Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-25

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)

The courses of undergraduate students at any university must include a specific time aloted for the students that they could spend abroad studying and may be working there. and this can leave various lasting positive impact on them, the students get to experience different cultures, learn collaboration with people from different part of the world and most importantly living independent in a entirely different country can make the student overcome harships in life alone.

We human's are design to learn better with what we experience in rather what we just study at school, and spending a specific time abroad with the goal to learn in another university aboard or experience job life there would have various positive yet negative impacts on students. For. Example, students spending time in france may experience bully, or have language barrier issues. But on the other hand, The positive outcomes weigh more than these problems. The students will learn how to deal with other nationalities. Gain global experience, live independent. For example, If a student spent his/her whole four year one university and get a job within the country. Their learning are only from the surroundings but no external factors are involve that re arrange this learning but when the same student will spent a time abroad he/she will learn different perspective and wider experience that what they have in home country.

In conclusion, It is been said that the positive impacts of students spending their time abroad are far more than the negative impacts and this enforce the importance of why all universities should have a specific time aloted for this purpose.

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response6.0
Coherence and Cohesion6.0
Lexical Resource5.5
Grammatical Range and Accuracy5.0
Overall5.5

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You address both the requirement for overseas study or work placement and whether its benefits outweigh its drawbacks, and your position is clear: the positive outcomes are greater. Relevant points include cultural exposure, independence and learning to work with people from other countries; you also acknowledge possible bullying and language barriers. However, some ideas are asserted rather than fully explained. For instance, the claim that students will “learn how to deal with other nationalities” would be stronger with a specific skill or example, and the comparison with a student who stays in one country is difficult to follow. Develop fewer points with clearer explanation of how they benefit students, and explain how the disadvantages could be managed.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has an overall structure, moving from an introduction to a discussion of benefits and drawbacks and then a conclusion. The contrast signalled by “But on the other hand” helps show your position, and examples are used to support the discussion. However, the first paragraph is a very long sentence, while the second contains several ideas joined together in ways that make their relationships unclear. The sequence “The students will learn how to deal with other nationalities. Gain global experience, live independent” also reads as disconnected fragments. Use one main idea per paragraph, organise the body into a clear advantages/disadvantages progression, and use referencing and linking phrases more precisely rather than relying on broad transitions.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You attempt vocabulary relevant to the topic, including “different cultures,” “language barrier,” “global experience” and “different perspective.” These choices communicate the general subject, but the range and control are uneven, with repeated basic wording such as “students,” “learn” and “different.” Some word choices or combinations are inaccurate or unclear, for example “living independent,” “experience job life” and “re arrange this learning.” Spelling errors such as “aloted” and “harships” also reduce accuracy. Build a more precise set of expressions for academic and professional benefits, and check collocations and word forms so that your intended meaning is immediately clear.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentence forms, including a contrast between overseas experience and staying in one country. However, control is inconsistent, and errors sometimes make sentences difficult to follow. Examples include “We human's are design,” “the students that they could spend,” and “Their learning are,” which show problems with agreement, verb forms and sentence construction. The long opening sentence also joins clauses without clear punctuation, and “For. Example” interrupts the sentence incorrectly. Practise building accurate sentences with a clear subject and verb, then use subordinate clauses and contrast structures only when their relationships are clear. Careful proofreading for tense, agreement, articles and punctuation would improve readability.

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