Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-10-09
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 5.0)
The Pi chard and the table illustrates the information about what Anthropology graduates from a single institute did after completing their studies, and salaries they got after five years of experience.
Overall, majority of students started full-time work. Their large proportion got highest pay checks which are more than $100,000 in government sector while the private companies offered the same level of salaries to a least number of five plus year experienced Antrhropologist.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 4.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.0
The response identifies two relevant headline points: full-time work was the most common destination, and government employment had the largest share in the top salary band. However, it reports very little of the chart or table, so the main features are not adequately summarised or compared. The claim that private companies offered the top salary to the “least number” is broadly consistent with their 30% figure, compared with 40% for freelance consultants and 50% for government workers, but this comparison is not supported with figures. Most destination categories and salary bands are omitted. The response is also well below the required 150 words, which severely limits coverage. Include an overview and select key figures from both visuals.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0
There is a basic two-sentence structure: the opening introduces the visuals, and the second sentence attempts an overall summary. This gives the reader a simple starting point, but there is no clear progression through the chart and table, and the response ends before developing either. The link between the two claims in the overview is also abrupt, with no explanation or comparison to connect them. To improve organisation, use a brief introduction, a clear overview, and separate detail sentences for graduate destinations and five-year salaries. Cohesive phrases such as “By contrast” or “In the salary table” could guide the reader through comparisons without making the writing feel repetitive.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.0
The response uses some task-relevant vocabulary, including “Anthropology graduates,” “full-time work,” “government sector,” and “private companies,” so the topic is generally recognisable. However, the range is limited, and several choices are inaccurate or awkward enough to make parts difficult to interpret. “The Pi chard” appears to be an unsuccessful attempt at “pie chart,” while “pay checks” is informal and not a natural description of salary figures in an academic report. “A least number” is also an incorrect phrase, and “five plus year experienced Antrhropologist” is cumbersome and misspelled. Use precise terms such as “proportion,” “salary band,” and “graduates employed in” to describe the data clearly.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0
The response attempts both a compound introduction and a longer sentence beginning “Overall,” but the grammatical range remains limited and errors are frequent enough to affect clarity. In “The Pi chard and the table illustrates,” the subject and verb do not agree; the sentence also lacks a clear grammatical construction for describing what the visuals show. “Their large proportion got highest pay checks” has unclear reference and missing article use, while “to a least number” is not a correctly formed comparison. The final phrase, “five plus year experienced,” also has an awkward modifier structure. Build accurate simple sentences first, then add comparisons using patterns such as “The proportion earning … was higher in … than in …”.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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