Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-11-12
IELTS Writing Task 1 question
The younger sister of one of your friends is thinking about spending a year studying abroad as part of her university course. You did this recently, and she has asked you about your experience.
Write a letter to your friend's sister. In your letter
tell her where you studied during your year abroad
describe what you learnt about the country you studied in
explain why your year abroad was helpful for your studies
Begin your letter as follows:
Dear........,
Student answer (Band 5.5)
Dear Hina,
I hope your are feeling enthusiastic to take a study course abroad. I recived an email from your sister to give you some guidence. Since, i recently completed this course from an international university. Therefore, I would like to tell you about details and my experience there.
I completed my course from Sbanchi university Turkiya. Istanbul is a very old city which has many interesting places to visit. Furthermore, the people there are very generous and welcomimg.My stay there was full of learning new things about history. Moreover, about old and new arcitacture of the ancient city of Istanbul. Since, our field is related to Arts and architectecture it helped me alot in my studies while completing assignments i sometime personallly visited to the historical places.
Now i have returned backing after taking the course and i would like to suggest you to go ahead in your plan of going abroad.This will be very benificial for your furture goal of higher studies. I wish you all the best.
Yours truly,
Saba
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0
The letter addresses all three points: you identify the university and country, describe Istanbul’s history, architecture and welcoming people, and explain that visiting historical sites helped with assignments in your arts and architecture studies. These details make the experience relevant to the recipient. However, the account of what you learnt about Turkey is more developed than the explanation of how the year abroad supported your studies; the latter is mainly stated rather than illustrated. The opening also says you completed “this course,” which could suggest a course rather than a year abroad. Clarify that you studied at the university for a year, and add a specific example of how the experience improved your academic knowledge or skills. The friendly purpose and closing are appropriate for this personal letter.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0
The information is arranged in a generally clear order: you introduce the reason for writing, describe the university and city, explain the academic benefit, and finish with advice and good wishes. Paragraphing helps distinguish these stages. Some links between ideas, however, feel mechanical or unclear. For example, “Since” and “Therefore” are used in succession in the opening, and “Since, our field is related to Arts and architectecture” does not connect smoothly to the preceding sentence. The long section about Istanbul also combines several points without clear sentence boundaries. Use fewer linking expressions and make the relationship between each idea explicit; separating the description of the country from the academic benefit would make the progression easier to follow.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.0
You use relevant vocabulary for the topic, including “historical places,” “assignments,” “architecture,” and “higher studies,” and the reader can understand the main message. There is some variety in describing the city and its people, but several spelling errors and imprecise or unnatural expressions reduce accuracy: “recived,” “guidence,” “welcomimg,” “benificial,” and “furture” are examples. Phrases such as “completed my course from” and “returned backing” are also not natural choices in this context. Aim to learn common word partnerships and check spelling carefully. More precise terms for your academic experience and the country’s cultural or architectural features would help you describe your year abroad with greater flexibility.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0
The letter includes both simple statements and attempts at more complex sentences, such as “Since our field is related to Arts and architecture, it helped me a lot in my studies.” The overall meaning remains understandable, but some sentence structures and punctuation need more control. “Since, I recently completed this course… Therefore…” creates an incomplete or awkwardly linked opening, while “Moreover, about old and new architecture…” is a fragment rather than a complete sentence. There are also errors in forms and sentence construction, as in “I hope your are feeling” and “I have returned backing.” Practise building complete clauses with a clear subject and verb, and use conjunctions such as “because” or “so” to show relationships without creating fragments.
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