Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

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

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 6.5)

Dear Radha,

It's been a long time to talk to you. I hope you and your family are doing great.

First of all a huge congratulations for getting admission at York University. I am writing you to share my personal experience studying at same university.

I was living at the campus behind the university itself. At that time, they were used to provide scholarships to some special students who had passed their entrance exam at their very first attempt and those scholars were get special accommodation by the college.

I am not sure if they are still conducting those entrance exams. If not, then you can search for the apartments and basements near by the college so it will be convenient for you to commute on a daily basis. You can look for those housing on Facebook Marketplace.

I'll suggest you to go for basement because renting an apartment will be expensive at your initial stage. I did that mistake and I don't want you to repeat the same as it will ruin all of your savings.

You can call me anytime if you need any help from my side.

Best regards,

Anjali

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

The student successfully addresses all three bullet points required by the task prompt. Firstly, the writer describes their past accommodation living on campus behind the university. Secondly, they recommend looking for apartments and basements near the college using Facebook Marketplace. Finally, they warn the friend against renting an expensive apartment at the initial stage, sharing personal experience about saving money. The tone is appropriately informal and friendly, fitting the general training letter format. All parts of the task are well-covered and extended with personal anecdotes, satisfying the requirements for a Band 7.0.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The email has a clear and logical organisation from the greeting through to the closing. Information is presented in a progressive manner, starting with congratulations, moving into personal history, giving advice, and finally offering a warning. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate different ideas, such as the housing description and the recommendation. While cohesive devices are generally used effectively, there are some minor mechanical or slightly awkward transitions, such as 'First of all a huge congratulations' missing a comma, and 'from my side' which is a bit unnatural. Overall, the message flows well and is easy to follow, aligning closely with Band 6.5 or 7.0 descriptors.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The student demonstrates an adequate and functional range of vocabulary suitable for an informal email. Phrases like 'huge congratulations', 'convenient for you to commute', and 'ruin all of your savings' communicate ideas clearly. However, there are some noticeable inaccuracies in word choice and collocation, such as 'getting admission at' (instead of 'to'), 'studying at same university' (missing article 'the'), and 'search for the apartments... near by the college'. Additionally, 'initial stage' could be expressed more naturally. These errors do not impede communication, placing the response solidly in the Band 6.0 range.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, including conditional sentences ('If not, then you can search...') and relative clauses. However, there are several grammatical errors throughout the text. Examples include 'It's been a long time to talk to you' (rather than 'since we last spoke'), 'I was living at the campus' (usually 'on campus'), 'they were used to provide' (should be 'used to provide'), and 'those scholars were get special accommodation' (passive voice error). Although these errors occur with some frequency, the meaning remains clear and communication is not impeded, which is characteristic of Band 6.0.

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

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