Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-09-09
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 5.0)
Dear Nidhi,
Congratulations for Canadian visa! I am glad that you asked for an advice regarding spending a year out of your home country and explore the foreign culture.
I studies at Conestoga college for one academic year. During my visit, I had the opportunity to learn about Canadian culture, traditional food and the way of life there. I learned that Canadian are generally friendly, relaxed and open minded. I also met a lot of students from different parts of world
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 4.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 4.0
The response fails to meet the minimum word count requirement of 150 words, as it is only 81 words long. Consequently, the task is only partially addressed. While you mention where you studied and touch upon what you learned about the country, the final bullet point regarding how the year was helpful for your studies is completely missing. To improve, you must ensure all parts of the prompt are addressed in detail and that you meet the minimum length requirement to allow for full development of your ideas.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0
The letter is very brief, which limits the ability to demonstrate a range of cohesive devices. There is a basic logical flow between the opening and the description of the college, but the lack of a concluding paragraph or a proper sign-off makes the structure incomplete. Paragraphing is present but insufficient due to the limited content. To improve, use a wider variety of linking words (e.g., 'furthermore', 'consequently', 'in addition') to connect your ideas more fluidly and ensure the letter has a clear beginning, middle, and end.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.0
The vocabulary used is functional but basic. You rely on simple phrases such as 'way of life' and 'different parts of world'. There is little attempt to use less common or more precise vocabulary that would be expected at higher bands. Additionally, there are minor errors such as 'Congratulations for Canadian visa' (should be 'on your Canadian visa') and 'different parts of world' (missing an article). To improve, try to incorporate more descriptive adjectives and topic-specific collocations related to studying abroad.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The response contains several grammatical errors that affect the accuracy of the writing. For example, 'I studies at Conestoga college' should be 'I studied at Conestoga College', and 'Canadian are generally friendly' should be 'Canadians are generally friendly'. The sentence structures are mostly simple, with very little evidence of complex sentence forms. To improve, focus on subject-verb agreement, the correct use of articles, and incorporating a wider range of complex grammatical structures, such as relative clauses or conditional sentences, to demonstrate greater 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.