Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-22

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)

There is an opinion that all university students should spend a period of time studying abroad or gaining work experience. In my opinion, although this system has some disadvantages such as highly expensive and adjustment problems, its advantages including increases practical experience, become independent and improve communication skills, outweigh the drawbacks.

To begin with one major advantage of studying abroad or work placement is that it helps student to gain practical experience. Students can get a chance to apply theoretical knowledge into real-life situations.They can develop their job -related skills. For instance, nursing students can gain practical experience by working in hospital. Furthermore, students can become independent and improve their communication skills. Studying abroad helps students meet with different people with distinct language with different -ways of communication. They improve their language and communication skills. As well as living away from parents teaches them to become independent and responsible.

However, this trend also has some drawbacks. First, studying abroad or work placement require a large amount of money. Travelling and living expenses in aborad is quite expensive that become a very difficult for students to manage this. For example, students from low-income families may struggle to afford this opportunities. Moreover, students may feel home sickness.They may find it difficult to adjust to a new culture or different working environment. As a result, students also face anxiety and depression while studying abroad or doing a work placement.

In conclusion, although learners can face some disadvantages under this studying abroad such as highly expensive, adjustment problems and homesickness, there are significant benefits, including gaining practical experience, improve communication skills and become independent. Therefore, I believe that the advantages of this trend outweigh its disadvantages.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

Your position is clear from the introduction and conclusion: you believe the benefits outweigh the costs. You address both sides and give relevant support, including the nursing placement example and the difficulties faced by students from low-income families. This meets the task well, but the development is uneven: practical experience is explained with a concrete example, while the benefits of independence and communication are mostly asserted rather than illustrated. The disadvantages are also listed, but the link between adjustment difficulties and anxiety could be explained more fully. To strengthen the response further, develop each main point with a specific consequence or example and make the comparison between the benefits and costs more explicit.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

The response has a clear overall structure, with an introduction, separate paragraphs for advantages and disadvantages, and a conclusion that restates your view. The progression within the body paragraphs is generally logical, and signposts such as “To begin with,” “Furthermore,” “However,” and “Moreover” help readers follow the argument. Some linking is a little mechanical, and the advantages paragraph moves quickly from practical experience to independence and communication without showing how these points relate. A few references are also unclear, such as “this trend” and “this,” which could be made more precise. Use transitions selectively and connect each supporting example directly to the point it illustrates to make the flow more flexible.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use enough topic-related vocabulary to communicate the main ideas, including “practical experience,” “theoretical knowledge,” “low-income families,” and “working environment.” There are also attempts at more specific expressions, such as “real-life situations.” However, noticeable word-choice, collocation, word-form, and spelling errors reduce precision: “highly expensive,” “in aborad,” “home sickness,” and “distinct language with different-ways of communication” are awkward or inaccurate. Repetition of “students,” “skills,” and “experience” also limits flexibility. Aim to learn common word partnerships and check spelling and word forms; this will make your meaning more natural and exact without requiring unusually advanced vocabulary.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You use a mix of simple and complex forms, including a concession in the opening (“although this system has some disadvantages”) and a conditional-style example introduced by “For instance.” Most ideas remain understandable, but some grammatical errors recur. Examples include missing or incorrect articles and agreement in “it helps student” and “work placement require,” as well as faulty verb forms in “its advantages including increases” and “benefits, including gaining … improve … and become.” Sentence boundaries and punctuation also need attention, as in “real-life situations.They” and “homesickness.They.” Review subject–verb agreement, articles, and parallel verb forms, then proofread for spaces after full stops. More accurate control of these patterns would make the varied sentences clearer.

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