Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-11-14

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 kiran,

Hope you are doing well, i come to know rthat you are planing to study abroad for higher education and want my advice on this. I am glad to share my experiene ,firstly i want to tell you about my university . I completed my study at university of niagara falls canada , my major was management .

The life of abroad is far better than india as well as education system over here is just amazing. I learned many skiils while living here like become indepent , how to communicate well in big occassions, managerial skiills by working here as well as how to handle each and every situation well.

I would tell you the study of masters here fruitfull for me to open my own business. Now i am growing my restaurant in forein country with help of my husband . It not only boost my confident but also i grasp knowlege of how to implyment all well by the intership which i get after my study.I would definetly recoment you to come and enroll for higher education here for your better future.

Your lovingly,

Gurpreet kaur

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You cover all three requested points: you identify the University of Niagara Falls in Canada, describe learning about independence, communication and the education system, and explain that the experience helped you prepare to open a restaurant. The advice to Kiran is also clear. However, some parts are more fully addressed than others. The description of the country is mostly broad praise—“far better than India” and “education system… amazing”—rather than specific things you discovered about Canadian life or culture. The study benefit is relevant, but the link between your management studies, internship and current business could be explained more clearly. Adding one or two concrete examples would make the letter more informative and developed.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The letter has a recognisable structure: an opening, paragraphs about your studies and experience, and a recommendation at the end. The ideas generally follow a sensible order, and phrases such as “firstly” and “Now” help signal progression. However, several points are crowded into long sentences, especially the paragraph listing skills and the final paragraph about your business. This makes the relationships between learning, the internship and your studies less clear. Some transitions also feel mechanical, and the opening moves quickly from the reason for writing to your university. Use clearer paragraph breaks and connect each main point with a more precise explanation so the reader can follow the account smoothly.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use a range of relevant vocabulary, including “management,” “independent,” “managerial skills,” “internship” and “higher education,” which helps communicate the main ideas. There are also attempts to use less common expressions, such as “handle each and every situation.” However, spelling and word-choice errors are noticeable, including “experiene,” “skiils,” “occassions,” “forein” and “recoment.” Some phrases are also unnatural or unclear, such as “the life of abroad” and “grasp knowledge of how to implement all well.” These choices sometimes make the reader pause to interpret your meaning. Check spelling carefully and choose more natural collocations, such as “life abroad” and “apply what I learned.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more extended sentence forms, and the overall message remains understandable. For example, you connect your studies and career outcome in the sentence beginning “I would tell you the study of masters here…”. However, some sentence structures and verb forms are inaccurate, and punctuation is often missing or misplaced. The opening, “Hope you are doing well, i come to know…,” joins ideas without a clear grammatical structure; “you are planing” also needs a correct verb form. In “It not only boost my confident,” the subject–verb agreement and tense need attention. Use complete sentences, consistent past tense for your year abroad, and clearer punctuation to improve control.

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

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.