Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

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

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 this contemporary society it is prevalent that most of the people choose to own a company rather than working under a organisation. This essay discuss about the reason for this and the major drawbacks of this decision.

Nowadays, it is evident that professionals working in every sectors are stressed owing to work pressure. Because of this over stress most of the people want to start up a company by their own which gives them a sense of mindfulness and peace to work. For instance, in my personal experience my sister who is a computer engineer started a company by herself in order to get rid of excessive pressure exerted by the organisation like meeting targets and documentation works.

On the other hand, developing a new company involves risk factors like safety and finace mangement. Lack of experience is a key factors which required the growth of organistaion to a greater extent. Experience give us oppourtunities to understand the range of risk factors. A best example for this is the case of stock market dip. The dealings of experienced businesman deal it in exceptionally well. On top of that, a company owner should mange all the workers in the institution which is a difficult job. Another noticeable drawback are management of finance, time and investment by oneself. Owning an institution demands to take over these responsiblties of staff and the whole organisation. Additionally, the the person has to take the risk of probability of loosing the investment due to any failure. It is seen that some ventures fail because of lack of experiece and lack of managment. However, by prioritising tasks and multi-tasking help in overcoming these risk factors to make our business a great sucess.

In conclusion, there are many cons for starting a new venture by oneself rater than working in a organisation beacuse of various risk like finance mangement and crisis management

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

The response addresses both questions: it explains that work pressure can motivate people to become self-employed and identifies risks such as financial loss, managing staff, and handling multiple responsibilities. The example of your sister gives the reason a personal illustration, while the stock-market example supports the discussion of risk. However, the explanation of why self-employment is attractive is narrower and more fully developed than the disadvantages, which are listed but not always explained in detail. The point about “safety” is also unclear, and the final sentence about prioritising tasks does not fully show how this offsets the risks. Develop each main idea with a clear explanation or specific example, and make the conclusion summarise both sides of the question.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The essay has a recognisable structure, with an introduction, separate paragraphs for the reason and disadvantages, and a conclusion. The progression from work pressure to the risks of running a business is generally easy to follow, and phrases such as “Because of this” and “On top of that” help connect points. However, the second body paragraph contains several drawbacks in quick succession, so the relationship between them is not always clear. Some linking is mechanical, and the conclusion mainly repeats the disadvantages rather than bringing the response together. Group related risks—for example, financial risks and management responsibilities—and use clearer references to show how each example supports the point.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use some relevant topic vocabulary, including “work pressure,” “investment,” “stock market,” and “management of finance,” which helps communicate the subject. There are also attempts at less common expressions, such as “excessive pressure” and “prioritising tasks.” However, noticeable spelling and word-choice errors reduce precision, including “finace mangement,” “organistaion,” “oppourtunities,” and “sucess.” Some phrases are awkward or unclear, such as “a sense of mindfulness and peace to work” and “the dealings of experienced businessman deal it.” Aim for accurate, natural collocations and check spelling carefully. Choosing precise terms for business risks and responsibilities will make the argument easier to understand.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response attempts both simple and more complex sentence forms, including a reason clause (“Because of this…”) and a relative clause (“my sister who is a computer engineer…”). Most ideas remain understandable, but errors in agreement, articles, verb forms, and sentence construction occur across the essay. For example, “This essay discuss” should be “This essay discusses,” and “Experience give us” should be “Experience gives us.” The construction “by prioritising tasks and multi-tasking help” also needs restructuring, such as “prioritising tasks and multitasking help.” Review subject–verb agreement and article use, and proofread sentence boundaries and punctuation. More consistently controlled complex sentences would improve clarity.

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.