Band 4.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-10-21

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 4.5)

The pie chart compares the anthropology graduates from one university and after finishing their undergraduate degree course. How much salaries they earn in five years in anthropologist field.

Overall, full-time work were the highest graduates and the salaries in the begining was so low.

To begin with, full-time work and part-time work were the highest graduates and the unemployed and part-time work and postgrad study the unemployed was12% and the part-time was 5% graduates from university. The full-time postgrad study and not know were same 8%.

Salaries of graduates after five years of work freelancer, government sector and private sector earn from $25,000-49,999 and 5% increase in first year in government sector and freelancer and private companies earn 10%. After one year salaries goes to $50,000 to $74,999 and increase 15% in government and freelancer sector and 35% in private companies after five years. Salaries in next year was $75,000 to $99,999 freelancer earn 40% and government sector employee ear 30% and private company earn 25%.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.5

You identify the two visuals and include several relevant figures, such as 52% in full-time work, 12% unemployed, and the 8% shares for full-time postgraduate study and unknown destinations. However, the overview is inaccurate and incomplete: full-time work is the largest destination, but the salary distribution is not simply “so low” at the beginning; the table reports salaries after five years, not a progression over time. The response also omits the highest salary band ($100,000+) and gives no clear comparison of the three employment sectors across the full table. Some figures are misrepresented as changes or increases. To improve, summarise the main patterns accurately, then select key comparisons from both visuals without inventing a timeline.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.0

There is an attempt to organise the response into an introduction, an overview and detail, and phrases such as “To begin with” and “After one year” signal movement between points. However, the progression is difficult to follow because the destination figures and salary information are crowded into long, unclear sentences. For example, “the unemployed and part-time work and postgrad study the unemployed was12%” makes the relationships between categories and figures hard to identify. The salary paragraph also shifts between salary bands and years, although the table does not show yearly changes. Use separate paragraphs for the pie chart and table, and group figures by a clear comparison, using accurate linking phrases.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use some task-relevant vocabulary, including “full-time work,” “postgrad study,” “government sector” and “salaries,” so the reader can recognise the subject matter. However, the range is limited and several expressions are imprecise or repetitive, such as “highest graduates,” “earn from” and repeated uses of “increase.” These choices sometimes obscure what the figures represent: the table shows the proportions of workers in salary bands, not salary increases over time. There are also spelling and word-form problems, including “begining,” “freelancer” where a category is intended, and “not know.” Aim for precise chart language such as “accounted for,” “fell within the salary band,” and “the largest proportion.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 4.5

The response attempts both simple statements and longer sentences, but control is inconsistent, and errors frequently make relationships between ideas unclear. Examples include “full-time work were the highest graduates,” where the subject and verb do not agree, and “The full-time postgrad study and not know were same 8%,” which lacks accurate article use and a clear grammatical structure. Sentence boundaries and punctuation are also weak, particularly in the long sentence beginning “To begin with.” The repeated use of “after” clauses creates faulty time relationships. Build accurate short sentences first, checking subject–verb agreement and articles, then combine related information with controlled clauses such as “while” or “whereas.”

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