Band 7.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-08-20

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The chart below shows what Anthropology graduates from one university did after finishing their undergraduate degree course. The table shows the salaries of the anthropologists in work after five years.

Summarize the information by selecting and reporting the main features and make comparison where relevant.

Student answer (Band 7.5)

The pie chart illustrates the destinations of anthropology graduates from one university after graduation, while the table shows the salaries of those graduates after five years of work in three different types of employment.

Overall, the majority of anthropology graduates found full-time employment. In terms of salary, government-sector employees and freelance consultants generally earned higher salaries than those working for private companies.

According to the pie chart, 52% of graduates went into full-time work, making this by far the most common destination. Another 15% worked part-time, while 5% combined part-time work with postgraduate study. Meanwhile, 8% continued their education through full-time postgraduate study. The proportion of unemployed graduates was 12%, and the destination of a further 8% was not known.

The table shows that after five years, 40% of freelance consultants earned between $75,000 and $99,999, while another 40% earned $100,000 or more. Only 20% earned less than $75,000. Government employees had a similar pattern, with 30% earning $75,000–$99,999 and 50% receiving at least $100,000. In contrast, private-company employees were less highly paid: 35% earned $50,000–$74,999, 25% earned $75,000–$99,999, and 30% earned $100,000 or more. Only 10% of private-sector workers earned between $25,000 and $49,999.

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response7.5
Coherence and Cohesion7.5
Lexical Resource6.5
Grammatical Range and Accuracy7.5
Overall7.5

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.5

You have provided a clear and accurate summary of the provided data. You successfully identified the main features of both the pie chart and the table, and your comparisons between the employment sectors are well-supported by the data. The overview is concise and effectively highlights the key trends, such as the prevalence of full-time work and the salary disparities between sectors. All parts of the task are addressed, and the information is presented in a logical manner that allows the reader to grasp the main points quickly.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.5

The response is well-organized with a clear structure. Each paragraph has a distinct focus, moving logically from the general overview to the specific details of the pie chart and then the table. Cohesive devices such as 'Meanwhile', 'In terms of', and 'In contrast' are used effectively to link ideas and guide the reader through the data. The progression of information is smooth, and the paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the different data sets, ensuring the report is easy to follow.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.5

You have used a sufficient range of vocabulary to describe the data accurately. Phrases like 'destinations of anthropology graduates', 'combined part-time work', and 'less highly paid' demonstrate a good command of language appropriate for an academic report. While the vocabulary is functional and precise, incorporating a few more sophisticated synonyms or collocations related to data analysis (e.g., 'a significant proportion', 'the figures indicate') could elevate the response further. The word choice is consistently accurate and fits the context well.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 7.5

The writing is highly accurate with a good mix of simple and complex sentence structures. You have maintained consistent control over tense and subject-verb agreement throughout the report. The use of punctuation is correct, and there are no significant grammatical errors that impede communication. The sentences are well-constructed, and the variety of structures used to report the statistics—such as '40% of freelance consultants earned...' and 'Government employees had a similar pattern'—shows a strong grasp of English grammar.

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