Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · 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 6.0)

All university undergraduate courses should include a period of time spent studying abroad or doing some work placement. There are certain advantages and disadvantages of this, but i believe that its advantages would outweigh the disadvantages.

University is a place where students are taught to make life decisions and they get to know about different opportunities. Universities should help students to look at numerous paths and choose a life they want or a life they are suitable with. By guiding the students about various opportunities in abroad, students will see more options and it will be easy for them to know their interests. They will be able to understand and learn new languages, they wil get to know the geography better and learn about new cultures. Furthermore, by doing work placement, they will get to see and know the real world much better. They will get a lot of experience that will surely help them in the future. They will learn how to handle the setbacks and difficult situations and how to find a solution in pressure.

They are also a few disadvantages of it that includes the financial condition of poor people. Some people can't afford to study abroad and there are some people who get homesick very easily. It would not be convenient for these people but the university can solve this problem by making it opyional to take the period. By doing this, the people who want to take the class will take it and get a benefit from it without giving the problem to others.

In conclusion, by including the period, there would be more benefits than disadvantages and it would help a lot of students.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

Your position is clear from the introduction: you believe the advantages outweigh the disadvantages, and the conclusion restates this view. You address both sides, giving relevant benefits such as language learning, cultural awareness and practical experience, and noting cost and homesickness as drawbacks. However, some points are asserted rather than fully explained. For example, you say students will understand “the geography better” but do not show how this benefit matters to their education or future. The suggestion that universities make the period optional also needs closer consideration, since it changes the proposal that all courses should include it. Develop fewer points with specific explanations or examples to make your argument more convincing.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall structure: an introduction, a paragraph focused mainly on benefits, a paragraph on disadvantages and a conclusion. The ideas generally progress in a sensible order, and linking expressions such as “Furthermore,” “They are also” and “In conclusion” help signal the stages of the argument. At times, however, the paragraph on benefits becomes a list of outcomes, with repeated “They will” sentences rather than a developed sequence showing how each benefit follows. The reference to making the period optional also sits somewhat awkwardly beside the claim that all courses should include it. Use clearer links between claims and explanations, and make pronoun references and the relationship between the proposal and your solution more precise.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use enough vocabulary to discuss the topic, including relevant terms such as “opportunities,” “cultures,” “work placement,” “experience” and “setbacks.” This allows your main ideas to be understood. However, the range is sometimes repetitive or imprecise: “get to know” and “get to see and know” recur, while “a life they are suitable with” is an unnatural expression. There are also spelling and word-form slips, including “wil” and “opyional,” and some collocations need attention, such as “opportunities in abroad.” These issues do not prevent understanding, but more accurate and varied phrasing would make the argument more fluent and precise. Practise topic-specific collocations and check spelling during revision.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and more complex sentence forms, including the contrast in “There are certain advantages and disadvantages of this, but…” and the conditional construction “By doing this, the people who want to take the class will take it.” Most sentences communicate their meaning clearly. Some grammatical errors remain, however. For example, “Universities should help students to look at numerous paths and choose a life they are suitable with” has an awkward grammatical pattern, and “there are a few disadvantages of it that includes” has a subject–verb agreement error. The sentence beginning “Some people can't afford…” also shifts between plural and singular references. Review agreement, clause construction and punctuation, while continuing to use varied sentence patterns.

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