Band 7.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-09-19

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 7.5)

Dear Samir,

Huge congratulations on getting a spot at the university! You are absolutely going to love it there, but I know how daunting finding a place to live can be.

When I was studying there, I stayed in a shared flat just outside the city center. It had three bedrooms, a shared kitchen, and a small living room. While it wasn't overly luxurious, it was affordabe, and living with fellow students made it incredibly easy to make friends early on.

The best way to look for a place now is to check the university's official student housing portal online. Landords listed there are usually vetted by the university , which makes the whole process much safer. You can also join the university's accomodation group on social media to see if anyone is looking for a flatmate.

One big mistake to avoid is rushing into a contract without reading the fine print. Some students sign leases without checking if utility bills are included, which can lead to unexpected expenses. Also, make sure you don't book a place that is too far from the main campus just because its cheaper; you will end up wasting too much time and money on daily commuting.

Let me know if you need help looking over any housing options!

Warmly,

Prapti

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.5

The response fully covers all three bullet points required in the task instructions in a natural and engaging tone. You successfully describe your past living situation in a shared flat just outside the city center, recommend the official university housing portal and social media groups, and warn your friend against common pitfalls such as rushing into contracts without checking utility bills or choosing a distant location. Your ideas are well-developed and appropriate for a General Training Task 1 email. The purpose of the communication is entirely clear from beginning to end, easily meeting the requirements for a high band score.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.5

Your letter is exceptionally well-organized and easy to follow. Ideas are logically sequenced, moving smoothly from a warm opening to your past experience, your recommendations, and finally your warnings. Paragraphing is used skillfully and appropriately, with each major point given its own paragraph. Cohesive devices such as 'While it wasn't overly luxurious', 'The best way', and 'One big mistake' are used naturally and unobtrusively to guide the reader through the text. Referencing is clear throughout, and the overall progression of the email is logical and coherent.

Lexical Resource — Band 7.0

You demonstrate a wide and flexible vocabulary suited to a friendly yet informative email. Phrases like 'daunting finding a place to live', 'vetted by the university', and 'fine print' show a good command of collocation and stylistic awareness. There are a couple of very minor typographical errors—such as 'affordabe' instead of 'affordable', 'Landords' instead of 'Landlords', 'accomodation' with a missing 'm', and 'its' instead of 'it's'—which represent occasional slips rather than systematic weaknesses. Overall, your lexical resource is more than sufficient to convey precise meaning.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 7.5

The writing exhibits a good variety of sentence structures, mixing simple sentences effectively with complex forms such as conditional and subordinate clauses (e.g., 'While it wasn't overly luxurious, it was affordable, and living with fellow students made it incredibly easy...'). The majority of sentences are error-free, demonstrating a strong command of grammar and punctuation. Minor issues like the missing apostrophe in 'its cheaper' do not impede communication or detract significantly from the overall high quality of the grammar used throughout the response.

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