Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-10-30

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 6.0)

Dear Mariel,

I was glad to hear that you were thinking of studying abroad for 1 year so i would like to give you some tips about my experience.

I studied in Australia during my year in abroad. I went to the Australian University in 2023. I really have a great experience because the university was really big. And i lived with other international students in a apartment near the campus.

During my time there i learned a lot about Australian culture. For example the australians are very friendly and helpful. And i also learned about their history and how they celebrate holidays. And the weather is very different from the Philippines because it was very cold here.

And i think studying for 1 year in Australia helps me a lot. First my English speaking improved significantly because i had to speak in English everyday. Second i learned new ways of studying. In Australia many students works together and do many presentations. This help me to be more confident.

I hope this information i gave you is helpful and please let me know if you have any other questions.

Yours Sincerely,

Michael

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.0

The letter addresses all three required points and maintains an appropriate, friendly purpose. You identify Australia as the destination, describe aspects of its culture and history, and explain how the experience improved your English and confidence through group work and presentations. These details make the response relevant and give the reader useful reasons to consider studying abroad. The explanation of what you learnt about the country is somewhat general—for example, “Australians are very friendly and helpful” and that you learnt how they celebrate holidays—so a specific example would develop this part more fully. Overall, the main ideas are clear and supported, though some are broad rather than explored in depth.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The letter has a clear overall structure: an opening, separate paragraphs for your destination, cultural learning, and academic benefits, followed by a suitable closing. The sequence is easy to follow, and signposts such as “For example,” “First,” and “Second” help show how the points relate. However, several sentences begin with “And,” which makes the linking feel repetitive and occasionally mechanical. Some connections could also be made more smoothly; for instance, the move from describing Australian culture to the weather could be integrated into a fuller explanation of daily life. The paragraphing is appropriate, and the progression is clear, but more varied and natural transitions would strengthen cohesion.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use enough vocabulary to communicate the main points, including relevant expressions such as “international students,” “Australian culture,” “improved significantly,” and “more confident.” The meaning is generally clear, but the range is limited and some wording is repetitive or imprecise. For example, “really big” gives little detail about the university, while “a great experience” is a broad description. Phrases such as “year in abroad” and “the weather is very different … because it was very cold here” also show inaccurate word choice or collocation. Aim for more precise descriptions of the campus, cultural experiences, and study methods, and check common expressions so your vocabulary sounds more natural.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The response communicates its ideas, but the sentence patterns are mostly simple, with limited use of more varied complex structures. There are recurring errors in verb forms and agreement: “I really have a great experience” should use a past form, “many students works” needs subject–verb agreement, and “This help me” should also agree with its subject. Articles and prepositions are sometimes inaccurate, as in “in a apartment” and “year in abroad.” Capitalisation and punctuation also need attention, including lowercase “i” and the repeated sentence openings with “And.” These errors do not prevent understanding, but more accurate control of past-tense narration and agreement, alongside a wider range of sentence structures, would improve the writing.

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