Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-10-20

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 Joyce,

How are you and how is everything with you? It's been a long time since we last met. I am so delighted to hear you're finally deciding to spend a year studying abroad and I'm writing to share my own experience during my one-year masters of biochemistry program last year in Oxford University London, hoping this influences your decision positively.

During this period, I had a lot to learn about the Great Britain. At first, I thought I would have difficulty making friends, but to my greatest surprise the people were so friendly and sociable than I perceived them. They are lovers of foreigners and as such, integrate them well into their society so the person does not feel home sick. Their food is quite rich and delicious and I enjoyed their pasta with vegetables and catch-up.

It was really a nice decision taking the course abroad as I had the opportunity to be coached by the best professors across the globe thereby broadening my scope of learning. The well-equipped biochemistry laboratory made learning real and easy, and the internship attachment to the industry prepared me for what the real world of a biochemist is and as well gave me an employable status.

Wishing you all the best.

Warm wishes,

Mercy.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.0

The letter addresses all three requested points and maintains a friendly, appropriate tone for writing to someone you know. You identify Oxford as the place of study, describe your impressions of British people and food, and explain how expert teaching, laboratory work, and an industry internship supported your studies and career preparation. These details extend the main ideas rather than merely listing them. Some description is still broad: for example, “the people were so friendly and sociable” could be supported with a specific experience, and the learning gained about the country is mostly limited to social attitudes and food. Clarify the study location as well, since “Oxford University London” makes the place uncertain. More precise, developed details would strengthen the response further.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

The letter has a clear overall progression: an opening that establishes the relationship and purpose, a paragraph about the country, a paragraph about academic benefits, and a warm closing. Linking expressions such as “At first,” “but,” and “as such” help show how ideas relate, while the paragraphs keep the three main topics distinct. The sequence is easy to follow throughout. Some connections are less smooth where several benefits are packed into one long sentence, particularly the final sentence of the academic paragraph. The opening also spends several sentences on greetings before moving to the purpose. To make the organisation more polished, use clearer transitions between personal observations and study-related points, and divide or streamline sentences that contain multiple linked outcomes.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range for a personal letter and include some topic-specific expressions, such as “biochemistry laboratory,” “internship attachment,” and “employable status.” These help communicate the academic and professional benefits of the year abroad. There are, however, some inaccurate or unnatural word choices and collocations, including “lovers of foreigners,” “catch-up,” and “integrate them well into their society.” “Great Britain” is also preceded by an unnecessary article in “the Great Britain.” These choices do not prevent the reader from understanding your meaning, but they reduce naturalness and precision. Aim to learn common collocations in context and choose wording that describes your experience directly, such as how welcoming people were or how the internship prepared you for professional work.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

The response includes a mix of simple and more complex sentence forms, including clauses introduced by “but,” “as,” and “hoping.” Most ideas remain clear, and the reader can follow the account without difficulty. Some grammatical errors persist, however. In “more friendly and sociable than I perceived them,” the comparison needs a more suitable structure, such as “than I had expected.” The phrase “a year studying abroad” is followed by the awkward construction “during my one-year masters … program,” and “the course abroad” would be clearer with an appropriate article or possessive. The long sentence beginning “It was really a nice decision” also combines several clauses without fully controlled parallel structure. Review articles, comparison forms, and sentence boundaries to improve accuracy.

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