Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-11-02

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 6.0)

In recent times, many people is leaning towards to be self-employed than to work for other establishments. This is because people want to be in charge of their own decisions, planning, and not to work under others command. But this has its own drawbacks such as it has a high risk of being failed and not being able to earn money.

People nowadays wants freedom in their professional life. Working under a company or an organisation is what takes away that freedom because they now have to follow a certain rule depanding on that establishment. For example, employee's from Pathao have to be present in office by 10am sharp. If they want to do any sort of official activity, they must be varified by the upper command. And it's not just in Pathao, almost every other companies have this kind of policies. On other hand, if a person is self-employed and he/she is dealing with clients through their own online/offline business portals, then they don't have to answer any higher command or follow any certain rules. This gives much freedom for their decisions and plannings. That is why most people choose to be self-employed.

However, just like most of other things, it is also not free from demerits. One of the drawbacks of being self-employed is that this has a higher risk of failure. Studies found that every year more than 50% of people fails to establish their own startups. Another study suggests that a lot of people in online business websites such as Fiver, Upwork can't find clients in their desired field. So people may not earn money for months even if they have the skills. This is a very prominent disadvantage of being self-employed.

To conclude, It is clearly visible that people are now choosing to be self-employed for their freedom. They want to be in charge of their decisions. But there is also the risk of being not earning money.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

You address both questions and maintain a clear explanation: people value independence from workplace rules, while self-employment can bring financial uncertainty and business failure. The Pathao example helps illustrate the first point, and the references to startups and online platforms support the disadvantage. This meets the task well, but the reasons are not equally developed. The benefits are explained in more detail than the drawbacks, which largely repeat the risk of failure and difficulty finding clients. The conclusion also restates the main points rather than drawing them together. To strengthen the response, explain another consequence, such as irregular income or lack of employee benefits, and show how it affects self-employed workers.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response has a clear overall structure: an introduction, one paragraph on reasons, one on disadvantages, and a conclusion. Ideas generally progress logically, and linking expressions such as “For example,” “However,” and “To conclude” help guide the reader. Some connections are less smooth or precise, however. “On other hand” needs an article, and “This gives much freedom” does not clearly identify which aspects of the preceding example provide that freedom. The repeated use of “freedom” and “self-employed” also makes cohesion somewhat mechanical. Use clearer referencing and vary transitions; for instance, connect the workplace rules directly to the contrast with independent work, then link the financial risk to its practical effects.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant vocabulary for the topic, including “self-employed,” “establishment,” “drawbacks,” “clients,” and “failure,” and the meaning is generally understandable. There are also attempts at more specific language, such as “official activity” and “desired field.” However, noticeable word-choice, collocation, word-form, and spelling problems limit precision. Examples include “being failed” for business failure, “upper command” for a manager or supervisor, “plannings,” and “varified.” “Free from demerits” is also an unnatural expression in this context. Aim to learn common word partnerships and check spelling and word forms; more natural phrasing would make your ideas clearer and more fluent.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and complex sentences, including conditional structures such as “if a person is self-employed … then they don't have to answer,” and the overall meaning remains clear. However, errors in agreement, verb forms, articles, and sentence construction occur often enough to reduce accuracy. For example, “many people is leaning” should use a plural verb, while “people nowadays wants” has the same agreement problem. “Every year more than 50% of people fails” also needs a plural verb, and “the risk of being not earning money” is not a well-formed construction. Review subject–verb agreement and practise building accurate clauses around “risk of,” “want to,” and “if.” Proofreading for these patterns would improve control.

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