Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-11-03

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 the university undergraduate courses should includes a period of time spent studying abroad or diong a work placement. I am partially agre with that its advantages outweigh its disadavantages, while i will discuss both and presents my point of view.

Overall, studying abroad or doing a work placement has alot of benefits for university undergraduates to experience foriegn as well as also have many drawbacks for students also for countries.

On the one hand, foriegh study and work training can provide an oppertunity to students to explore international culture and get education from different experts. Moreover, abroad study can help students to persue thier studies in globally reputed universities or learn new skills also get practical experience from international organizations and discover different places, learn languages, meet with peoples and become familier with modern technology.

On the other hand, studyinh or work placement abroad reqiures alot of resources specially finance and it is not possible for every person as well as for each country to bear huge expences many loer income group and developing nations can not affords it. Furthermore, every country have different culture, language and way of teaching, students may face t.hese barriers in foriegn state and also it lead to gap between students and thier families.

In conclusion to this, abroad studies and practical training have huge benefits for students who have enough resources to meet educational expences also for developed countries like USA, France, Germany and UK. However, for many midle-class poeples and developing countries such Pakistan, Afghanistan, Uganda and Nigeria it is easily possible to cover these abroad expences

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You address both sides of the proposal by discussing cultural and educational benefits alongside financial and adjustment difficulties. Your position is introduced as “partially agree,” but the conclusion does not clearly state whether the advantages outweigh the disadvantages; instead, it says the opportunity benefits students with sufficient resources and is difficult for others. This leaves the central comparison unresolved. Several relevant points are listed—such as learning languages and gaining practical experience—but they are not explained with specific examples or developed enough to show why the benefits outweigh the costs. The reference to particular countries is also not connected to evidence. Make your judgement explicit and support two or three main ideas with explanation or a relevant example.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable overall structure: an introduction, separate paragraphs for advantages and disadvantages, and a conclusion. “On the one hand” and “On the other hand” help signal the contrast, so the reader can follow the broad direction of the argument. However, ideas within the body paragraphs are often crowded into long lists, and links between them are sometimes mechanical. For example, the benefits paragraph moves from international culture to universities, skills, places, languages, people, and technology without showing how these points relate. The conclusion also does not clearly resolve the comparison set up in the introduction. Group related points, explain each in a logical sequence, and use clearer references between sentences.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You attempt vocabulary relevant to the topic, including “practical experience,” “international organizations,” “developing nations,” and “educational expenses.” However, the range is limited and many spelling and word-choice errors make the writing less clear or natural, such as “foriegh study,” “oppertunity,” “persue,” and “familier.” Some phrases are also awkward, including “explore international culture” and “meet with peoples.” These errors are noticeable throughout and can make the reader pause to interpret your meaning. Build accuracy by checking spelling carefully and learning common academic collocations as complete phrases. Aim to use a smaller number of precise expressions rather than adding long lists of loosely connected vocabulary.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more extended sentence forms, including a contrast between benefits and drawbacks and a sentence beginning “Furthermore.” However, control is inconsistent, and errors in verb forms, agreement, articles, and sentence construction occur frequently. Examples include “courses should includes,” “I am partially agre,” “every country have,” and “it is not possible … to bear huge expences.” The opening sentence also combines several ideas in a way that makes its structure difficult to follow. These problems sometimes slow understanding, even though the main message is generally recoverable. Practise accurate subject–verb agreement and infinitive forms, and separate long lists into shorter sentences. Proofread each sentence for a clear subject and correctly formed verb.

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