Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-08

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)

It is believed that all university undergraduate courses should contain a period of time spent studying abroad or doing work placement. Although studying abroad or doing a work placement can have some challenges,I think that its benefits are more as compared to its drawbacks.

One main downside of studying abroad is cost. If all the universities will make it mandatory to study abraod for everyone it can create some financial issues for students who are not able to manage their expenses while living in another country. For example,in India, some people do not have strong income sources due to their personals life issues such as health issues or due to unemployment.As a result they are not able to survive in foreign countries as they do not have enough money for their travel charges and daily life expenses.Similarly, if all the universities will make work placement compulsary for everyone,it can bring some issues for some students who are not able to do work placements free of cost as nowadays most of the work placements are unpaid.So,it not only waste their time which they can use to find a suitable job but also they will feel boring while work without earning any money.

On the other hand, studying abroad can open doors of numerous job opportunities for students as in foreign countries there are a lot of companies, offer higher level of employments with good salaries and other incentives like monthly bonuses and health insurances which not only save their money, they can gain experience which help them in future to apply in another companies.Work placement also have its own importance as students have chance to get training related to their field work at no extra cost ,which help them in future when they will apply for companies who looking for people with some experience.Therefore, it will help them to find job without wasting their time and also they can get job in their own field.

Moreover,working abroad helps students to improve some valueable skills such as time and money management, communication skills which only possible when they deal alone with some difficult situations.As a result, they improve their confidence and also become a sources of income for their parents. Work placements give opportunities to all students to enroll in practical experience which is mandatory to show their abilities and talents when they perform tasks with their hands ,teach them about problem solving skills.

In conclusion, Although working abroad or doing a workplacement can be challenging for some students who are not financially stable, but its advantages are far greater due to good job opportunities in their required field and also provide chance to them to learn language, management,problem solving

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

Your position is clear: you acknowledge financial and unpaid-placement drawbacks but argue that the benefits outweigh them. You address both study abroad and work placements, and support your points with relevant examples, including students’ expenses and the value of practical experience. The discussion of employment prospects and personal skills also responds directly to the question. Some ideas, however, are more fully explained than others: the claim that studying abroad leads to better-paid jobs is broad and would benefit from a specific example or explanation of how the experience improves employability. The final paragraph also ends abruptly, so the conclusion does not fully draw together the benefits, such as language and problem-solving skills, that you mention.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response has a coherent overall structure: an introduction states your view, the first main paragraph presents disadvantages, and the following paragraphs explain benefits before a conclusion. Linking expressions such as “On the other hand,” “Moreover,” and “As a result” help readers follow the argument. This clear organisation is a strength. At times, however, connections feel mechanical or the reference is unclear. For example, “its benefits” and “its drawbacks” do not clearly identify whether “it” refers to studying abroad, work placement, or both. Several long sentences combine multiple points, making the progression harder to follow. Use clearer topic sentences and divide these sentences so each one develops a single claim; complete the conclusion with a concise summary of your position.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use enough vocabulary to discuss costs, employment, skills, and education, and some choices are relevant to the topic, such as “financial issues,” “job opportunities,” and “problem solving skills.” There are also attempts at more specific language, including “monthly bonuses” and “health insurances.” However, noticeable word-choice, collocation, word-form, and spelling errors reduce precision: “higher level of employments,” “feel boring,” “a sources of income,” and “abraod” are examples. Some phrases are also repetitive, particularly “some issues” and repeated references to “students.” Aim for more natural academic collocations and check spelling and word forms. Greater precision in describing the benefits and drawbacks would make your argument clearer and more flexible.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of simple and complex sentences, including conditional clauses beginning “If” and reason-and-result structures such as “As a result.” This allows you to express relationships between ideas, and the overall meaning is generally understandable. Some grammatical errors remain, particularly in verb forms, agreement, articles, and sentence boundaries. For instance, “if all the universities will make it mandatory” needs a more suitable conditional form, while “work placement also have” has a subject–verb agreement problem. In “companies who looking for people,” the verb phrase is incomplete. Long sentences joined with commas also create punctuation problems. Practise checking each clause for a subject and correctly formed verb, and use full stops to separate complete ideas.

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