Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

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

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 all university courses should include a period of studying abroad or a wok placement. Although this may create some difficulties, I believe that the advantages outweigh the disadvantage because students can gain practical experience and improve their skills.

One major advantage of this is that students can gain practical experience, studying abroad allows them to learn more about different cultures and languages which make them independent, similarly work placements allows them to use their theories to gain practical work experience which will benefits them in future as most companies demands practical experience. For example a business student who works in a company can learn how to communicate with the colleagues, solve problems and manage task.

However, making these experiences compulsory also has some disadvantages. Studying abroad can be expensive because students have to pay for the travel, accomodation and living experience. This can create difficulties from low income families. Morever alot of students might not adjust in the new country away from their families. Universities can reduce these problems by providing financial support and allowing the students to complete work placement in their home country. In this way studnets can gain practical knowledge without facing any difficulty.

In conclusion, although studying abroad or completing a work placement include many financial challenges but the benefits are countless. These experience help students gain practical knowledge, become more independent and help them in their future careers. Therefore universities should include these opportunities in the courses of undergradute students while ensuring all students can access them.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

You address both sides of the question and state a clear position: the benefits outweigh the disadvantages. Relevant advantages include cultural learning, independence, and applying theory in a workplace; you also recognise costs and difficulty adjusting to a new country. The business-student example gives one point useful support. However, some ideas are asserted rather than fully explained: for instance, you say the benefits are “countless” without showing how they compare with the financial and personal burdens, and the proposed solutions are only briefly outlined. To strengthen the response, explain more precisely how placements benefit students across different subjects and why the advantages remain greater for students who face these barriers.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response has a clear overall structure, with an introduction, separate paragraphs for benefits and drawbacks, and a conclusion that restates your view. The progression from practical experience to costs and possible solutions is generally easy to follow. You also use linking expressions such as “However,” “For example,” and “In conclusion.” At times, though, connections are mechanical or unclear: the first body paragraph joins several claims in one long sentence, and “In this way” does not clearly specify which difficulties the proposed options address. Break up the long sentence and use more precise links between each claim and its explanation. This would make the progression smoother and the referencing clearer.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use enough topic-related vocabulary to communicate the main ideas, including “practical experience,” “financial support,” “independent,” and “future careers.” There are also attempts at more specific language, such as “manage task” and “adjust in the new country,” but some word choices and collocations are inaccurate or imprecise. Examples include “living experience” where you mean living costs, “use their theories” for applying theoretical knowledge, and “benefits are countless,” which is an overstatement rather than a precise comparison. Spelling errors such as “accomodation,” “Morever,” and “undergradute” also reduce accuracy. Build a more reliable range of academic collocations and check spelling so your meaning is consistently precise.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and complex structures, including a concession in the introduction (“Although this may create some difficulties”) and a conditional example (“A business student who works in a company…”). The main message remains understandable, but some sentence structures are overloaded or faulty, and agreement and verb-form errors recur. For example, “studying abroad allows… which make them independent” has an unclear subject and agreement problem; “work placements allows” and “which will benefits” also show errors in agreement and verb form. The sentence beginning “In conclusion, although…” is not well formed because the contrast clause is not completed appropriately. Use shorter sentences where several ideas are currently joined, and check subject–verb agreement, verb forms, and clause structure.

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