Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-10-14

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)

Intro - The pie chart depicts what Anthropology graduates from one university did post completing their undergraduate degree course. The tabular format represents the incomes of the anthropologists in work after half a decade.

Overview - It can be observed that mostly on a higher end post completion of the graduation gets a full-time work. With reference to the pie chart it can also be deprived that few ratios were observed for part-time workers and unemployed. Furthermore, similar ratios were observed for both full-time postgrad students and were also reported unknown. The least one of them would be dedicated to the part-time workers and postgrad students. Followed by the tabular format displaying the salaries varying post 5 years' work.

B1 - Firstly, it has been observed that 52% of the children have been deployed as the full-time workers. Given that, unemployed & Part-time workers reported almost equally or delibirately the same ratios with 15 and 12 percentage. Furthermore, the pie chart represents the same percentage of students for both full-time postgrad students studying & unknown. The least of all was observed for part-time workers combined with postgrad study.

B2 - The tabular format of the salaries after 5 years' is categorized in the parts where the type of employement would be Freelance consultants, Government sectors and private companies. The slab of $25k to $49,999 and $50k to $74,999 illustrates the same percentage for Freelance and Government sectors while private companies showed 10% as all time low for $25k to $49,999, gradually increase over the period of time reaching all time high of 35% in $50k to $74,999 and then hitting a low of 25% while maintaining the 30% for more than $1Million. Whereas for 40% as all time high for Freelance consulatants being the highest of all 3 categories.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the main destination, full-time work, and include figures for all six outcomes, while also describing the salary categories. However, the overview is unclear and does not accurately distinguish the key comparisons: 15% were in part-time work and 12% unemployed, rather than being “almost equally” without a clear explanation. You correctly note that part-time work combined with postgraduate study was the smallest group, but say full-time postgraduate study and “unknown” had the same percentage; both are 8%, so this is accurate. In the table discussion, several important comparisons are missing, and “more than $1Million” misreports the top salary band, which is $100,000+. Focus the overview on the dominant outcomes and highest salary bands, then report precise comparisons.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure, with an introduction, overview and separate paragraphs for the pie chart and table. This helps the reader identify which visual is being discussed. However, progression within paragraphs is often difficult to follow because ideas are repeated or linked mechanically. For example, the overview repeats that the pie chart shows outcomes before moving abruptly to the table, and phrases such as “Given that” and “Furthermore” do not always express a clear relationship. The table paragraph moves between salary bands without a consistent comparison pattern. Organise each body paragraph from the largest or most notable figures to smaller ones, and use direct links such as “By contrast” only when the data genuinely contrasts.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You attempt a range of vocabulary, including “depicts,” “categorized,” “varying” and “maintaining,” but many choices are unnatural or imprecise for describing statistical data. Expressions such as “children have been deployed as the full-time workers,” “deprived that few ratios,” and “all time low” make the meaning harder to understand. There are also spelling errors, including “delibirately,” “employement” and “consulatants.” Some wording, such as “post completing” and “tabular format,” is unnecessarily elaborate where simpler academic phrasing would be clearer. Use standard chart language consistently—for example, “graduates,” “accounted for,” “proportion” and “salary band”—and check spelling and collocations before submitting.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt longer sentences and subordinate clauses, but control is inconsistent, and errors sometimes obscure the intended comparison. For example, “mostly on a higher end post completion of the graduation gets a full-time work” lacks a clear grammatical subject and has an awkward verb construction. In “the same percentage of students for both full-time postgrad students studying & unknown,” the sentence structure is incomplete, while “gradually increase” does not agree with its implied subject. The table paragraph also contains a long sentence joined by several clauses, making its relationships difficult to track. Practise building accurate simple sentences first, then combine them with controlled clauses. Check subject–verb agreement, articles, and sentence boundaries, especially when reporting several figures.

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