Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-10-09

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 Sima,

what's going on ?, I heard that you are thinking to spend time in foreign for university course.

I used to have same course when I was in foregin country. I attened this course at university of guelph, it is quite famous in Canada.

I have had so many experience related to the country and I got chance to learn about the country culture, food as well as language.If I give you a piece of advice then language is very curcial for a particular country because with the assist of a native language you will able to comunicate your ideas and experience with other people.

I want to tell you that my one year was an important part of my life and it flw like a bird.During the stay I did alot of research on my studies as I got well paid job in our country.

Let me know, if you want to know about anything and say hello to your brother from my side.

Lots of love,

Ravdeep

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

The letter responds to the situation and includes relevant information: you name the University of Guelph in Canada, mention learning about the country’s culture, food and language, and say the year helped your studies through research. However, the three points are not developed evenly. The description of what you learnt remains general, and the explanation of how the experience helped your university studies is unclear: “I did alot of research on my studies as I got well paid job in our country” does not explain the connection between the research and your course. Add a specific example of a cultural discovery and explain what skills or knowledge you gained that supported your studies. The friendly tone and closing suit the recipient, but the purpose of the advice could be clearer.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

The ideas are presented in a broadly sensible order: you introduce the recipient’s plan, describe your university and experience, then close with an offer to help. The greeting and sign-off also establish a friendly letter format. However, progression between ideas is sometimes unclear, and the response reads largely as one continuous block rather than as clearly organised paragraphs. The transition from learning about the country to advising her about language is understandable, but the final explanation about research and getting a job is difficult to follow. Some linking is also mechanical, as in “If I give you a piece of advice then”. Use separate paragraphs for the study location, cultural learning, and academic benefits, and make the links between each point explicit.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use some relevant vocabulary for the topic, including “culture”, “native language”, “communicate” and “research”, and the informal expressions “Lots of love” and “say hello to your brother” fit the relationship. However, the range is limited and several noticeable spelling and word-choice errors make parts less clear, such as “foregin”, “attened”, “curcial” and “flw”. Some phrases are also unnatural or imprecise: “spend time in foreign” and “I used to have same course” do not express the intended meaning clearly. Aim for accurate, natural collocations and check spelling carefully. More precise vocabulary for academic benefits, such as “developed my research skills” or “broadened my understanding”, would help explain your experience.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The letter includes attempts at longer sentences, for example the sentence beginning “If I give you a piece of advice”, as well as simpler statements such as “I attened this course at university of guelph”. However, the range is limited, and errors occur frequently enough to make some sentences difficult to understand. Examples include “I heard that you are thinking to spend” (the verb pattern should be “thinking of spending”), “I used to have same course” (missing article and unclear tense), and “you will able to comunicate” (missing “be”). There are also problems with articles and punctuation, including the spacing around question marks and the run-on presentation of ideas. Practise accurate sentence patterns and review articles, verb forms and punctuation before submitting.

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