Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-10

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 5.5)

In my view all university undergraduate courses should inclued a period of time spent in study aboard and also work in other placement.

Initially, studying in foreign university is big development for students. It provides several opportunities to students. There are several university exchanged there students in mid of semester for learn new skills and new experience.It is numerous development for student in their lives. Studying in aborad give a chance to work other placement and learns new things in their lives. There are many advantages of studying aboard for a undergraduate students who want to study in abroad.First advantage is that students meet different people and make new friends. These things gain their confidence and encourage to pupils to become more responsible. Another major advantage is that students learn foreign languages and it is a best skill for students. A prime example is my own experience is when i was student in a university . My universty every years exchanged students from other countries. In addition I went for study in abroad for my last course of university. Additionllay it is my best experienced in my life because I learn significant numbers of things in my life and work in a hotel.

Secondly,sometimes it have some negative impacts and many drawbacks.Some students do not take serious their studies in abroad an some students did not back in their countries.It is a big problem for a university because it university responsibilties to take back home in their countries. Furthermore, governments every year give funds to university for students exchanged shceme to make good relationship between each other. But these things creates problems for university and governments.To illustrates this ponit a university in india send some students in london,but they left their studies and run to the university and works in local areas for money.

Studying in aborad and especially undergraduate courses is a better development and provides many advantages, whereas there are many drawbacks due to some reason.I believed that studying in abroad have advantages to outweigh the disadvantages.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You address both the requirement for overseas study or work placement and the question of whether benefits outweigh drawbacks, and your final position is clear: you believe the advantages are greater. Relevant benefits include meeting people, gaining confidence, learning languages and developing through work experience; you also identify concerns about students leaving their studies and public funding. However, these points are not equally developed. The benefits are supported by personal experience, but the example is difficult to follow, while the claim that students may not return is asserted without explaining how common or serious this is. The response would be stronger if it directly compared the scale of the benefits and drawbacks and explained how a placement can be structured to reduce the risks.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable overall structure: an introduction, a paragraph focused mainly on benefits, a paragraph on drawbacks, and a concluding opinion. Linking expressions such as “Initially,” “Furthermore,” and “To illustrates this ponit” show an effort to guide the reader. However, progression within paragraphs is sometimes unclear, and several ideas are repeated, particularly the references to studying abroad providing development and advantages. Connections between claims are also occasionally difficult to follow: the discussion moves from students not returning to government funding without clearly explaining the relationship. Use topic sentences that state each paragraph’s main point, group related examples together, and use pronouns or linking phrases with clear references.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You attempt vocabulary relevant to the topic, including “opportunities,” “confidence,” “responsible,” “foreign languages,” and “drawbacks.” This gives you some means of discussing both benefits and risks. However, the range is limited and several word choices or collocations are inaccurate or repeated, which sometimes makes the meaning difficult to interpret. Examples include “study aboard” for studying in another country, “work in other placement,” and “a best skill.” There are also noticeable spelling errors, such as “universty,” “Additionllay,” and “responsibilties.” Build a more precise set of topic phrases and check spelling; accurate collocations will make your ideas clearer and more natural.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 4.5

You use both simple statements and attempts at longer structures, including “because I learn significant numbers of things in my life and work in a hotel” and a contrast introduced with “whereas.” This shows some range, but control is inconsistent, and errors in sentence construction, verb forms, agreement, articles and punctuation often make the reader work to understand the message. For example, “There are several university exchanged there students” has an unclear structure, while “students do not take serious their studies” and “studying in abroad have advantages” show problems with grammatical patterns and agreement. Practise building accurate subject–verb–object sentences first, then add subordinate clauses. Check tense consistency and sentence boundaries, especially where several ideas are joined.

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

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.