Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-10-07

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 chart illustrates how Anthropology graduates from one university continued their journey of life after finishing their undergraduate degree course. And the table shows salaries of Anthropology graduates during employment after 5 year's work.

Overall, the data reveals the proportion of destinations of anthropologists after their graduation and most of them are employed. From the chart, it is evident that the graduates who perform full-time work contribute the highest proportion of 52%. Similarly, some Anthropologists who do full-time postgraduate study and part-time work contribute 8% and 15% respectively Additionally, those who are unemployed and not known have a percentage of 12 and 8 respectively. Conversely, those graduates who participate in part-time work and postgraduate study have the lowest proportion of 5%.

Looking ahead to the table which describes the salaries of graduates after 5 year's work. Those who work in government sector have higher number and also earn more than $100,000. Those who work in private companies have 35% and earn $50,000 to $74,999. Notably, lowest proportion of 5% working freelance and government sectors earn between $25,000 and $49,999.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You identify the main destination, full-time work at 52%, and include figures for all six categories, so the chart is broadly represented. However, the overview is general rather than a clear summary of the most important patterns across both visuals. The salary discussion is particularly underdeveloped: you note that government employees have the largest share in the top bracket and correctly identify the private-company peak at 35% in the $50,000–$74,999 range, but you do not compare the distributions across all three employment types. The statement that government workers “have higher number” is also unclear, and the table’s other notable pattern—that freelance consultants are evenly split between the two highest brackets—is omitted. Select and compare key features more explicitly.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, a paragraph about graduate destinations, and a final paragraph on salaries. This gives the reader an overall route through the two visuals, and linking expressions such as “Overall,” “Similarly,” and “Conversely” help signal relationships. However, some connections are mechanical or imprecise. “Similarly” does not clearly explain the relationship between the two study/work categories, while “Looking ahead to the table” is an awkward transition. The salary paragraph also moves quickly between observations without a clear comparison framework. Grouping the salary bands or employment types systematically, and using clearer references such as “the highest salary bracket,” would improve progression and cohesion.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of task-related vocabulary, including “proportion,” “postgraduate study,” “unemployed,” and “salary,” and the meaning is generally understandable. There are also attempts at more formal phrasing, such as “contribute the highest proportion.” However, several choices are unnatural or imprecise for describing statistical data: graduates do not “continue their journey of life,” and people do not “perform” work in this context. “Have higher number” is also unclear, while “the lowest proportion” is repeated without specifying the relevant salary group. Prefer concise, conventional chart language such as “account for,” “work in,” and “the largest share.” More precise vocabulary would make comparisons easier to follow.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and more complex sentence forms, including clauses introduced by “who” and “which,” and most of the information remains understandable. However, some sentence boundaries and punctuation are faulty. The opening separates two closely connected clauses with a full stop before “And,” and the sentence beginning “Looking ahead to the table” is a fragment because it has no main verb. There are also errors in possessive and article use in “after 5 year's work” and “in government sector.” The long sentence beginning “Overall” contains several ideas joined together, making its structure difficult to control. Use complete sentences, check apostrophes and articles, and divide lists of figures into clearer grammatical units.

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.