Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-10-31
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 Mahi,
Hope your are doing good! I am glad to hear that you got an opportunity to study abroad. I also have done my master's degree from University of Alberta, canada. It was a devastating experience for me to live in a new country.
During my stay there i have achieved a good knowledge of culture and language there. Moreover, i joined a supports club where i use to do practice for badminton for which i really passionate and i also catch up with friends there. I still have some of them on my whatsapp chat i will forward you their contact if you need.
Most important thing was, living abroad and study their gave me plenty of other opprtinities like i worked part at a retail shop to earn and pay my fees. It gave me real life experience that how someone mange work and study together. Well, let's see how you gonna feel that different life and what you will gain.
Best of luck for your new beginning
Mia
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5
You address the three requested points: you identify the University of Alberta in Canada, mention learning about the country’s culture and language, and explain that working in a retail shop helped you understand how to combine work and study. These details make the letter relevant and personal. However, the description of what you learnt about Canada is quite general, and the academic benefit is not clearly explained: the response focuses more on employment and life experience than on how the year supported your university studies. The phrase “devastating experience” also gives a negative impression that is not clarified. Develop these points with specific examples and make your overall view of the experience clearer.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5
The letter has a recognisable structure, with an opening, two main paragraphs, and a closing, and the ideas generally relate to the recipient’s plans. Linking expressions such as “Moreover” and “Most important thing” help signal additions. However, progression within the paragraphs is sometimes unclear: the discussion moves from badminton to friends and then to sharing contacts, before shifting to work and study. Some references, such as “there” and “their,” are not always clear, and several ideas are joined in long sentences without effective punctuation. Group related information more carefully and use clear sentence boundaries and references so the reader can follow each point smoothly.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.0
You use some relevant vocabulary for a personal letter, including “culture,” “language,” “opportunities,” and “real life experience,” and the reader can understand the main message. However, the range is limited and several word choices or collocations are inaccurate or unclear, such as “devastating experience” for what appears to be a positive year, “supports club,” and “catch up with friends there.” Spelling and word-form errors, including “opprtinities” and “part” where you mean part-time work, also reduce precision. Aim for more natural phrases and check spelling carefully; more precise vocabulary would help you describe both the country and the academic benefits clearly.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0
The response attempts some longer sentences and uses a few different structures, including “where I studied” and “that how someone manage work and study together.” However, many sentences contain errors in verb forms, agreement, articles, or sentence construction. For example, “Hope your are doing good” has an incorrect possessive form, “I also have done my master's degree” uses an unsuitable tense, and “how someone mange work and study” lacks the correct verb form and structure. Capitalisation and punctuation are also inconsistent, as in “i” and the run-on sentence beginning “I still have some of them.” Practise accurate simple sentences first, then build longer sentences with correctly formed clauses.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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