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)

Nowadays, some people believe that all university courses should include a period of studying abroad or work placement. Although this may have some disadvantages, i believe the advantages are greater.

there are several benefits of this idea. First of all, students can gain practical experience before graduating. For example, students who work in a company can learn how to complete real tasks and communicate with colleagues. This experience may help them find a job more easily after university. Furthermore, studying abroad allows students learn about different cultures and improve their communication skills.

However, There are some disadvantages. The main problem is that studying abroad can be expensive, especially for students from low- income families. In addition, work placement may take time away from academic studies. Nevertheless, universities could offer local work placement and financial support to reduce these problems. As a result, more students could benefit from this experience.

In conclusion, although studying abroad or completing a work placement can be costly and time-consuming, i believe the advantages outweigh the disadvantages because students can develop practical skills and improve their future job opportunities.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

Your position is clear: you believe the advantages outweigh the disadvantages, and you address both benefits and drawbacks. The examples of gaining workplace experience and learning about other cultures are relevant, as are the concerns about cost and time away from study. However, the ideas are brief and only partly developed; for instance, you do not explain in detail how cultural learning improves communication or why practical experience leads to better employment prospects. The response also does not meet the required minimum length, so there is limited space to develop your reasoning and examples. To strengthen the response, explain each main point with a specific example and consider how the benefits apply across different courses and students.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

The response has a clear overall structure: an introduction states your view, separate paragraphs present advantages and disadvantages, and the conclusion restates your position. The progression is easy to follow, and signposting such as “First of all,” “Furthermore,” “However,” and “In conclusion” helps readers identify the stages of your argument. To make the organisation more developed, extend the body paragraphs so that each point is followed by explanation or an example, rather than moving quickly to the next idea. Also, use linking expressions selectively; the current sequence of explicit markers makes the connections clear but somewhat formulaic. Overall, the ideas are logically arranged and cohesion is generally effective.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of vocabulary for the topic, including “practical experience,” “financial support,” “low-income families,” and “future job opportunities.” These phrases communicate your ideas clearly, and there are no word-choice problems that prevent understanding. However, much of the vocabulary is general and repeated, particularly “students,” “experience,” and “advantages.” Some phrasing could be more precise and natural: “complete real tasks” is understandable but broad, while “improve their communication skills” could be specified in context. Aim to use a wider range of topic-related expressions and avoid repeating the same key nouns. More precise vocabulary would help you explain the benefits and drawbacks with greater detail.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.5

You use a mix of simple sentences and more complex forms, including the concession in “Although this may have some disadvantages” and the conditional suggestion that universities “could offer local work placement and financial support.” Most sentences are clear, and grammatical errors rarely interfere with meaning. Some errors remain: “allows students learn” needs “allows students to learn,” and “i believe” should be capitalised as “I believe.” Capitalisation is also inconsistent at the start of sentences, as in “there are” and “However, There.” To build on your existing control, check infinitive patterns, sentence openings, and punctuation carefully, while adding a few more varied complex structures to develop your explanations.

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