauses, such as 'Majority of institutes bachelor's degree programs ought offer' and 'Studying abroad offers to student learn'. Other errors involve incorrect article usage and prepositions inside grammatical patterns, such as 'increases personal Growth' and 'for study abroad'. Despite these errors, the mix of structures means they rarely impede general communication. To achieve a higher level, the writer would need to produce a higher frequency of error-free sentences, demonstrate better control over complex syntactic structures, and eliminate basic grammatical slips.

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