Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-09-03

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)

In today's contemporary world, education is consider the third pillar of life in all over around the world. Therefore, some undergraduate students firmly believe that learning additional subjects is needed rather than your major subject. While other argue that paying full attention and time for their main subject is crucial for a qualification. In this essay I will discuss both perspectives before presenting my own opinion.

On the one hand, many university learners argue that learning about other subject is keep value, and gives you more knowledge in this sophisticated world. They strongly believe that our main subject is we need to pass and to getting excellent score, but additional subject is also important in our learning phase. For instance, computer science students may also learned about basic english and ethics. As a result of that they will be more confident when they design a website and performing some cyber security related task.

On the other hand, some graduates keeping opposite point of view, they believe to focus more on your major subject instead of additional courses. In the other words, mostly students specialized in their main subject rather than spending time on other area, because they want to learn advance knowledge and skills about my own field of study ot lead the future upcoming new technology. To cite an example, an artificial intelligence students want to gain more advance knowledge and experience in the fields of deep learning, because this is related to his major subject. Resultantly, they will be more knowledge in his fields as compared to the opposite students.

In my point of view, I strongly believe that the university students main focus will be on their major subject, like computer science or data science etc. Furthermore, students also required to gain a little bit knowledge about additional subjects, such as psychology, or religion related subjects, to be aware from other perspectives of life not only their major one.

In conclusion, many undergraduate students want to pay a little bit attention for additional subjects rather than their main subject, because it will boost their other pillar of life. While argue that giving all their time and attention to their main subject, because they want to specialized in their own field of study. In stark contrast, my own opinion is a balanced approach to concentrate more in your main subject as well as touch other subject rather than you major subject for additional information, knowledge, skills and experience.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The essay addresses all parts of the prompt, discussing both views and providing a clear personal opinion. The ideas are relevant, such as the benefits of interdisciplinary study versus the depth of specialization. However, the development of these ideas is somewhat repetitive and lacks depth. For instance, the examples provided (computer science and AI) are quite similar, and the explanation of why these subjects are beneficial remains superficial. To reach a higher band, you should provide more nuanced arguments and ensure that your personal opinion is integrated more smoothly into the body paragraphs rather than just stated in a separate paragraph.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, and there is a clear progression of ideas. You use cohesive devices such as 'On the one hand,' 'On the other hand,' and 'In conclusion' to signal the structure. However, the use of these devices is sometimes mechanical or slightly inaccurate, such as 'In the other words' (should be 'In other words') and 'Resultantly.' Additionally, there are some issues with referencing, such as 'the opposite students,' which is unclear. Improving the variety and accuracy of your linking words will help the flow of your writing.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, but there are frequent errors in word choice and collocation. Phrases like 'is keep value,' 'is we need to pass,' and 'aware from' are non-standard and occasionally impede the clarity of your message. While you attempt to use more sophisticated terms like 'contemporary' and 'sophisticated,' the overall control is inconsistent. To improve, focus on learning common collocations and ensuring that your word forms (e.g., 'specialized' vs 'specialize') are used correctly in context.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The essay contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. However, there are frequent grammatical errors throughout the text, including subject-verb agreement ('education is consider,' 'students also required'), article usage, and tense consistency ('may also learned'). These errors are noticeable and occur frequently, although they do not completely prevent the reader from understanding your main points. To improve, you should focus on proofreading for basic grammatical accuracy, particularly verb forms and sentence construction, to ensure that your complex sentences are error-free.

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

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