Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-10-15

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some people believe that it is best to accept a bad situation, such as an unsatisfactory job or shortage of money. Others argue that it is better to try and improve such situations.

Discuss both views and give your own opinion.

 

Student answer (Band 5.0)

Whenever something bad happens to someone, people try to give advise such as it is best to accept a bad situation, while some say that it is better to try and improve such situations. Where the person might get confuse of what to be done in such cases.

If there is a bad situation and all the things go wrong, some say it is best to accept the bad situation. It is said that "it is good to have something than having nothing". Like a person is stuck in a bad situation. For instance, an unsatisfactory job, it is just best to accept the job and stay at that job rather being unemployed and regretting for quitting the job.

While some people argue that it is better to try and improve such situations where one can work hard and find what the person truely likes and explores himself. For instance, if a person is not satisfied with the job, he should quit and start discoverying his own interest and start working on them. becuase if a person accepts the bad situation, the person will be unhappy and may regret in future that he never tried to explore himself and always stayed in the comfort zone.

Another example of this is that when students who want to study abroad, some students are worried what if they fail to succeed, what if they get stuck somewhere and are not able to find solution for it. while some students they leave their comfort zone, they work hard and improve themselves and acheive their goals in their lives.

According to me it is better to try and improve such situations because we learn our strengths and weaknesses, we learn how to overcome our fears and acheive something greater in life.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

The response discusses both positions and gives a clear personal view in the final paragraph: you favour trying to improve difficult circumstances because this can reveal strengths and help people overcome fears. The job examples are relevant, and the student-abroad example adds another perspective. However, the discussion is only partly developed. The case for accepting a bad situation is supported mainly by the brief claim that having a job is better than having none, while the opposing view relies on broad claims about regret and personal growth. Explain the risks and circumstances that might make each choice sensible, then develop your examples with clearer reasoning. The response meets the stated length requirement; 38 words copied from the task prompt were not counted.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

The essay has a recognisable structure: an introduction, separate paragraphs for the two views, a further example, and a concluding opinion. This helps the reader identify the main points. However, progression between ideas is not consistently clear, and some links feel mechanical or incomplete. For example, the opening ends with “Where the person might get confuse,” which does not connect smoothly to the next paragraph. The student-abroad example is introduced with “Another example of this,” but its relationship to the job discussion could be explained more explicitly. Some transitions, such as “While” and “According to me,” are used awkwardly. Use clear topic sentences and connect each example directly to the argument it supports.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use enough topic-related vocabulary to communicate the main ideas, including “unsatisfactory job,” “unemployed,” “comfort zone,” and “strengths and weaknesses.” However, the range is limited and several word-choice, collocation, and spelling errors make the writing less natural and sometimes slow the reader. Examples include “give advise,” “truely likes,” “start discoverying,” and “acheive.” Phrases such as “find what the person truly likes” and “explores himself” are also imprecise for describing career choices and personal development. Build a more accurate range for discussing security, risk, and career satisfaction, and check spelling and word forms carefully. More precise phrasing would make the examples clearer and the argument more convincing.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 4.5

The response attempts some complex structures, including conditional and reason clauses, as in “if a person accepts the bad situation” and “because if a person accepts…”. However, the range is limited, and errors occur frequently enough to make some sentences difficult to follow. The opening contains a fragment: “Where the person might get confuse of what to be done.” Other examples include “some students they leave their comfort zone,” where the subject is repeated, and “it is just best to accept the job… rather being unemployed,” where the comparison is not grammatically complete. There are also problems with verb forms and agreement, such as “the person… explores himself.” Practise complete sentence structures and check subject–verb agreement, verb forms, and punctuation.

See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.