Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-08-22

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Nowadays, many medical research projects are funded by private companies. In your opinion, do you think that research should be carried by private companies, individuals or government?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Student answer (Band 5.0)

In recent years, numerous medical projects are being funded by private organisations, which has become a quite common trend. I strongly believe that the government should take the responsibility and there are myriad of reasons for this stand, from which two main reasons are explained in this essay.

One of the major reason is that if any extraordinary discovery takes place then as a direct consequence, a country is the one who gets recognition all over the world rather than any individual who is recognised for the new invention. For instance, during covid times, some private company found a vaccine for the virus that was highly effective and even international countries asked for the formula, but instead of remembering the name of the firm, people remember the country from where the solution came.

A further reason is that governments have separate funds which they can invest for the development

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 4.0

The response is significantly under-length at 149 words, failing to meet the 250-word minimum requirement. This severely impacts the development of ideas. While you establish a clear position that the government should fund medical research, the arguments are underdeveloped. The first point regarding national recognition is somewhat superficial, and the second point is left incomplete, ending abruptly mid-sentence. To achieve a higher band, you must fully develop your arguments with sufficient supporting evidence and ensure the essay reaches the required word count. The task is only partially addressed due to the incomplete nature of the response.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0

The essay shows a basic attempt at logical organization, using cohesive devices like 'In recent years' and 'One of the major reason'. However, the abrupt ending and the lack of a conclusion make it difficult to assess the overall progression of the argument. Paragraphing is present, but the second paragraph is incomplete, which disrupts the flow of the text. To improve, ensure that each paragraph has a clear topic sentence and that the essay concludes with a summary of your main points, maintaining a logical flow throughout.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The vocabulary used is generally appropriate for the task, though it lacks the range and precision required for higher bands. Phrases like 'myriad of reasons' and 'extraordinary discovery' are good, but there is some repetition and limited variety. There are minor errors, such as 'One of the major reason' (should be 'reasons'). To improve, try to incorporate more sophisticated vocabulary related to the topic of medical research and funding, and ensure consistent accuracy in word forms and collocations.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The response contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are some grammatical errors, such as 'numerous medical projects are being funded' (should be 'have been funded' or 'are funded') and 'some private company found' (should be 'some private companies found'). Subject-verb agreement is also an issue in 'One of the major reason'. While the errors do not completely impede communication, they are frequent enough to affect the overall quality. Focus on proofreading for basic grammatical accuracy and diversifying your sentence structures.

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

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