Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-09-19
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)
Education is important factor in life of a student. Some people belive that they should study extra courses along with their main course while, other belives that only focusing their time and attention to their specific qualification and course is important. The following essay discuss both the view and i will give my opinion after that.
Students that prefer extra courses along with their main subject have advantage of excelling their extra skills along with their main degree. When they appear in their practical life, additional course would add extra plus to their resume. Similary, they would get to know about the strengths and weaknesses of their main course while studying for extra curricular subject. For example, my cousin studied graphics along her degree of medicines, she realised very soon that medicine is not a feild for her as it was quite boring and dull, so she decided to opt for computer science as her major in next semester due to her interest in graphics.
However, some students believe that focusing on their main subject is important, studying for main course only will avoid them from distractions of otheir fields and their own interest. In addition to the focus, they will also save money for their main degree instead of wasting on extra subjects. For example, my family have history of doctors so i was'nt given any option other than medical field. This restriction helped me concentrate on my long journey of being a successful doctor. Similary, if i have opted for extra subjects that would have cost my time and money.
In conclusion, focusing on main subjects is important however, i believe that studing extra courses will add additional skills to your main qualification that eventually is going to help in career growth.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response successfully addresses all parts of the task by discussing both views on whether university students should study extra subjects or focus solely on their main qualification, and a clear personal opinion is provided in the conclusion. The ideas are generally relevant and extended with examples, such as the cousin studying graphics and the family background in medicine. However, some of the supporting points are slightly personal and anecdotal rather than fully developed into broader arguments, which places this response comfortably in Band 6.0. The position remains clear throughout the essay, and the main tenets of the prompt are adequately covered.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay displays a coherent overall arrangement with a clear introduction, body paragraphs addressing each viewpoint, and a concluding paragraph. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate ideas. However, cohesion is at times mechanical and repetitive, relying on transitional phrases like 'Similary,' and 'In addition to the focus,' rather than more flexible cohesive devices. Referencing is generally clear, but the logical progression within paragraphs could be smoother to reach higher band levels. Overall, the organizational structure meets the criteria for Band 6.0.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, attempting some less common items such as 'qualification', 'excelling', and 'distractions'. However, there are notable spelling errors ('belive' instead of believe, 'Similary' instead of similarly, 'feild' instead of field, 'studing' instead of studying) and occasional word choice inaccuracies like 'additional course would add extra plus'. While these errors are noticeable, they do not severely impede communication, fitting the description for Band 6.0.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms throughout the essay, such as conditional structures and relative clauses. There are, however, several grammatical and punctuation errors present, including missing articles ('important factor', 'graphics along her degree'), subject-verb agreement issues ('family have', 'i have opted'), and run-on sentences. These errors occur frequently enough to cause occasional distraction for the reader, though they rarely impede overall comprehension. This performance aligns well with Band 5.5.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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