Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-10-20

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)

Mostly people nowadays choose to work as their own, as compared to be employed by a company or an organization. This is aily because people prefer independace rather to answer someone. The major disadvantage from working as a independent worker would be the disconnection from colleagues and senior mentors.

On one hand, people nowadays want to be self reliant, they do not want to have a boss ordering them around. This the main reson people prefer self-employment than to work under a boss. As a result they have their own timings of work, they dont have any ristrictions regarding dressing and the way they communicate. For example, a person who is working by their own would have choice to either open a office in their own house or to they can work from any nearest place of their own choice.

On the other hand, there are some disadvantages of working by their own, they are often by their own, they do not have any guidance from the seniors or colleagues. As a result, they have to learn each and everything by their own.They have to work extra hours as compared to those who are employed by by companies because they have to manage everything by themselves. For example, the people who work by their own may face issues when working on a new project because they do not have any mentorship from seniors. This leads to working extra hard and takes more time.

In conclusion, the majority of people choose to work by their own due to the freedom it provides. however there some drawbacks from this as well such as, working long hours and being only self reliant.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You address both parts of the question and maintain a clear overall position: independence and freedom help explain self-employment, while isolation and longer hours are disadvantages. The examples about choosing a workplace and lacking mentorship make the points relevant. However, some ideas are more fully explained than others. The reasons for choosing self-employment are mainly reduced supervision and flexible working arrangements; explaining other motivations, such as pursuing a personal business idea or having greater control over income, would broaden the response. The disadvantages are clearer, but the effects of isolation and extra hours could be developed further with a specific consequence. Overall, the response answers the task, though some supporting ideas remain general.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a coherent overall arrangement, with an introduction, separate paragraphs for reasons and disadvantages, and a conclusion. The contrast between “On one hand” and “On the other hand” helps signal the two sides, and examples are placed alongside the relevant points. However, some connections are mechanical or unclear. In the second paragraph, “This the main reson” does not form a complete link to the previous sentence, and the repeated “As a result” pattern makes the progression feel formulaic. The conclusion also repeats the main points rather than drawing them together. Use clearer links between cause and consequence, and make references such as “this” or “they” point unambiguously to a specific idea or group.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use enough topic-related vocabulary to communicate the main ideas, including “self-reliant,” “restrictions,” “guidance,” “colleagues,” and “mentorship.” However, the range is limited by repeated phrases such as “work by their own” and “by themselves,” and several word-choice, collocation, and spelling errors are noticeable. For example, “work as their own” and “a independent worker” are not natural expressions, while “aily,” “independace,” and “ristrictions” are misspelled. These issues sometimes make the reader pause, even though the intended meaning is generally recoverable. Aim to use standard expressions such as “work for themselves” and “self-employed,” and check spelling and collocations carefully.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more extended sentence forms, including cause-and-effect structures such as “As a result” and a relative clause in “those who are employed by companies.” The main ideas are usually understandable, but some grammatical errors affect clarity. For instance, “This the main reason” is missing a verb, and “there some drawbacks” needs a verb as well. There are also problems with articles and sentence construction in “a office” and “or to they can work,” while the long sentence beginning “On the other hand” joins several ideas without clear punctuation. Work on complete clauses, article use, and separating linked ideas into accurate sentences; this will make your range more controlled.

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