Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-10-17

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 employment destinations of anthropology graduates from one university, whereas the table shows the salaries of graduates in three different employment types after 5 years of work.

Overall, more than half of the proportion is full-time work, and the lowest employment is in part-time work, according to the postgraduate study. Regarding salaries, government sector employees get half of the total salaries.

According to the chart, 52% of graduates choose full-time work, which is half of the total percentage, while the lowest destination is a combination of part-time work and postgraduate study, which accounts for 5%. After undergraduate, there are 12% is umemployed.

The table shows that, after 5 years of work, around 50% of government employees get more than $100,000, while the lowest salary is $25,000- 49,999 which includes freelance consultants and the government sector accordingly.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.5

You identify the main destination, full-time work at 52%, and correctly note that the smallest category is part-time work combined with postgraduate study at 5%. You also include a relevant salary comparison, reporting that 50% of government employees earn over $100,000. However, the overview is unclear and partly inaccurate: part-time work alone is 15%, not the lowest, and “government sector employees get half of the total salaries” misrepresents a salary-band percentage. The table’s comparisons across freelance and private-sector roles are largely omitted, and the lowest salary band is not clearly described. The response is also 10 words below the required minimum. Develop a more accurate overview and select key comparisons from both visuals.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear four-paragraph structure: an introduction, an overview, and separate paragraphs for the chart and table. This makes the two visuals easy to distinguish, and linking expressions such as “Overall,” “According to the chart,” and “The table shows” help guide the reader. However, progression within paragraphs is limited because most details are presented as isolated statements, and the overview does not clearly connect the main features of both visuals. Some references are also unclear, particularly “according to the postgraduate study,” which makes the comparison difficult to follow. Build a more informative overview and use clearer links between each figure and the category it describes.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use a suitable range of task-related vocabulary, including “employment destinations,” “full-time work,” “postgraduate study,” and “employment types.” These terms generally make the subject clear, and the response attempts some formal reporting language. However, several choices are imprecise or unnatural: “the lowest employment” does not clearly identify a category, and “get half of the total salaries” does not accurately describe the share earning within a salary band. “Choose full-time work” also suggests a personal choice rather than reporting the chart. Check spelling as well: “umemployed” should be “unemployed.” More precise terms such as “accounted for,” “earned,” and “salary band” would improve clarity and control.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You use both simple and more complex sentence forms, including the contrast in “whereas the table shows” and the relative clause “which accounts for 5%.” Most sentences communicate the intended point, but some grammatical errors reduce accuracy. For example, “After undergraduate, there are 12% is unemployed” has an incorrect sentence structure and verb pattern; write “After graduating, 12% were unemployed.” In “more than half of the proportion is full-time work,” the subject and complement do not fit together grammatically. The sentence about government employees also needs a clearer structure to express the percentage. Continue using varied clauses, while checking agreement, verb forms, and sentence construction.

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