Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-10-11

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)

In recent times many individuals prefer to be self-employed, rather than to work for a organisation. Choosing self-employment has it's own benefits, while working for an organisation comes with their own benefit or advantages, such as job security and there is no uncertainity related to their financial situations.

Nowadays many peoples prefer to be self-employed as it has own benefits, self-employed individual can work according to their own preferences and flexibility, while working for an organisation comes with certain restrictions. Self-employed individuals can work on the projects according to their interest compared to projects assigned irrespective of their interest in a company. For example, freelancers can work on the projects they wanted to, they have flexible working hours and can work from different locations, while an individual who works in a company has to go daily to office and have to complete their working hours. Also freelancers can earn more than working as a employee in an organisation.

However, self-employment has disadvantages as well. If a company don't have project they would not fire the employee, there is a job security while working for a company. On the other hand, if freelancer couldn't able to get the project, they would get into a financial crisis. Also there are lot of perk and benefits a company offers to their employee like health insurance, medical allowance, fuel allowance and annual leaves.

In conclusion, there are several advantages and disadvantages to working for a company. I believe, the job security would be my main concern, I would probably choose to work for a company rather than self-employed.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

The response addresses both questions: it explains the appeal of self-employment through flexibility, choice of projects and potentially higher earnings, then contrasts this with the security and benefits of company work. The final paragraph also gives a clear personal preference for employment. These points are relevant, but some are asserted rather than fully explained. For instance, the claim that freelancers can earn more is not supported with a reason or example, and the disadvantages of self-employment could be developed beyond the risk of not finding projects and losing employee benefits. The comparison about a company not firing someone when it has no project is also somewhat unclear. Develop these ideas with specific explanations or examples to make the response more complete.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The essay has a recognisable structure, with an introduction, a paragraph on reasons for self-employment, a paragraph on disadvantages, and a conclusion. The contrast between freelancers and company employees helps the reader follow the main discussion. However, progression is sometimes weakened by repetitive framing: the introduction and the next paragraph both repeat that people choose self-employment because it has benefits. Some links are also awkward or unclear, particularly “If a company don't have project” and the shift from that point to the freelancer’s financial risk. Use clearer topic sentences and connect each example directly to the point it supports. More precise referencing and less reliance on repeated contrast markers would make the organisation smoother.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The response uses relevant vocabulary for the topic, including “self-employed,” “flexible working hours,” “financial crisis,” “job security,” and “health insurance.” This is enough to communicate the main ideas, but the range is limited and several phrases are repetitive or imprecise. For example, “own benefits” appears more than once, while “lot of perk and benefits” is an awkward expression; “financial situations” is also vague in this context. There are spelling and word-form errors such as “uncertainity” and “peoples,” which reduce accuracy. Aim for more precise collocations and vary repeated terms—for example, describe income as “unstable” or benefits as “employee benefits”—while checking spelling and plural forms.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

There is an attempt to use both simple and complex structures, including contrast clauses with “while” and conditional sentences beginning “If.” The main meaning is generally understandable, but some errors in agreement, articles, verb forms and sentence construction remain. Examples include “a organisation,” “many peoples,” “a company don't have project,” and “they would get into a financial crisis.” The opening sentence also joins several ideas in a way that makes the relationship between them unclear. Practise checking subject–verb agreement and singular/plural forms, and make sure each sentence has a clear grammatical structure. More accurate control of these patterns, alongside the existing attempts at complex sentences, would strengthen the writing.

See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.