Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-16

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)

All undergraduate courses in a university should include a particular time of education to study in a foreign country or working for a placement. From my perspective, this trend offers certain advantages in terms of getting exposed to international standards and learning cultures of different countries. It also has a certain disadvantages that should not be overlooked.

On the one hand, spending certain period of time studying abroad gives exposure towards thier professional work structure. For instance, students spending time in a foreign country will force themselves to learn their language and adapt into thier work ethics. Furthermore, spending quality time with the people will push a person out of their comfort zone. For example, spending a moment with a foreigner will teach a person to learn their values, habits and cultural heritage. Moreover, most important thing a student will learn is to live independently. Such as, students will cook their own food and maintain their daily routine all by themselves.

On the other hand, there are a certain disadvantages despite these benefits. Major disadvantage of this trend is that, this makes very expensive for a few people to afford study abroad programs. For example, a student studying at a public university or low-cost university cannot afford substantial funds to spend in a foreign country.

To conclude with, spending a period of time studying or working abroad has many advantages such as learning cultural heritages, getting international exposure and being independent. It also carries the burden of spending substantial funds. Although these method has certain drawbacks I believe that the mentioned advantages clearly outweigh the disadvantages of this trend.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You address both sides of the question and state a clear view: the benefits of international exposure, cultural learning and independence outweigh the cost. These are relevant reasons, and the examples of adapting to another country and managing daily life help illustrate them. However, the advantages are developed more fully than the disadvantage: affordability is mentioned, but there is little explanation of its wider impact or how it compares with the benefits. Some points also need clearer links to the specific options in the prompt, such as a work placement. For example, the discussion of “professional work structure” is not fully explained. Develop each main point with a specific consequence or example, and make the comparison supporting your position more explicit.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response has a clear overall structure, with an introduction, separate paragraphs for advantages and disadvantages, and a conclusion that restates your position. Signposting such as “On the one hand,” “On the other hand,” and “To conclude” makes the progression easy to follow. This meets the lower-band expectations securely, and the paragraphing and overall sequence show some of the control associated with a stronger performance. However, links within paragraphs can feel mechanical: “For instance,” “Furthermore,” “For example,” and “Moreover” repeatedly introduce points without always showing how one idea develops from the previous one. The sentence beginning “Such as” is also not smoothly connected to the preceding claim. Use fewer formulaic transitions and build clearer cause-and-effect links between each claim and its supporting example.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use a relevant range of vocabulary for the topic, including “international standards,” “work ethics,” “comfort zone,” “cultural heritage,” and “independently.” These choices communicate the main ideas, and phrases such as “substantial funds” show an attempt to use more formal language. However, several word choices and collocations are inaccurate or unnatural, which limits precision: “a particular time of education,” “exposure towards,” and “learn their language” do not express the intended meanings naturally. Spelling errors such as “thier” also reduce accuracy. Aim to learn vocabulary in common word partnerships and check spelling carefully. More precise expressions for study abroad, workplace practices and cultural adaptation would make your argument clearer and more fluent.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of simple and more complex sentence forms, including clauses introduced by “although” and “despite,” and most of the message remains understandable. There are, however, some recurring errors in sentence construction and grammatical forms. For example, “this makes very expensive for a few people to afford” is missing a clear subject complement, while “Although these method has” has a mismatch between the plural determiner and the singular noun and verb. The opening sentence also uses an awkward structure to describe the proposed requirement. Review articles, subject–verb agreement, and how to form complete clauses after linking expressions. Greater control of these patterns, alongside varied sentence structures, would make the writing more accurate and easier to read.

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

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