Band 4.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-24

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 4.5)

All university undergraduate courses should include a period of time spent studying abroad or doing a work placement.

Studying in abroad is a vast oppurtunity which offers higher education, better job oppurtunity According to me all university undergraduate courses should include a period of time spent studying abroad or doing a work placement as it helps people to explore new places as well as new education system, new kind of culture studying in abroad offers several benefits for instance, broader job oppurtunities with higher pay rate also, better life standard,also, offers better communication skills, studying in abroad offers better communication skills. There are some advantages as well as drawbacks first of all, drawbacks are it require alot of money and financial stability as well as we need to left our hometown and it is hard to manage study and work altogether as we need to set a timetable for it. To conclude, studying in

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.0

You identify relevant benefits, including exposure to a different education system and culture, improved communication skills, and potentially better employment and pay. You also mention costs, leaving home, and the challenge of combining study with work. However, the response does not clearly weigh these points or explain whether the advantages outweigh the disadvantages; the conclusion is unfinished (“To conclude, studying in”). The response is also substantially below the required 250 words: it contains 118 words, and 36 words copied from the prompt were not counted. This leaves the position and supporting ideas minimally developed. To improve, state your view directly, explain each main point with a reason or example, and complete a conclusion that answers the question.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.0

There is a basic attempt to organise the response: it begins with a position, introduces benefits, mentions drawbacks, and starts a conclusion. Some linking expressions, such as “for instance,” “first of all,” and “To conclude,” help signal these stages. However, most ideas are crowded into one long, loosely connected passage, so the reader cannot easily follow the relationship between them. The repeated point about communication skills and the repeated reference to studying abroad also interrupt progression. The final sentence stops before completing the conclusion. Use separate paragraphs for your position, advantages, disadvantages, and conclusion, and connect each point clearly rather than listing ideas in a single sequence.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use some relevant topic vocabulary, including “financial stability,” “communication skills,” “education system,” and “job opportunities,” so the main subject is generally understandable. However, the range is limited and several expressions are repeated, particularly “studying in abroad” and “offers.” There are also noticeable spelling and word-choice problems, such as “oppurtunity” and “life standard,” which make the writing less natural. Aim to use accurate, varied collocations and check spelling carefully. For example, “study abroad” is the natural phrase, while “standard of living” is more idiomatic than “life standard.” More precise vocabulary would help you explain the benefits and costs without relying on repeated general terms.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 4.5

The response attempts to combine ideas using clauses and connectors, for example, “as it helps people to explore new places,” but sentence structures are mostly long strings of points rather than controlled sentences. Errors in grammatical patterns include “Studying in abroad,” “it require,” and “we need to left our hometown.” Punctuation is also weak: several ideas run together without full stops, and commas are used where sentence boundaries are needed. These problems sometimes make the relationships between ideas difficult to follow. Practise writing shorter, complete sentences first, then add subordinate clauses accurately. Check subject–verb agreement, verb forms after “need to,” and article and preposition use when revising.

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