Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-09-30

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 6.5)

Dear Kelly,

I hope you're doing great. I've heard from Sam that you're willing to study abroad for one year. I had recently passed this course and would like to share the journey with you.

Initially, I was stuck in deciding which college to pick, but after consulting many immigration offices I chose 'Durham College of Canada'. This is located in Greater Toronto Area and it is well known for its reputation and cheap tuition.

I had always dreamt of studying abroad and I felt this was the right opportunity for me to explore a new country. I've learned so many things about this country, mainly being respectful to others and also how to gain leadership skills in the college.

I believe this year was helpful to me especially in my academics because I have learned how to be independent and career oriented.

I hope this letter helps you to decide your future.

Best regards,

Harsh

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

The response covers all three bullet points required in the task instructions. You successfully tell Kelly where you studied by mentioning 'Durham College of Canada' in the Greater Toronto Area. You describe what you learned about the country, specifically mentioning values like being respectful to others and gaining leadership skills. Furthermore, you explain why your year abroad was helpful for your studies, noting that it made you more independent and career-oriented. The tone is appropriate for a semi-formal letter to a friend's sister, and the purpose of the communication is entirely clear throughout the text. All parts of the prompt are addressed adequately, fitting the criteria for a Band 6.0 or 6.5.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The letter has a clear overall arrangement and is easy to follow. You use standard letter conventions with an appropriate greeting and sign-off. Paragraphing is utilized to separate different ideas, such as your choice of college, your experiences, and your academic reflections. However, some transitions between paragraphs feel slightly mechanical or abrupt, and cohesive devices are somewhat basic. For example, starting sentences with 'Initially,' and 'I had always dreamt' works, but the logical flow between your reasons for studying abroad and what you learned could be smoother. Referencing is generally clear, though paragraphing could be structured with more precision to achieve a higher band score.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task. You attempt some less common lexical items and phrases, such as 'career oriented', 'reputation and cheap tuition', and 'immigration offices'. However, there are a few word choice and collocation inaccuracies. For instance, writing 'I had recently passed this course' is unnatural when referring to a study abroad program, and 'willing to study abroad' is less natural than 'thinking about studying abroad' or 'planning to study abroad'. Despite these minor lexical errors, the vocabulary is sufficient to convey your message clearly without impeding communication.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

You make use of a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating control over basic sentence structures. Examples like 'Initially, I was stuck in deciding which college to pick, but after consulting many immigration offices I chose...' show a good attempt at complexity. However, there are some grammatical errors and awkward phrasing, such as 'I had recently passed this course' (tense misuse) and missing articles in places. Punctuation is generally fine, and these errors do not impede communication, allowing the reader to understand your message without difficulty. This places your grammatical control firmly at Band 6.0.

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.