Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-10-11

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 the destination of Anthropology fresh graduates students from one university while tables shows the employment salaries of the anthropologists in three sectors.

Overall, it is clear that just after completing Anthropology course 52% of students entered full time job. However, in salary table government sector had the largest proportion of earning $100,000 or more while freelance consultants had the smallest.

As far as the pie chart concerned, full time work has more attention which is 52%. By following 15% students preffered half day job. However, 5% did both study plus part time work while 8% choose full time post graduate course. Remaning 12% are unemployed and 8% has no contacts.

After 5 years of working experiance the salaries of anthropologist is highest in government field which is $100,000 plus and 50% employment. In addition some are freelance consultants with 40% propotion being paid $75,00-99,999 while who work for private companies with same salaries are only 30%.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the main destination, noting that 52% entered full-time work, and your overview also highlights the government sector’s 50% share in the highest salary band. These are relevant headline features. However, the salary comparison is incomplete and partly inaccurate: freelance consultants’ smallest share is 5% in the lowest band, not a general comparison with government, and the 40% figure refers to the $75,000–99,999 band, not the highest salary band. The private-company figure for that same band is 25%, not 30%. You also omit several useful salary contrasts and give little detail on the other graduate destinations. More accurate, balanced reporting of both visuals would make the response more complete.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, an overview, and separate paragraphs for the chart and salary table. This helps the reader distinguish the two visuals, and phrases such as “Overall” and “In addition” provide some signposting. However, progression within the final paragraph is weak: it moves from government salaries to freelance consultants and then private companies without clearly comparing the same salary bands. Some linking is mechanical or imprecise, as in “By following 15%” and “However, 5% did both study plus part time work.” The overview also combines two headline points without establishing a clear comparison. Organise the salary details by income band or employment type, and use more precise transitions and references.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant task vocabulary, including “destination,” “employment,” “government sector,” “freelance consultants,” and “post graduate course,” so the topic is generally clear. There is also some attempt to vary wording, such as “entered full time job” and “preferred half day job.” However, several choices are inaccurate or unnatural for this context: “fresh graduates students,” “has no contacts,” and “had the largest proportion of earning” do not express the intended information precisely. Spelling errors such as “preffered,” “Remaning,” “experiance,” and “propotion” are noticeable, while “$75,00-99,999” is an incorrectly written figure. Use standard chart language such as “graduates,” “not known,” and “accounted for,” and check spelling and number formatting.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and more complex sentence forms, including a contrast with “while” and a time phrase beginning “After 5 years of working…”. The main information is usually understandable, but errors recur in sentence construction and agreement. For example, “while tables shows” needs a plural subject and verb agreement, and “the salaries of anthropologist is highest” has problems with number and verb form. In “8% has no contacts,” the verb does not agree with the plural subject, and “while who work for private companies” is an incomplete, faulty clause. Articles and phrasing are also inconsistent, as in “entered full time job.” Practise accurate subject–verb agreement and complete comparative clauses, while retaining your attempts at varied sentence structures.

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

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