Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-08-22

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some university students want to learn about other subjects in addition to their main subjects. Others believe it is more important to give all their time and attention to studying for a qualification. Discuss both these views and give your opinion. Give reasons for your answer and include relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

 

Student answer (Band 5.5)

It is often argued by few students it is important to learn other courses with learning main subject. Other claim that main focus of study is to qualify degree. Both statements have valid points. In my opinion, reading extra subject in duration of degree is help to broaden knowledge of student.

To begin, First of all some students wish to learn irrelevant subject in addition to main subject because when student read different types of books this experience open the mind of student and help to increase knowledge of other things which are not involve in their main subject. For instance, the student of medical degrees do not know about the history of their country but when they read Pak study book during their degree then it is easy for them to know about the history of their birth country this knowledge will help them in their career.

Secondly, some believe only focus on qualification rather then learning additional subjects. because there are many subjects in degree which are more important for exams students feel bore to learn irrelevant subjects because they do not have time take additional classes. For example, mostly student move to other countries for study they do part time jobs with their study for good survival they do not have time for taking extra classes because they pay for living and other expenses.

To conclude, learning additional courses are significant it is extra benefit for student which help them in competition of career in my opinion only field related knowledge is not important in competitive job interviews. few believe that only focus on main qualification not on irrelevant subjects because due to lack time or due to financial responsibilities student ignore the other courses.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses all parts of the prompt, discussing both views and providing a clear personal opinion. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited. While you provide an example regarding medical students and history, the explanation for the opposing view—that students are too busy with work and exams—is slightly repetitive and lacks depth. To reach a higher band, ensure that each point is fully extended with more sophisticated reasoning or broader implications. The position is clear throughout, but the arguments could be more nuanced to demonstrate a stronger grasp of the topic.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organised into logical paragraphs, and there is a clear progression of ideas. You use basic cohesive devices such as 'To begin', 'Secondly', and 'To conclude' to signal the structure. However, the flow between sentences is sometimes mechanical, and the use of referencing is occasionally unclear (e.g., 'this knowledge will help them'). The transition between the two viewpoints could be smoother. To improve, try using a wider variety of linking words and ensure that pronouns clearly refer back to the intended nouns to improve the overall cohesion of the text.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, allowing you to express your ideas clearly. However, there is a reliance on simple or repetitive language, such as 'learn', 'subject', and 'important'. There are also some errors in word choice and collocation, such as 'reading extra subject' instead of 'studying additional subjects' and 'feel bore' instead of 'feel bored'. To achieve a higher score, you should aim to incorporate more precise academic vocabulary and collocations, and ensure that you use word forms correctly in context.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The essay contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors that occasionally hinder the flow. Issues include missing articles (e.g., 'student of medical degrees'), subject-verb agreement errors (e.g., 'learning additional courses are significant'), and awkward phrasing (e.g., 'when student read'). While the meaning is generally clear, these persistent errors in basic grammar and punctuation prevent the essay from reaching a higher band. Focusing on sentence construction and proofreading for small errors like pluralisation and verb tense consistency would be highly beneficial.

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