Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-10-06
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 5.0)
Nowadays people want to run their own business instead of working under the supervision of an organisation or company. I think there are considerable amount of reasons that people bocome their own boss.
Individuals work hard for their own self not only because of mental satisfaction and financial growth, but also because of their own will. Firstly, people work for their mental satisfaction, work in a company or organisation give them stable source of income that could be essential but work for their own will give them mental satisfaction. Individuals who work in a company want to work for their own business for financial stability and growth of their own carrier that should be not possible in any cooperation job.
People think that they become more successful when they work for their own growth because it is the only way of survival without any fix amount of salary that should be come from any organisation. A research is conducted in the USA in which about 200 cooperators take part and 150 workers want to quit their jobs due to the mental pressure and rude behavior of the managers. That's the brutal reality of the work in company.
The only disadvantage of being self-employed is that there is no stable income after the end of a month because in business any time work is boosted and another day work is dramaticaly fell so that's the cons for me.
In conclusion, I belive that people should be free for choosing their profession and do that thing that their mind want, it is necessary for their mental satisfaction and carrier growth
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5
The response addresses the main parts of the prompt by discussing reasons for choosing self-employment and outlining a disadvantage, such as income instability. However, the ideas remain limited and under-developed. For instance, the discussion around mental satisfaction and financial growth is repetitive and lacks specific, well-reasoned explanation or depth. The position is stated in the introduction, but the supporting arguments tend to generalise without sufficient elaboration. To reach a higher level, the writer would need to fully develop their main ideas with clearer examples and a more thorough exploration of both the advantages and disadvantages of running one's own business.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0
There is some basic organisation present, with an introduction, body paragraphs, and a concluding sentence, but the essay lacks a clear overall progression. The logical connection between sentences is frequently weak, and the use of cohesive devices is often inaccurate or repetitive, such as the frequent, repetitive reliance on phrases like 'work for their own will' and 'mental satisfaction' without smooth transitions. Paragraphing is attempted, but the grouping of ideas lacks logical flow; for example, the mention of a research study in the USA is abruptly introduced in the middle of a paragraph discussing personal motivation. Improving overall coherence requires clearer referencing, a more logical sequence of ideas, and a wider variety of accurate cohesive devices.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.0
The vocabulary used is limited and barely adequate for the task. The student makes noticeable errors in word choice, collocation, and word forms that sometimes cause difficulty for the reader, such as spelling 'bocome' instead of 'become', 'carrier' instead of 'career', 'cooperators' instead of 'corporates' or 'employees', and 'dramaticaly fell' instead of 'dramatically fell'. Attempts to use less common lexical items lead to awkward expressions, such as 'work is boosted' or 'brutal reality of the work in company'. To achieve a higher band, the writer must expand their vocabulary range, ensure correct word forms, and use terms more naturally within proper collocations.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0
The writer uses a limited range of sentence structures, and attempts at complex sentences are frequently faulty, leading to frequent errors that can cause difficulty for the reader. There are persistent issues with subject-verb agreement, verb tenses, and missing prepositions or articles, such as 'work in a company or organisation give them' and 'that should be not possible in any cooperation job'. Punctuation is also problematic, including run-on sentences and comma splices, for example, in the sentence starting with 'Individuals work hard...' and ending with 'own will.' To move up, the writer needs to demonstrate a greater variety of complex structures with improved control and significantly fewer grammatical errors.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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