Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-11-01

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 5.0)

This is ongoig debate, the university undergraduates allowed for the study abroad and also work placement in foriegn.

On the one hand, the advantages of this the pupils are willing to study in another country university should gives the permission and also expensive of study because that the way for universities to represent and make the linkage in adition, that's the way represent your country. However, if the students studied from the renowed institues they gains the exposure and also learn the new things like research and creativity.

On the second hand, if the university encourage students for work because its give the exposure of industries that helps in the future. For example, practical work creates the productivity and developed new skills if the work in related field. The other thing is that cons of this excessive work kills the time for study because pupils have enough time for studies. The university allowed limited time for work not full time.

The disadvantages is some universities said that they have opportunities for jobs and workplace just gain the admissions in fact, after graduation no job in industries so, stay away from these kind of universities make a proper research before take the admission.

In conclusion, study abroad unlock the new features and abilities and sharpen the students and work gives the experiences and developed the new kind of skills in the learners in addition pupils are job ready skills and different types of certificates that is the benefical for all learners to gain the job after graduation.

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response5.0
Coherence and Cohesion5.0
Lexical Resource5.0
Grammatical Range and Accuracy4.5
Overall5.0

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You address both study abroad and work placements, and your conclusion indicates that you see their benefits as valuable for students’ future careers. Relevant points include gaining exposure to research and industry, developing skills, and the risk that excessive work could reduce study time. However, the response only partially answers the comparison in the question: it does not clearly state whether the advantages outweigh the disadvantages, and the position is not consistently maintained. Several ideas are introduced but remain difficult to interpret or are not supported with a specific example. To strengthen the response, state your view directly in the introduction and compare the benefits with the drawbacks throughout, explaining why one side is more significant.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

The response has a recognisable structure, with an opening, two body paragraphs and a conclusion. You also attempt to guide the reader with phrases such as “On the one hand,” “On the second hand,” and “In conclusion.” However, the overall progression is not always clear: the first body paragraph combines study abroad, university costs and national representation without showing how these points connect. The shift from work-placement benefits to concerns about universities promising jobs is also abrupt. Some linking phrases are inaccurate or repetitive, and references such as “that’s the way” do not make the relationship between ideas clear. Organise each paragraph around one main point, then explain and support it before moving to the next.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You attempt vocabulary relevant to the topic, including “exposure,” “industries,” “productivity,” “research,” and “certificates.” These choices show an effort to discuss education and employment, but the range is limited and several word choices or collocations make the meaning unclear, such as “expensive of study,” “represent your country,” and “job ready skills.” Spelling errors, including “ongoig,” “foriegn,” “renowed,” and “institues,” are also noticeable and reduce accuracy. Aim to learn topic-specific phrases as complete collocations and check spelling carefully. More precise wording would help you explain the benefits and drawbacks without relying on broad or unclear expressions.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 4.5

You attempt both simple and more extended sentences, including a conditional idea in “if the students studied from the renowed institues they gains the exposure.” However, complex structures are often faulty, and frequent errors in agreement, verb forms, articles and sentence construction can make the message difficult to follow. For example, “the university undergraduates allowed” lacks a clear verb structure, while “the university should gives” has incorrect modal construction and agreement. In “the disadvantages is,” the subject and verb do not agree. Punctuation is also inconsistent, with several long sentences joined without clear boundaries. Practise building accurate short sentences first, then combine them using controlled clauses and check subject–verb agreement.

See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.

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