Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-08-21

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 5.5)

The pie illustrates what anthropology graduates from single university did after completing their degree, while table shows the salaries of anthropologists in employment after five years of work.

Overall, the majority of students moved directly into full-time employment , while a smaller proportion pursue their further study and remained unemployed. In term me salaries government sectors employees earned top wages and freelance consultants and those who work in private companies showed more varied income level.

Looking at pie chart, just over a half pupils from university went straight to full-time works at approximately 52% making this by far the most dominating outcomes. By followed, part-time work is second most common path 15% chosen by students. Furthermore, smaller proportion of people continue their education with part-time work (5%). Meanwhile, 8% of full-time postgrad study and 5 % of destination us unknown.

Turning to a table, salary outcomes varied considerably by sector. The government sector half of employees (50%) earned salaries 100,000 or more that lead as a top earner in all over the employment type. In contrast, Freelance consultants salaries splits into two highest paid (40%) 75,000-99,00 and (40%) into 100,000 or more. The private farm employees demonstrates the most balanced spread largest group(35%) earning 50,000-99,999 and comparatively fewer earned (30%) 100,000 reaching the top salary band than in the other two sectors.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response covers all parts of the task, providing a clear overview and selecting relevant data from both the pie chart and the table. You successfully identified the main trends, such as the dominance of full-time employment and the variation in salary brackets across sectors. However, the analysis is slightly hampered by some inaccuracies in data reporting. For instance, you mention '52%' for full-time work, which is accurate, but the description of the salary table contains some confusion regarding the figures, such as the mention of 'private farm' instead of 'private firm' and slightly inaccurate interpretations of the percentage distributions. To reach a higher band, ensure that data points are transcribed with absolute precision and that comparisons between categories are more explicitly linked to the provided figures.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The response is logically organized into an introduction, an overview, and two body paragraphs focusing on the chart and the table respectively. You use some cohesive devices such as 'In contrast', 'Furthermore', and 'Meanwhile' to link ideas. However, the flow is occasionally disrupted by awkward phrasing and minor grammatical slips that make some sentences feel disjointed. For example, the transition 'By followed, part-time work is second most common path' is unnatural and hinders the smooth progression of ideas. Improving the variety and accuracy of your linking words and ensuring that each paragraph has a clear, unified focus will help improve the overall coherence of your writing.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'employment', 'consultants', and 'varied income level'. There are, however, some noticeable errors in word choice and collocation that occasionally impede clarity, such as 'private farm' instead of 'private firm' and 'most dominating outcomes' which is slightly unnatural. While you attempt to use more specific terminology, the repetition of basic structures and the occasional misuse of words (e.g., 'pupils' instead of 'graduates') limit the score. To improve, focus on using more precise academic collocations and ensure that your vocabulary is consistently appropriate for a formal report.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The response uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While you are able to convey information clearly, there are frequent errors in grammar and punctuation throughout the text. Examples include missing articles ('while table shows'), subject-verb agreement issues ('salary outcomes varied', 'private farm employees demonstrates'), and awkward phrasing ('In term me salaries'). These errors do not generally prevent the reader from understanding the message, but they are frequent enough to keep the score in the 6.0 range. To progress, pay closer attention to basic grammatical accuracy, particularly with articles, pluralization, and verb forms.

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

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