Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-10-05

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)

It is often argued that people nowadays mostly interested in working as a self-employed in place of becoming an employee in a company or organization. There are many reasons due to that this trend getting popularity day by day. People are mainly want to do work as self-employed due to job security reasons and low income. As this trend also have many disadvanteges such as exertion and lackness of punctuality and organizational skills.

There are several factors that can push a person to adopt the self- employed profession in place of working in an organisation such as unsecurity of job. Many people face complex situations in their life due to sudden job loss. They cannot manage to meet their basic needs. Some companies have no strict rules about job durations. Because of that employees face difficulties and they prefer to work as businessmen. For example, many educated people nowadays working as a small business owners in the markets rather than to do job in the companies. Moreover, low income is the main factor due to that people are more intrested in their own works. Nowadays expensive lifestyles take every person to a tough situation to compete. Employees are not able to fullfill their needs so they mainly choose to work as self-employed.

On the other hand, this trend can cause many disadvantages mainly related to a person. People just follow the trend to be a business or to do own work but they have no professional skills. Due to lackness of professionalism they can face failures in the future. As a result, they cannot handle the complexities of their own work and feel exertion, pressure and defficiency of self-esteem. Additionally, an organization provide more skills such as punctuality and ability to do work under pressure. When persons are self-employed they may ignored the basic working skills that can cause detrimental effects on their businesses. They may face low profit and failure of their works.

In conclusion, I believe that people make-up their minds to do work as self-eployed because of job unsecurity and low income. This approach may cause more exertion and failure of the development of professional skills.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

The response addresses all parts of the prompt, exploring reasons why people choose self-employment, such as job security and income concerns, as well as the potential disadvantages like exertion and a lack of professionalism. However, some ideas are more fully developed than others, placing the response squarely in the mid-range for task achievement. For instance, the arguments regarding job security are somewhat repetitive, mentioning 'unsecurity of job' and sudden job loss multiple times without expanding into deeper socio-economic factors. To reach a higher level, the ideas need to be more fully extended and supported with clearer, more distinct examples rather than generalized assertions.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The essay presents a coherent overall arrangement with a clear introduction, body paragraphs addressing the specific prompt questions, and a concluding summary. Paragraphing is used sufficiently to separate the reasons for self-employment from its disadvantages. Nevertheless, cohesion is occasionally mechanical or faulty. Devices such as 'Moreover', 'Additionally', and 'On the other hand' are utilized, but referencing and logical progression within paragraphs sometimes falter, such as abrupt transitions between sentences in the second body paragraph. To improve Coherance and Cohesion further, the writer should ensure that cohesive ties connect ideas more smoothly and that referencing is tightly controlled throughout the text.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, demonstrating an attempt to incorporate less common items, but it is constrained by noticeable limitations and errors in word choice, collocation, and word formation. Examples of awkward phrasing include 'unsecurity of job', 'lackness of punctuality', and 'deficiency of self-esteem'. Furthermore, terms like 'defficiency' exhibit minor spelling errors, and expressions such as 'do own work' lack natural collocation. These lexical inaccuracies do not completely impede communication, but they restrict the range and precision of the writing. Incorporating more precise, natural phrasing and expanding the range of academic vocabulary would elevate this aspect.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, though attempts at complex structures frequently contain errors. The grammar includes awkward phrasing, incorrect prepositional usage within grammatical patterns, and issues with article and plural agreement, such as 'many educated people nowadays working as a small business owners' and 'an organization provide more skills'. While there are some correct structures, errors in grammar persist and occasionally place strain on the reader. To achieve a higher standard, the writer must improve control over complex sentence patterns, ensure consistent subject-verb agreement, and refine overall grammatical accuracy.

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