Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-08-09

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 James,

I hope you are doing well. It's been so long since we last met. However, I just got to know that you have been selected for the course in the same university from where I graduated. I am really glad to hear that.

Regarding your query about the accommodation, I would suggest you to live off campus because it is much cheaper in comparison to an on campus hostel. Another thing is that, there is a small townhouse community just 10 minutes from the university, you can actually go there and search for a proper place to live.

However, before you select any residence kindly make sure to personally visit the place as that is the major mistake I made when I was choosing my accommodation. This is because, sometimes the picture they show is not the real condition of the room and also it's a great way to connect with the landlord and the housemates of the house.

This is all the advice that I could offer you and let me know if you need more help. I look forward to your response.

Yours truly,

Alexa

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

You have addressed all three bullet points of the task effectively. You described your past living situation, provided a recommendation for finding accommodation, and included a relevant warning about common mistakes. The tone is appropriate for an email to a friend, and the purpose of the letter is clear throughout. To reach a higher band, you could provide more specific detail regarding your own past experience; for instance, describing the type of accommodation you lived in (e.g., a shared flat or a studio) would have added more depth to the response.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The email is logically organized with a clear introduction, body paragraphs addressing each prompt, and a closing. The use of cohesive devices such as 'Regarding your query', 'However', and 'This is because' helps the reader follow your train of thought. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the different points. The progression of ideas is smooth, and the relationship between the advice and the warning is well-managed. The structure is clear and easy to follow throughout the text.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.5

You have used a sufficient range of vocabulary to convey your message clearly. Phrases like 'townhouse community', 'proper place to live', and 'personally visit' are accurate and appropriate for the context. While the vocabulary is functional and natural, it is somewhat limited in terms of 'less common' or 'sophisticated' items. To improve, try incorporating more precise collocations or descriptive adjectives to enhance the quality of your writing, such as using 'conveniently located' instead of '10 minutes from'.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.5

You demonstrate a good control of grammar with a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. Most of your sentences are error-free, and the punctuation is generally accurate. There are a few minor slips, such as 'the course in the same university from where I graduated' (which is slightly awkward; 'at the same university where I graduated' would be more natural) and 'the housemates of the house' (which is redundant). However, these errors do not impede communication and the overall accuracy is quite high.

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

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