Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-08-31
IELTS Writing Task 2 question
Nowadays many people choose to be self-employed, rather than to work for a company or organisation.
Why might this be the case?
What could be the disadvantages of being self-employed?
Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.
Student answer (Band 5.5)
Nowadays an increasing number of people are opting for self employment instead of working for a company or orgainisation .There are several reason for this trend ,although it also comes with certain drawback.
One main reason people choose to be self employed is the desire for independence and fexibility .When worker for oneself there is no boss or fixed schedule. Individual can decide when worker where to work and which client to take.This freedom allows for a better work life balance .For example ferrlance writer in nepal can work from home and choose project that interest them rather than foolowing strict office hours .Although reson is the potentioal to earn more money .IN a regular job salary increse are slow and limited. However self employed people can grow their business and their income is not capped for instance someone who start a small online shop can expand it and earn significantly more over time
Self empolyment is also has disadvantage .the biggest problem is financial instability .Unlike employes who receive a fixed salary every month ,self employes people may have monthes with little or no income for example a tour guide in pokhara may earn well during tourist season but struggle in the off season .Being self employ means taking on many resopnsibility.A person must manage markiting ,finances,customer service and legal matter all by themselves .This can lead the high level of stress.
In conclusion while many people areattracted a self employment because of freedom and earning more money they must prepared for income and high responsibility.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response addresses both parts of the prompt: reasons for choosing self-employment and the potential disadvantages. The ideas are relevant and supported by examples, such as the freelance writer and the tour guide. However, the development is somewhat basic. While the points are clear, they could be extended further to reach a higher band. The conclusion is a bit abrupt and lacks a strong summary of the main points. Overall, the response covers all requirements of the task, but the depth of analysis is limited, keeping it within the Band 6 range.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay is organised into logical paragraphs, with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'For example', 'However', and 'In conclusion', though some are used mechanically. There are instances where the flow is slightly disrupted by punctuation errors and awkward phrasing, such as 'Although reson is the potentioal to earn more money'. Paragraphing is present, but the transition between ideas could be smoother. The referencing is generally clear, though the lack of consistent punctuation makes the logical progression feel a bit disjointed at times.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.0
The vocabulary is adequate for the task, allowing the student to express ideas clearly. There are attempts to use topic-specific vocabulary like 'financial instability', 'freelance', and 'work-life balance'. However, there are frequent spelling errors throughout the text, such as 'orgainisation', 'fexibility', 'ferrlance', 'foolowing', 'reson', 'potentioal', 'increse', 'empolyment', 'resopnsibility', and 'markiting'. These errors are noticeable and detract from the overall quality of the writing, though they do not prevent the reader from understanding the intended meaning. A wider range of vocabulary and more accurate spelling would be required for a higher band.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The student uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are frequent grammatical errors, particularly with subject-verb agreement ('Self empolyment is also has disadvantage') and missing articles or prepositions. Punctuation is also inconsistent, with several run-on sentences and missing spaces after periods. While the student attempts complex structures, the high frequency of errors in basic grammar and punctuation limits the score. To improve, the student should focus on sentence boundaries and basic grammatical accuracy before attempting more complex structures.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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