Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-10-21

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 Reshma,

Hope you are doing well. I am writing this letter to tell you the experience about university course that I had did while studying abroad.

I had chose the United States America Country and the state is Ohio and the Ohio university for studing the Cloud computing and Management course due to its high end for specialized technical faculty and demanding course in the IT job industry for career growth.

I would like to tell you my experience in the country where I studied. The country is beautiful surrounded with mountains, river and lakes. Meanwhile this country has a very good educational background and supportive teachers when it comes to cloud technology. Additional, we have a data centers present in this state.

The course which I had choose by taking help of my seniors, friends and online resurch was Cloud Management and it was very helpfull for my career prespective and I decided abroad due to exposure to the different technology.

This was very good experience I suggest you to join too. Looking forward to hear from you.

Best Wishes,

Akshatha

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You address all three requested points: you identify Ohio University in the United States, mention the country’s scenery and educational environment, and explain that studying cloud management gave you exposure to different technology and supported your career plans. These details make the letter relevant and its purpose clear. However, the description of what you learnt about the country is quite general, and the benefit to your university studies is less fully explained than the location. For example, clarify what specific knowledge or skills you gained and how they helped with your course back home. A more developed personal example would make the experience more informative and complete.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The letter has a recognisable structure, with an opening, separate paragraphs for your location and experience, and a closing. The sequence broadly follows the task, so the reader can identify the main points. However, progression within paragraphs is sometimes unclear: the sentence about data centres follows the comments on scenery and teachers without explaining how the ideas connect. Linking expressions such as “Meanwhile” and “Additional” do not always show the intended relationship, and the course choice and its benefits are repeated in separate paragraphs. Group related details together and use clear links to show cause and effect—for example, connect the university’s facilities directly to what you learnt. This would make the organisation smoother and less repetitive.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use relevant vocabulary for the topic, including “Cloud computing,” “specialized technical faculty,” “data centers,” and “exposure to the different technology.” This gives the letter enough topic-specific language to communicate its main ideas. However, the range is limited and several word choices or collocations sound unnatural, such as “high end for specialized technical faculty,” “educational background,” and “career prespective.” Spelling errors such as “studing,” “resurch,” and “helpfull” also reduce accuracy. Aim for familiar, precise expressions rather than assembling technical-sounding phrases; for instance, describe the university as having “strong expertise in cloud computing” and say the experience “broadened my knowledge of emerging technologies.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple statements and longer sentences, and the overall meaning is generally recoverable. However, control of verb forms and sentence construction is inconsistent. Examples include “I had did,” “I had chose,” and “the course which I had choose”; these should use the correct past participle, or a simpler past-tense form. The sentence beginning “I had chose the United States America Country” also lacks a clear grammatical structure, while “Looking forward to hear from you” needs “hearing.” Articles and plurals also need attention in phrases such as “a data centers” and “mountains, river and lakes.” Practise accurate past-tense forms and build longer sentences around one clear main clause.

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