Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-09-23

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 5.5)

Nowadays, many medical research projects are funded by private companies. Some people think that private companies should do medical research, while others believe that the government should be responsible for it. In my opinion, both private companies and the government can do medical research, but the government should have more responsibility.

First, private companies can provide a large amount of money for medical research. They can develop new medicines and medical equipment. For example, many pharmaceutical companies spend money to create new medicines for different diseases. Private companies can also complete research quickly because they have modern technology and skilled workers.

However, the government should also support medical research because health is important for everyone. Government research can focus on diseases that may not give companies much profit. For example, the government can provide money for research on rare diseases and public health problems. This can help poor people who cannot afford expensive medicines.

In conclusion, I think both private companies and the government should carry out medical research. However, the government should play a bigger role because medical research is important for the health of the whole society.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

The student addresses the prompt by discussing the roles of private companies and the government in funding medical research, taking a clear position that both have roles but the government should bear more responsibility. However, the response contains only 189 words, falling well short of the 250-word minimum requirement. Consequently, the ideas are somewhat limited and under-developed, preventing the essay from reaching a higher band. While the arguments presented about profit versus public health are relevant, they lack sufficient extension and detailed examples. This negative impact on development means the task is only partially addressed in terms of depth, leading to a band score of 5.0.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The essay displays a logical overall arrangement with a clear introduction, body paragraphs addressing different stakeholders, and a conclusion. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate ideas. Cohesive devices such as 'First,' 'However,' and 'In conclusion' are utilized to guide the reader through the text, though they are somewhat basic and mechanical. Referencing is generally clear, but the overall progression is limited by the brevity of the response. The logical sequencing is sound enough to merit a band 6.0.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, including terms like 'pharmaceutical companies,' 'rare diseases,' and 'public health problems.' There are attempts at less common vocabulary, but word choice and phrasing tend to be repetitive and simple, relying heavily on phrases like 'medical research' and 'private companies' multiple times. Spelling and word formation are generally accurate, and communication is never impeded. The lexical range is sufficient for the task requirements, fitting the Band 6 descriptor well.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The student demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, such as 'Some people think that private companies should do medical research, while others believe that the government should be responsible for it.' There is good control over basic grammatical structures, and sentences are mostly accurate. Errors are rare because the writer keeps sentence structures relatively safe and straightforward. While there is a lack of advanced, highly flexible complex structures, the grammatical accuracy across the majority of the sentences supports a band 6.0 score.

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