Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-31

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)

All students must need to grasp the hands on experties with theory. There is no doubt that providing an opportunity to study abroad or work placement is highly preferable in present age. In this essay, I will look on both the advantages and disadvantages of this prefrence.

There are three main advantages of work placement or study abroad on an exchange program everyone support. Firstly, getting a chance to work in an industry really beneficial for students where they easily apply all there learnings in a practical system. Furthermore, students can share there ideas with people in firm who have the likewise mindset to strengthen there understanding for future. Most importantly, working in real company help peers to make new connections that should be helpful for getting better placement afterwards. However, moving abroad for specific period of time also a great way to sharpen the student intelligence. For instance, one of my friend who was student at university got a chance to study one semester in USA helped him to

understand business ethics, company management, cash flows and team building more effectively as compared to Pakistan.

Moreover, these opportunities also end up with some drawbacks. Getting a placement during studies is great but some students are not able to manage their studies and practical life at the same time end up with the big failure in bothe fields.

In summary, I would conclude that undergraduates should spent their time to work in real industry with studies it helped them to easily understand the rapidly changing industry and its advancements.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You address both the benefits and a drawback, and your overall preference is apparent in the conclusion: undergraduates should gain industry experience alongside their studies. The examples about applying learning in a workplace and your friend’s semester in the USA are relevant. However, the response does not fully answer the key question of whether the advantages outweigh the disadvantages: this comparison is implied rather than clearly argued, and the disadvantage is only briefly mentioned. Several benefits, such as making connections and improving understanding, are listed but not sufficiently explained. State your position directly in the introduction and develop the drawback and explain why the benefits are more significant.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure, with an introduction, a paragraph on advantages, a paragraph on disadvantages, and a conclusion. Sequencing words such as “Firstly,” “Furthermore,” and “Moreover” help signal the direction of ideas. However, progression is limited because the advantages are mostly presented as a list, while the disadvantage paragraph contains only one brief point. Some connections are unclear, particularly the transition from workplace benefits to studying abroad. The opening phrase “There are three main advantages” also promises a clear set of three, but the paragraph moves between placement and overseas study without clearly organising them. Group related points and use linking phrases to show how each example supports your position.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You attempt vocabulary relevant to the topic, including “work placement,” “industry,” “practical,” “business ethics,” and “team building.” These choices help communicate the main subject and show some range beyond basic everyday language. However, noticeable spelling and word-choice errors reduce precision, as in “experties,” “prefrence,” “there learnings,” and “bothe fields.” Some phrases are also unnatural or imprecise, such as “sharpen the student intelligence” and “better placement afterwards.” Aim for accurate collocations and check spelling carefully. More precise expressions such as “develop practical expertise,” “apply theoretical knowledge,” and “secure future employment” would make your ideas clearer and more appropriate for an academic essay.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentences, including a relative clause in “one of my friend who was student at university…” and a contrast introduced by “However.” Nevertheless, errors are frequent, and some sentence structures are difficult to follow. For example, “All students must need to grasp” combines incompatible verb forms, while “working in real company help peers” has subject–verb agreement and article problems. The sentence about your friend lacks a clear main-clause structure, and “some students are not able to manage… end up” needs a grammatical link between its clauses. Practise building complete sentences with clear subjects and verbs, and check agreement, articles, and verb forms before submitting.

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