Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-10-28

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)

In my opinion, medical research should be funded by both government and private companies. However, I believe the government should play the mot important role.

First of all, the government has a responsibility to protect people's health. it should provide enough funding for research on serious diseases, such as cancer and kidney failure, because these studies can save many lives. It can also make sure that medicines and treatments are safe and affordable for everyone.

On the other hand, private companies can also contribute to medical research because they have advanced technology and financial resources. They can develop new medicines and equipment to cure quickly the diseases.

As for individuals they can support medical research through giving donations that are enough for there funds.

In conclusion, I believe the government should lead medical research, while private companies and individuals should also contribute. By working together, so that they can save more people's life.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You give a clear overall view: government should lead, with private companies and individuals also contributing. The response addresses each group and offers relevant reasons, such as public responsibility for health and companies’ access to technology and finance. However, these points are only briefly stated. For example, you do not explain how public funding could ensure research serves patients rather than commercial interests, and the contribution of individuals is mentioned without a developed example. The conclusion repeats the position but does not add support. The response is also 97 words below the required minimum, so there is not enough development to address the task fully. Extend each main point with explanation or a specific example.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response has a clear overall arrangement: an introduction, separate points about government, companies and individuals, and a conclusion. Linking phrases such as “First of all,” “On the other hand,” and “In conclusion” make the progression easy to follow. This coherent structure meets the lower-band expectations and shows some control of organisation. To make the progression more fully developed, connect the ideas within paragraphs rather than presenting each as a short, isolated statement. For instance, explain how government oversight relates to affordable and safe treatments, then link this to the role of private companies. The final sentence, “By working together, so that…,” is not a complete sentence, which weakens the ending and the connection to the conclusion.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use enough topic-related vocabulary to communicate the main ideas, including “medical research,” “serious diseases,” “financial resources,” and “affordable.” The wording is generally understandable, but the range is limited and some choices or collocations are inaccurate. “Cure quickly the diseases” is unnatural, while “donations that are enough for there funds” makes the intended meaning difficult to follow. There are also spelling errors, including “mot” and “there” where “their” is intended. Aim for more precise phrases such as “develop treatments more rapidly” and “donate to research funds.” A wider range of accurate terms for funding, clinical trials and public oversight would help you express the argument more flexibly.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

Most of your sentences use straightforward structures, and the main position is usually clear. You also attempt a reason clause with “because these studies can save many lives,” showing some ability to extend a sentence. However, the range is limited, and errors appear in sentence boundaries and clause construction. In “it should provide,” the sentence begins with a lowercase letter; “By working together, so that they can save…” is a fragment because the “so that” clause has no main clause. The phrase “As for individuals they can…” also needs punctuation after the introductory phrase. Practise combining ideas with accurate subordinate clauses and checking that every sentence has a complete main clause.

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.