Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · 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 5.5)
Dear Amantha,
I hope you are doing well. I am writing to you to share my experience in learning abroad, as I did it recently. I am glad that you thought about spending a year studying abroad as part of your university course.
I also completed my one year diploma program at Sanford University. It was located by ten minutes drive from my apartment, since it was easy for me to travelled there. I usually took university pick-up because it is more convenient in terms of costs and reliability.
I must say United Kingdom is one of the most hustle and bustle country in the world. I learnt so many things while studying. I observed that people of all ages was busy in their lives. They was giving personal space to everyone by not interrupting others. Hence, I experienced that we have to live in our own pace and too much questioning and involvement may be frustrated other individuals.
I believed I learnt numerous things while pursuing my studies. It facilitates me to meet several nationalities. I am able to perceive various accents like British, American and Australian. I believe that studying abroad provides a lot of benefits, since it is a biggest exposure for a career growth.
I am waiting for your final decision. I hope my experience help you to decide best for you.
Yours sincerely,
Rubia Ahmed Khan
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5
The response successfully covers all three bullet points required in the prompt. You mentioned where you studied ('Sanford University' in the 'United Kingdom'), described what you learned about the country ('hustle and bustle', personal space), and explained how it was helpful for your studies (meeting nationalities and perceiving various accents). Your tone is appropriately friendly and conversational for a letter to a friend's sister, adhering well to General Training Task 1 conventions. The ideas are relevant and clearly expressed, fulfilling the requirements for Band 6.0.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5
The letter is organised logically into paragraphs with an appropriate opening and sign-off. Cohesive devices are generally used to connect ideas, such as 'since', 'hence', and 'I also'. However, some referencing is slightly awkward or mechanical, such as 'as I did it recently' and transitions between paragraphs that could flow more naturally. Paragraphing is used sufficiently to separate different topics, such as the location, the cultural observations, and the academic benefits, resulting in a solid Band 6.0.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.5
You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully using phrases like 'hustle and bustle', 'personal space', and 'career growth'. However, there are some noticeable lexical inaccuracies and awkward word choices, such as 'learning abroad' instead of 'studying abroad' and 'frustrated other individuals' instead of 'frustrate'. While these errors do not impede overall communication, they prevent the lexical score from reaching the higher bands, placing your performance firmly at Band 6.0.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0
The response features a mix of simple and complex sentence forms. You attempted various structures with words like 'since', 'although', and relative clauses. However, there are several noticeable grammatical errors, particularly with verb tenses and agreement, such as 'easy for me to travelled there', 'country was busy', and 'They was giving'. Additionally, 'may be frustrated' contains an incorrect passive voice form. These errors occur frequently enough to place this criterion at Band 5.0, as they occasionally cause some difficulty or hesitation for the reader.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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