Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-10-29

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)

Some undergraduates want to learn about other subjects in addition to their main courses, while others think it is more vital to focus all their attention and times to studying for qualification.

Overall, undergraduates learning about other subjects in addition to their main cousrses will give them more choice of works after ther graduations, and it will also widen their knowledge to other field of studies. However, giving all their time and attention to study for a qualification will help to perfect them in their professions.

Furthermore, students learning other subjects will enable them to have a varieties of knowledge about other courses. For example, an engineering student learning a carpentry work, this will help him to know how about form works, roofing of a building and other carpentry works while managing his own building sites. Another reason why is important for undergraduates to undertake other courses while in school is because it will prepare them to work in a differents fields after school. For example, in our year three, we did a course together with the departments of enviromental management and architecture,and today i use to survey my site on my own and also others hired me to survey land for them.

Moreover, students giving all their time and attention for qualification will help them to focus more in their subjects without and disturbance or unforseen circumstances. Imagine a medical student trying to learn about engineering, it is almost certain that he/ she will fail both subjects because his attention will be divided. On the other hand, focusing on your qualification will make one to graduate with an excellent grades and this can also help the student to perfect everything about his/ her qualification.

In conclusion, both learning about other subjects and giving attention to studying of qualification are important to university students because both will prepare them for the future.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You address both views and give a relevant overall position: studying additional subjects can broaden career options, while concentrating on a qualification can build professional expertise. The engineering-and-carpentry example and your experience with environmental management and architecture help make the first view concrete. The medical-student example also supports the case for focus. However, the discussion is uneven: the benefits of studying other subjects receive more specific explanation, whereas the claim that concentration leads to excellent grades and mastery is asserted rather than fully explained. The conclusion says both approaches are important but does not clearly state which you consider more persuasive or how students should balance them. Develop that judgement and extend the less-supported points.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure, with an introduction, separate discussion of the two views, and a conclusion. Paragraphing generally helps the reader follow the shift from broader study to specialisation, and examples are placed alongside the relevant claims. However, progression within paragraphs is sometimes loose: the opening overview lists several benefits before the body explains them, and the final paragraph repeats that both options are important without resolving the discussion. Some linking is mechanical, particularly the repeated use of “For example” and “Moreover,” while references such as “this” in the carpentry example are not always precise. Use clearer links between each claim and its explanation, and make the conclusion follow directly from a stated position.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use enough topic-related vocabulary to discuss university study and careers, including “qualification,” “professions,” “departments,” and “survey.” The examples also show an attempt to use specific terms rather than relying entirely on general language. However, word choice and collocation are often inaccurate or repetitive, which limits precision: “a varieties of knowledge,” “a carpentry work,” and “perfect them in their professions” do not sound natural in context. There are also spelling errors, including “cousrses,” “ther,” and “enviromental,” and some phrases such as “choice of works” are unclear. Build accuracy by learning common academic collocations and checking spelling and word forms during revision.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentence forms, including clauses introduced by “while,” “because,” and “that,” and the main ideas are generally understandable. However, control is inconsistent, especially in longer sentences. For instance, “an engineering student learning a carpentry work, this will help him” joins a fragment to a complete clause, while “students giving all their time and attention … will help them” has an unclear subject construction. Agreement and article use also need attention, as in “an excellent grades” and “both subjects.” Some punctuation around clauses and sentence boundaries is also unreliable. Practise building complete sentences with a clear subject and verb, then check agreement, articles, and punctuation in complex sentences.

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