Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-08-07

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

Your friend has been offered a place on a course at the university where you studied. He/She would like your advice about finding a place to live.

Write an email to your friend. In your email

• describe where you lived when you were a student at the university
• recommend the best way for him/her to look for accommodation
• warn him/her of mistakes students make when choosing accommodation

You do NOT need to write any addresses.

Begin your email as follows:

Dear ..........,

Student answer (Band 6.5)

Dear John

Hope this letter finds you in pink of your health. I am writing this letter to express my excitement for your joining in the same college and suitable place for living.

I would like to mention about the apartment where I stayed for almost two years during my study. This apartment is only five minutes walk away from the college and supermarket. But only inconvenience was noise most of the time. I would suggest you to avoid the mistakes which I did during renting it. Firstly, keep close to the college while selecting rented room. Secondly, discuss all formalities with owner such as monthly rent, bill payment, entry timing and how many pupil are allowed in order to avoid further problems.

Most of the time children select the apartment due to ambience. But, you do not repeat this mistake. Even, you should check privacy and security first before finalising any property. Moreover, request for parking access in order to keep vehicle safe.

I hope you would take my suggestions into your consideration and finalise the accommodation accordingly.

Lots of love,

Arpan

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

You have successfully addressed all three bullet points in the prompt. You described your previous living situation, provided a clear recommendation for the search process, and included a warning about common mistakes. The tone is appropriate for an informal email to a friend. The ideas are relevant and well-developed, though the advice could be slightly more specific in places to fully reach the higher band descriptors. For instance, the warning about 'ambience' is a bit vague, but overall, the task requirements are fully met with a clear and consistent purpose throughout the letter.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The email is logically organized with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a closing. You use some cohesive devices such as 'Firstly', 'Secondly', and 'Moreover' to link your ideas. However, the flow between sentences is occasionally slightly mechanical. The paragraphing is appropriate for an email format, and the progression of ideas is easy to follow. To improve, try to use a wider variety of linking words and ensure that the transition between your personal experience and the advice you are giving feels more natural and less like a list of instructions.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You have an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, allowing you to express your ideas clearly. There are some minor errors in word choice and collocation, such as 'in pink of your health' (an idiom that is slightly misused here) and 'how many pupil are allowed' (should be 'students'). You also use some less common vocabulary like 'formalities' and 'finalising', which is good. To reach a higher band, focus on using more natural collocations and avoiding slight inaccuracies in idiomatic expressions. Your vocabulary is sufficient to communicate your message effectively without any real confusion.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

You demonstrate a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is always clear, there are several grammatical errors, such as 'excitement for your joining in the same college' (should be 'joining the same college') and 'But only inconvenience was' (missing an article: 'the only inconvenience'). There are also minor issues with pluralization, such as 'how many pupil' instead of 'pupils'. Despite these errors, they do not impede communication. To improve, focus on article usage and subject-verb agreement to increase the accuracy of your complex sentences.

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

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