Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-20

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 this contemporary work experience and exposure are essential to acquire a well job, all university undergraduate degrees should include a period of time spent studying abroad or doing a work placement is expected from the students.There are a lot of developmental advantages which is useful to gain practical skills, however there are certain drawbacks to it as well.

To begin with, university students can gain knowledge and learn new languages while studying abroad during the course of their college. Exposing to the foreign environment, they can get the exposure of the different ways of life. It helps them to learn practical skills as well as essential life skills. Furthermore, they can learn about the history of the nation and learn about their culture, traditions, customs, etcetera. What is more is that, by working in an office, they can get the exposure to the real life work scenarios where they work just like an ordinary employees.

In contrast, due to the different culture and tradition of the country, they might need more time to adjust with their environment, which can affect their studies. Also, such students lacks proper work skills, which can only gain through working and learning. Due such fact, it is an understatement that it can be difficult for such students to receieve appropriate job in their relevant field.

To conclude, although there are couple of setbacks to the argument, it overpowers the positive advantages of study abroad or to work. Hereby, i largely believe that it is quite commendable if the university offers to include a period of a time spent studying in a foreign country or work in an office.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You address both the benefits and drawbacks and give a clear overall view in the conclusion: you believe the advantages outweigh the setbacks. Relevant benefits include learning languages and gaining practical skills, while cultural adjustment and possible effects on studies are identified as disadvantages. However, the position is not consistently clear in the introduction, where the opening sentence is difficult to interpret, and several ideas are only briefly stated. For example, the claim that students may struggle to find a suitable job is not clearly connected to the proposed placement or supported with an example. Develop the comparison more fully by explaining why the benefits outweigh the costs and illustrating key points with specific examples. The 14 words copied from the task prompt were not counted.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable overall structure: an introduction, a paragraph on benefits, a paragraph on drawbacks, and a conclusion. Transitions such as “To begin with,” “In contrast,” and “To conclude” help signal the stages of the argument. However, progression within paragraphs is sometimes weakened by unclear links between ideas. For instance, the point about lacking work skills is followed by a claim about difficulty finding a job, but the relationship between these ideas is not fully explained. Some linking phrases also feel mechanical, and the opening sentence is hard to follow. Improve cohesion by making each paragraph develop one central point in a clear sequence and using pronouns or linking expressions only when their references are unmistakable.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use a relevant range of vocabulary, including “practical skills,” “foreign environment,” “traditions,” and “work scenarios,” which allows you to discuss the topic. There are also attempts at more formal expressions, such as “developmental advantages” and “appropriate job.” However, word choice and collocation are often inaccurate or repetitive: “get the exposure” appears more than once, “a well job” is unclear, and “it overpowers the positive advantages” is not a natural way to express your comparison. Spelling errors such as “receieve” also reduce accuracy. Aim for precise, natural combinations and avoid repeating the same phrase; for example, use “gain experience” or “become familiar with” where appropriate.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and complex sentences, including clauses with “while,” “which,” and “although,” and the overall meaning is usually recoverable. However, complex structures are often faulty, and errors occur frequently enough to make some sentences difficult to process. Examples include “there are a lot of developmental advantages which is useful,” where the verb does not agree with its subject, and “such students lacks,” which also has an agreement error. The opening sentence contains several clauses joined without clear sentence boundaries, while “Due such fact” lacks a necessary grammatical element. Review subject–verb agreement, articles, prepositions, and punctuation, and build longer sentences from shorter, accurate clauses before adding complexity.

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