Band 4.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.0 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-09-03

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 4.0)

Nowadays the self employed and rather than to work for a company or organisation so this is the case that the self employed so that’s very good to work for your self an also as a owner you must be work hard because that’s your work you are the owner of this work and you have a worker in your company so I he self employed in my mind self employed work for the organisation this be the case of your own organisation so in my knowledge the disadvantages of being self employed is that that the were work together and have not a lot of time and the have no free time so in the one they are good but in the other hand they was some difficult with him and they give some time for his home they have children and they make money and the self employed was a like example I am shop owner and I have no employed so this is the reason and it’s also good because that is your own work and don’t work to anyone as a poor man so this is good that a self employed work with his own place and they have no owner to speak loud with him and also angry with him

so as result and my point of view in my knowledge or experience they self employed was good because they have no owner on his head they have also his owner and also employee so this is my experience.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 4.0

The response addresses both parts of the prompt—reasons for self-employment and the disadvantages—but the development is very limited. The ideas are repetitive and lack depth, often circling back to the same point about 'not having an owner.' The response lacks a clear structure, such as an introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion, which makes it difficult to follow the argument. While the prompt is addressed, the lack of specific examples or well-developed points prevents a higher score. The ideas are presented in a stream-of-consciousness style rather than a structured essay format.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 4.0

The essay lacks paragraphing, which is essential for organizing ideas in an IELTS task. There is a significant lack of cohesive devices; the text relies heavily on 'and' and 'so' to connect ideas, which creates a repetitive and disjointed flow. The progression of ideas is unclear, and the reader often struggles to identify the transition between the reasons for self-employment and the disadvantages. Referencing is also problematic, as the subject of sentences is often ambiguous or missing, making it difficult to track the writer's intended meaning throughout the response.

Lexical Resource — Band 4.0

The vocabulary is very basic and repetitive. The writer uses simple words like 'good,' 'work,' and 'owner' repeatedly throughout the text. There is no attempt to use less common or academic vocabulary appropriate for an IELTS task. Additionally, there are frequent errors in word choice and collocation, such as 'they was some difficult with him' and 'don’t work to anyone as a poor man.' These errors, combined with the limited range of vocabulary, make the expression of ideas quite restricted and often confusing for the reader.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 4.0

The grammatical control is weak, with frequent errors that often impede communication. There is a lack of complex sentence structures, and the simple sentences used are often grammatically incorrect, such as 'the self employed was a like example' and 'they have no employed.' Subject-verb agreement is consistently problematic (e.g., 'they was some difficult'). Punctuation is almost entirely absent, with the entire response consisting of a few long, run-on sentences. These persistent errors in basic grammar and sentence construction significantly hinder the clarity of the writing.

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