Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-10-24

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 Swale,

I hope you are doing great. I received your letter this morning, and I am quite happy that you are planning to study in abroad for a year. I am writing this to you, as you requested me to share my experience about studying in abroad.

Firstly, it was all started when I was doing my graduation in Tech and Softwares from the Delhi University. When my graduation comes to end the institution suggested me to persive atleast one year foreign learning programme. So, I chose to do it from the University of Ontario. It was not any random selection of the university, I did some research and had some friends who were already there to help me with the basic administrative stuffs.

To be honest, it was a great experience studying in Ontario. The syllabus was quite understandable. The main thing which I loved was the nature of the local people. They were extra ordinarily helpful.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.0

The letter opens appropriately and gives a clear answer to where you studied: “the University of Ontario.” It also begins to describe your experience, mentioning the understandable syllabus and helpful local people. However, the task’s key points are not all adequately addressed. The country is not clearly identified, and the comments about local people and the syllabus do not explain what you learnt about that country. Most importantly, you do not explain how the year abroad helped your studies; the letter ends before this point is covered. As a result, the response addresses the task only partially, with ideas that remain limited. Develop each bullet point explicitly, especially the academic benefits, and finish with a suitable closing.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable letter format and a generally understandable sequence: you introduce the purpose, explain how you chose the university, and then describe your experience. Paragraphing helps separate the background from your impressions, while “Firstly” and “To be honest” signal transitions. However, the progression is incomplete: the final paragraph does not move on to explain the academic benefits or provide a closing, so the letter feels unfinished. Some linking is also mechanical, particularly the repeated “I am writing this to you” and “Firstly.” Organise the body around the three requested points and use clearer references and transitions to connect them, then add a brief sign-off.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use enough vocabulary to communicate the main situation, including “graduation,” “administrative,” “syllabus,” and “local people.” There are also attempts at more specific expressions, such as “foreign learning programme.” However, several choices or forms are inaccurate or unnatural, including “study in abroad,” “persive,” “Tech and Softwares,” and “administrative stuffs.” These errors make parts of the letter less fluent and precise, even though the general meaning is usually recoverable. Aim for natural collocations and check spelling and word forms. For example, use “study abroad,” “pursue,” “technology and software,” and “administrative matters.” More precise vocabulary about cultural discoveries and academic development would also help you address the task fully.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mixture of simple and longer sentences, and the overall meaning is generally understandable. Some sentence patterns are handled reasonably, such as “I did some research and had some friends who were already there to help me.” However, errors in verb forms, tense, articles, and prepositions occur in several places. For example, “it was all started” should be “it all started,” “When my graduation comes to end” needs a consistent past tense and an article, and “study in abroad” has an incorrect preposition pattern. “The institution suggested me” also needs a different grammatical construction, such as “suggested that I take.” Review past-tense narration and common verb patterns, and proofread sentence boundaries and punctuation.

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