Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-09-04

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 xyz,

I just heard from farhan that you are planning to move abroad for studies. If it is like that then i can give you a guide where should you go? And what are the benefits of moving there also why i choose this among all countries. So basically in 2026 i was just exploring the options to move abroad for higher studies and then i short list many options but top three options were: USA, Uk, CANADA. So i choose among all

Those to move USA and choose it because there was vast options related to my field. As like there were more advanced technologies and the main benefit was to learn those skills and apply those in my own country because you know it far beyond there technologies.

I learn there that if you had a skill then you will get rewards and they just appreciate your skills.

Also it was helpful to me because I can never learn those skills anywhere else and that improvise my own clinical experience so i would recommend you to go for USA because it has extensive range of advanced technologies in other fields too.

Best regards, Date:09/4/27

Shahmir khan

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response covers all three bullet points: the location (USA), what was learned (advanced technologies/skills), and the benefits to studies (clinical experience). However, the development of these ideas is quite limited and repetitive. The tone is somewhat informal and lacks the appropriate structure for a letter of advice. While the task is addressed, the explanation of why the year was helpful remains vague, relying on general statements rather than specific examples. To improve, you should expand on your points with more detail and ensure the tone is consistently helpful and encouraging throughout the letter.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The letter is organized into paragraphs, but the flow between ideas is often disjointed. The use of cohesive devices is minimal and sometimes mechanical, such as the repetitive use of 'and' or 'also' to start sentences. The transition between the introduction and the body paragraphs is abrupt, and the logical progression of ideas is hindered by the lack of clear linking words. To reach a higher band, focus on using a wider variety of transition signals (e.g., 'furthermore', 'consequently', 'in addition to this') to connect your thoughts more fluidly and improve the overall structure of your writing.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is adequate for the task but lacks range and precision. You rely on basic words like 'move', 'options', and 'skills' throughout the text. There are also some awkward collocations and word choices, such as 'if it is like that' and 'it far beyond there technologies'. The spelling of 'Uk' should be 'UK', and there are minor errors in word form, such as 'improvise' instead of 'improve'. To improve, try to incorporate more topic-specific vocabulary related to university studies and international experiences, and pay closer attention to word choice and spelling accuracy.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The response contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors that occasionally impede clarity. Issues include incorrect verb tenses (e.g., 'in 2026 i was just exploring' when referring to the past), missing articles, and subject-verb agreement errors (e.g., 'there was vast options'). Punctuation is also inconsistent, particularly with capitalization and sentence boundaries. While the meaning is generally understandable, the high frequency of errors prevents the writing from reaching a higher band. Focus on mastering basic sentence construction, subject-verb agreement, and consistent tense usage to improve your accuracy.

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

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