Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-29

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)

Universities should require students to spend a semester abroad or doing work placements as it expands their understanding of the world.

Currently the status quo is that students spend the entire duration of their studies in one instituion. They then get thrusted into the job market with no structure or experience to guide them. This can be unnerving or anxiety inducing for many students. When I graduated, I had no idea where and how to apply to jobs. I didn't know how to dress for interviews or what lied beyond my limited vision of the world. I thought there were no jobs that required Python skills, until I travelled to Belize for vacation. I accidentally opened my linked in page and saw hundreds of Python job openings from neighbouring countries. This changed my view of the world that what I can offer may not be what my native country wants but that doesn't mean that the market isn't there elsewhere in the world. My limited view of the world prevented me from seeing that, and it only opened up once I travelled abroad.

Universities can provide to students, the tools necessary to live a fulfilling life more confidently. If universities provide that necessary structure during one's studies. Such as requiring students to study a semester abroad or do work placement during their studies. This will be significantly beneficial to the students as it will expand their limited knowledge beyond what their country can offer and provide them with the necessary structure so they can traverse the landscape of employment beyond graduation in a more confident manner. Students who spend time abroad during their studies can also find better fields that aligns them and would know what they specifically want from life. All of that is possible if universities provide the necessary structure such as allowing a semester abroad or requiring work placements.

Current university strucutre may lack the adequate tools or may not provide the students with the confidence to figure out what they want, but slight tweaks to undergraduate programs can make the students' life more easier allowing them to explore what they actually want.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You take a clear position in favour of including overseas study or work placements, and your personal example about discovering Python job openings abroad is relevant and helps explain how international exposure can broaden career options. However, the response focuses mainly on the benefits and does not meaningfully consider disadvantages, despite the question asking whether the advantages outweigh them. The discussion of work placements is also less developed than the study-abroad example, and several claims—such as students finding fields that suit them—would benefit from a specific explanation or example. To strengthen the response, address at least one realistic drawback, weigh it against the benefits, and make the comparison explicit in your conclusion.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure: it introduces a position, develops the benefits in two body paragraphs, and ends with a concluding point. The personal story also gives the first body paragraph a clear focus. However, progression is weakened by repetition: the ideas of limited knowledge, confidence, and university structure recur several times without adding much new development. The final paragraph is very brief and does not clearly weigh advantages against disadvantages. Some links between sentences are awkward, and the fragment beginning “Such as requiring students” interrupts the flow of the preceding sentence. Organise the body around distinct points, use clearer transitions between them, and make the conclusion directly answer the comparison in the prompt.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use some relevant topic vocabulary, including “work placements,” “job market,” “interviews,” and “employment,” and phrases such as “limited vision of the world” communicate your central idea. However, the range is somewhat repetitive, particularly around “structure,” “necessary,” and “limited,” and some expressions are inaccurate or unnatural. For example, “got thrusted into the job market” is not an appropriate collocation, while “what lied beyond” and “fields that aligns them” are awkward or incorrectly formed. There are also spelling errors such as “instituion,” “strucutre,” and “linked in.” Aim for more precise academic phrasing and check spelling and collocations carefully.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mixture of sentence types, including longer sentences with subordinate clauses, and the main message is generally understandable. However, complex structures are not consistently controlled. “If universities provide that necessary structure during one's studies. Such as requiring students…” is an incomplete sentence, and “Students who spend time abroad … can also find better fields that aligns them” has a subject–verb agreement error. The final sentence also contains an incorrect comparative construction in “more easier.” Punctuation sometimes separates dependent material from the sentence it belongs to. Practise combining fragments into complete sentences, checking agreement between subjects and verbs, and proofreading comparative forms and sentence boundaries.

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