Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-06

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)

There is ongoing debate about whether university undergraduate courses should include a period of time to study abroad or complete a work at placement. Although this development has some disadvantages, I believe that its advantages are more significant overall.

One significant disadvantage of requiring students to spend a period of time studying abroad or completing a work placement is that it can be financially demanding. This is because students may have to spend money on accommodation, flight tickets, travel expenses, food and other living costs, especially while living abroad. As a result, students from lower-income families may find it difficult to study abroad. For example, a student who cannot afford to study abroad might have to take a loan or seek financial assistance to meet the requirement.

Despite these drawbacks, this approach can offer substantial benefits to students. Major advantage is that it offers practical experience. This allows students to put their knowledge gained in universities at a work environment, while developing communication,teamwork and practical knowledge. Moreover, they may enter the job market with confidence, better understanding of the work place and may meet their expectations. For instance, an engineering student who completes work placement can gain practical exposure that cannot be developed through university alone.

In conclusion, despite the disadvantages of studying abroad or completing a work placement, I believe that there are more significant advantages, such as gaining practical experience, developing communication skills and teamwork skills.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

It is important to note first that the length requirement of a minimum of 250 words has not been met, as the response contains only 229 words, with 9 words copied directly from the prompt not counted. Regarding content, the response addresses all parts of the prompt by discussing both advantages and disadvantages and clearly stating an opinion in the introduction and conclusion. However, the ideas remain somewhat limited and under-developed. While the disadvantage regarding financial burden is explained with examples like living costs and loans, the discussion of the advantages lacks full extension. For instance, the mention of practical experience and communication skills in the third paragraph is generalised rather than deeply explored with detailed support, placing this aspect of the writing at this level.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response demonstrates a coherent overall arrangement and fully meets the requirements of the lower band while showing elements of the next. Information and ideas are logically sequenced with a clear overall progression. Paragraphing is used sufficiently and appropriately, separating the introduction, the disadvantage paragraph, the advantage paragraph, and the conclusion. Cohesive devices are employed to connect ideas, such as 'Although this development', 'This is because', and 'Despite these drawbacks'. However, cohesion is at times slightly mechanical or repetitive, and referencing could be smoother, preventing it from reaching a higher band. For example, 'Major advantage is that...' lacks an article, which slightly disrupts the flow of cohesion between sentences.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

An adequate range of vocabulary is used for the task, allowing the student to communicate their position clearly. The writer attempts some less-common vocabulary, such as 'financially demanding', 'substantial benefits', and 'practical exposure'. However, there are noticeable lexical inaccuracies and awkward word choices that reflect this band level. For example, the student writes 'complete a work at placement' (an incorrect prepositional phrasing) and omits necessary articles, such as writing 'Major advantage' instead of 'A major advantage'. Spelling and word-choice errors do not impede overall communication, but they prevent the vocabulary from achieving the flexibility and precision required for higher bands.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

The writer uses a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating adequate control over basic structures alongside attempts at subordination, such as in conditional or concessive clauses ('Although this development has some disadvantages, I believe that...'). There are some errors in grammar and punctuation, including missing articles ('at work environment' instead of 'in a work environment', 'work place' instead of 'workplace') and punctuation issues like a missing space after a comma in 'communication,teamwork and practical knowledge'. Nevertheless, these errors are relatively infrequent and rarely impede communication, allowing the response to sit comfortably at this level.

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

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