Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-09-14
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 chart shows what Anthropology graduates from one university did after finishing their undergraduate degree course.
The table shows the salaries of the anthroplogists in work after five year in which they include part-time work, full-time work, part time work+ postgrad study, full- time postgrad study, unemployed, not known graduates.
The chart shows the dstination of anthrology graduates ( from one university).
According to the chart 52% do full-time work and 12% graduates are unemployed and 8% do full-time postgrad study and 5% do part-time work+postgrad study and not known are 8% and 15% are doing part-time work.
The table shows salaries of Antrhroplogy graduates (after 5 years work) in which they include type of employment that are freelances consultants, government sector, private companies. That ranges from [redacted phone]9,[redacted phone]9,[redacted phone]9 and [redacted phone]+ that all salaries are in dollar currency.
In freelance consultants 5% have [redacted phone]9 dollar salery and 15% have [redacted phone]9 dollar salery and 40% have [redacted phone]9 dollar salery and also 40% have salery of [redacted phone] dollars.
In government sector 5% have [redacted phone]9 dollar salery and 15% have [redacted phone]9 dollar salery and 30% have [redacted phone]9 salery and 50% have [redacted phone]+ salery.
In private companies 10% have [redacted phone]9$ salery and 35% have 50000 to 74999$ and 25% is 75000 to 99999 and the last is 30% have [redacted phone]+ dollars salery.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0
The response covers the main features of both the chart and the table, noting key percentages for graduate destinations and salary distributions across different sectors. However, the reporting tends to list data mechanically without a clear, cohesive overview of the most striking trends or comparisons. For instance, the writer lists percentages for each salary bracket in freelance, government, and private sectors individually, rather than grouping or synthesizing the key similarities and differences. This leads to a somewhat repetitive presentation of data. Nevertheless, all parts of the prompt are addressed, fulfilling the requirements for a Band 5.5 to 6.0 level of task achievement.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0
The response demonstrates a basic organizational structure, with separate paragraphs attempting to address the chart and the table. However, the overall progression is heavily disrupted by poor paragraphing and repetitive sentence openers such as 'In freelance consultants...', 'In government sector...', and 'In private companies...'. Cohesive devices are minimal and mechanical, and referencing is sometimes unclear, particularly in the opening lines where the data categories are listed haphazardly. This places the response firmly in Band 5.0.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.0
The vocabulary used is relatively basic and repetitive, frequently reusing terms such as 'salery' (misspelled), 'percent', and 'do'. There are noticeable spelling errors throughout the text, including 'anthroplogists', 'anthroplogy', 'dstination', 'anthrology', and 'salery'. While the vocabulary is minimally adequate to convey the basic numerical data from the charts, the range is limited, and spelling mistakes detract from the overall quality, aligning with Band 5.0 descriptors.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The student relies heavily on simple sentence structures and repetitive coordinate clauses (e.g., 'and 15% have 50000-74999 dollar salery and 40% have 75000-99999 dollar salery...'). Attempts at complex structures are limited. There are frequent grammatical inaccuracies, missing articles, and preposition errors, such as 'salery of 100000 dollars' and issues with punctuation and pluralisation. These errors frequently cause strain for the reader, fitting the Band 5.0 criteria.
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.