Band 8.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 8.0 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-09-13

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 8.0)

The pie chart and table illustrate the career destinations and five-year earnings of anthropology graduates from a single university. Overall, most graduates entered full-time employment immediately after graduating, while public sector workers earned the highest salaries five years later.

Regarding initial destinations, a 52% majority secured full-time employment, while 15% worked part-time. Higher education attracted a minority, with 8% pursuing full-time post-graduate study and 5% combining part-time study with work. Conversely, 12% were unemployed, and the remaining 8% fell into the unknown category.

Five years later, government sector employees commanded the highest income, with 80% earning $75,000 or more, including half earning over $100,000. Freelance consultants achieved identical overall high-earning rates (80% above $75,000), though only 40% reached the top $100,000+ bracket. In contrast, private sector salaries lagged, with 45% of employees earning below $75,000 and just 30% reaching the highest income tier.

Overall, the data demonstrates a direct correlation between sector choice and long-term earning power.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.5

The response provides a fully developed and well-selected overview of the main features from both the chart and the table. You successfully reported key data points, such as the 52% entering full-time employment and the breakdown of five-year earnings across different sectors. The comparisons made, such as contrasting the government sector with the private sector ('In contrast, private sector salaries lagged...'), are accurate and relevant. All parts of the prompt are addressed comprehensively, satisfying the requirements for an exceptional Academic Task 1 response.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 8.0

Information and ideas are logically sequenced with a clear overall progression. The response begins with a clear introduction and overview, moves logically to initial destinations, transitions smoothly to five-year earnings ('Five years later...'), and concludes with an effective summary sentence. Cohesive devices such as 'Regarding initial destinations', 'Conversely', and 'In contrast' are used skillfully and flexibly. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate distinct timeframes and datasets.

Lexical Resource — Band 7.5

A wide, fluent, and flexible range of vocabulary is deployed throughout the response. You successfully incorporate precise and sophisticated terms such as 'destination', 'commanded the highest income', 'identical overall high-earning rates', and 'direct correlation'. Word choice and collocations are used naturally, with only occasional minor instances of standard phrasing. The language is well-suited to an academic report.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 8.0

The response demonstrates a wide range of complex structures used with a high degree of accuracy. Sentences such as 'Regarding initial destinations, a 52% majority secured full-time employment, while 15% worked part-time' and 'Government sector employees commanded the highest income, with 80% earning $75,000 or more, including half earning over $100,000' show excellent control over subordination and participial phrases. The vast majority of sentences are completely error-free, reflecting a high level of grammatical control.

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

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