Band 7.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-02

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 7.0)

Many people believe that all university students should spend some time studying abroad or completing a work placement as a part of their undergraduate course. Although this may create some financial and personal difficulties, I believe that the advantages are greater because students can gain practical experience and develop important life skills.

One major advantage of a work placement is that students can gain practical knowledge before they graduate. University education often focuses on theory, while a work placement allows students to understand how their subject is used in a real working environment. for example, a business student who works in a company for a few months can learn about teamwork, communication and problem- solving. This experience may also improve their chances of finding a job after graduation because employers often prefer candidates who already have some workplace experience.

Studying abroad can also help students become more independent and confident. Living in another country gives them an opportunity to experience a different culture, meet new people and improve their communication skills. However, there are some disadvantages. Studying abroad can be expensive because students may need to pay for travel, accommodation and other living costs. In addition, some students may find it difficult to live away from their families. Despite these problems, financial support from universities and shorter study- abroad programmes could make this experience more accessible.

In conclusion, studying abroad or completing a work placement can create some financial and personal challenges. However, I believe that the benefits outweigh the disadvantages because these experiences can improve students practical skills, independence and future employment opportunities.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.0

Your response successfully addresses all parts of the task by discussing both the advantages and disadvantages of studying abroad or doing a work placement, while maintaining a clear, consistent position throughout. You provide relevant ideas that are extended and supported, such as when you explain how a business student benefits from a work placement by learning teamwork and problem-solving, which helps improve their post-graduation employability. Similarly, the discussion on studying abroad highlights both personal growth and financial hurdles. However, some of your ideas show a slight tendency to over-generalise or remain somewhat broad rather than deeply explored, which prevents the response from reaching a higher level of development. To achieve the next level, you could further substantiate your arguments with more specific explanations or nuanced examples regarding how these experiences shape long-term career trajectories.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

Your essay demonstrates clear logical organisation and progression throughout. Each paragraph has a distinct focus, beginning with a well-defined introduction, moving into specific body paragraphs covering work placements and studying abroad respectively, and concluding with a concise summary of your stance. You use cohesive devices and signposting language reasonably well, such as 'One major advantage', 'In addition', and 'Despite these problems', which guide the reader smoothly through your arguments. However, there is a slight mechanical feel to some of your transitions, and more varied or subtle referencing could make the flow even more natural. To move towards the highest bands, you could employ more sophisticated cohesive phrasing and ensure that logical relationships between sentences are seamlessly integrated without relying as heavily on standard formulaic connectors.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.5

You use an adequate and generally appropriate range of vocabulary for the task, allowing you to convey your message clearly. Throughout the essay, you successfully incorporate functional terminology such as 'undergraduate course', 'practical knowledge', 'working environment', and 'employment opportunities'. You also make some attempts at less common lexical items with decent awareness of collocation, such as 'post-graduation' contexts and financial considerations like 'accommodation and other living costs'. Nevertheless, there are occasional minor lexical inaccuracies and your overall range remains somewhat standard rather than sophisticated. To reach the next band, you should aim to incorporate a wider variety of precise, less common vocabulary and idiomatic phrases with tighter control over word choice and stylistic appropriateness, such as replacing simpler descriptors with more advanced academic synonyms.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.5

You demonstrate a satisfactory mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing structures like conditional and concessive clauses effectively, as seen in 'Although this may create some financial and personal difficulties, I believe that...' You maintain good control over basic grammar, punctuation, and tense consistency. There are some minor errors present, such as the lowercase 'for example' at the beginning of a sentence in the second paragraph, but these instances are infrequent and rarely impede communication. To elevate your grammar to the next band, you need to produce a higher frequency of error-free sentences while experimenting with a broader variety of sophisticated complex grammatical structures, such as inversion, participial phrases, or more varied subordinate clause patterns, while maintaining absolute precision.

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