Band 7.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-09-24

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 7.5)

Dear Sarah,

I hope you're doing well. I'm glad to hear that you want to study abroad as part of your university course. I'd like to share my experience of studying abroad with you.

I had the opportunity to participate in the Summer Research Scholars Program at UC Berkeley in the US. The program lasted for four months, starting from April 15 to July 30, 2025. UCB is one of the top public schools in the United States of America and a top destination for International students. I went there through an exchange program through my university in Pakistan.

Let me tell you about the country in general. The US is one of the leading countries in advanced technology, which has practical implications. It is renowned for its research-oriented environment. Besides that, there is cultural diversity and inclusion of all sorts of backgrounds.

Not only did this exchange program broaden my horizons, but it also helped me improve my communication and research skills, which turned out to be really helpful in my studies. I am grateful to be selected as one of the research assistants for my postgraduate studies in the UK.

Feel free to reach out to me if you need further guidance.

Best wishes,

Iqra

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.5

The response successfully covers all bullet points specified in the prompt. You mentioned where you studied by writing 'the Summer Research Scholars Program at UC Berkeley in the US,' described what you learned about the country by noting that 'The US is one of the leading countries in advanced technology' with a 'research-oriented environment' and 'cultural diversity,' and explained why your year abroad was helpful by stating that it 'helped me improve my communication and research skills, which turned out to be really helpful in my studies.' The letter format is appropriate, the register is friendly and polite, and the tone is well-suited for a letter to a friend's sister. All parts of the task are well-addressed with relevant details.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.5

The letter flows very logically from your opening greeting and purpose to specific details about your host institution, general insights about the country, and finally the academic benefits of your experience. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate distinct ideas, such as the introduction, the location details, the cultural/national context, and the academic outcomes. Cohesive devices are handled well, using transition markers like 'Besides that' and 'Not only did this exchange program...'. Referencing is clear throughout, making the letter easy to read and follow from beginning to end.

Lexical Resource: Band 7.0

You have used a wide and appropriate range of vocabulary suitable for a General Training task, including items such as 'participate,' 'research-oriented environment,' 'cultural diversity,' and 'broaden my horizons.' Word choices are generally precise, and collocations function naturally, as seen in 'advanced technology' and 'practical implications.' There are only very minor issues, such as the capitalization in 'International students,' but overall the lexical control is strong and allows you to convey your ideas with precision and clarity.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 7.5

The letter demonstrates a good mix of simple and complex sentence structures, including a well-formed inversion structure: 'Not only did this exchange program broaden my horizons, but it also helped me improve...'. The majority of your sentences are completely error-free, and your control of verb tenses (past simple for your experience, present simple for general facts) is accurate. Punctuation is handled correctly throughout, and minor errors are virtually absent, placing this writing firmly in the higher band levels for grammatical control.

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