Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-08-16

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 6.0)

Dear Ram,

First of all, many congrats on securing place at the university. You asked me advice on finding place to live as I already was a student at same university, and know very well about the area.

When I start enrolled at the same institution, I gave my first preference to the local PG, However it was costing me more as this PG was far away from university also the PG living condition was also worse.

So I will recommend to you to find accommodation with in the campus as you will not face extra spending on transport. Furthermore it will save time. Although living in campus they provide extra faculties like gym, canteen as well as laundry.

Moreover, I also want to alert you for few things while you decide place to live. Just to save some money some students choose to stay in shared room. But it is better to choose apartment in campus as you don’t have to share and there will be no distractions for you, and you will have your own bathroom.

All the best for your future academics.

Kind Regards,

Jeet

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

You have addressed all three bullet points of the task: describing your past living situation, recommending a method for finding accommodation, and warning about common mistakes. The tone is appropriate for a letter to a friend. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited. For instance, the warning about shared rooms is a bit simplistic, and the description of your past experience could have been more detailed to provide better context. To improve, try to expand on your personal anecdotes and provide more nuanced advice to fully satisfy the requirements of a higher band.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The email is logically organized into paragraphs, each focusing on a specific requirement of the prompt. You use some cohesive devices such as 'First of all', 'Furthermore', and 'Moreover' to link your ideas. However, the use of these devices is occasionally mechanical, and the flow between sentences could be smoother. For example, the transition between your past experience and your recommendation is a bit abrupt. Improving the variety of linking words and ensuring that referencing (e.g., 'this PG') is always clear will help you achieve a higher score.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You have a sufficient range of vocabulary to communicate your message clearly. You use relevant terms like 'accommodation', 'institution', and 'distractions'. However, there are some inaccuracies in word choice and collocation, such as 'many congrats on securing place' (should be 'a place') and 'extra faculties' (likely meant 'facilities'). The vocabulary is generally functional but lacks the precision and flexibility required for higher bands. Focusing on learning common collocations and ensuring articles are used correctly will significantly improve your lexical range and accuracy.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

You demonstrate a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While your meaning is generally clear, there are frequent grammatical errors, particularly with articles ('at the university', 'at same university'), verb tenses ('When I start enrolled'), and prepositions ('alert you for few things'). These errors are noticeable but do not impede communication. To reach a higher band, you should work on consistent subject-verb agreement and the correct use of articles, as well as attempting more varied complex sentence structures with greater accuracy.

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

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