Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-10-04
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 5.5)
Dear Ashu,
Congratulations on getting a place on a course! I'm really happy for you. I'd be gald to give you some advive where to live.
When I was studying in the university, I used to live in a flat with my friends. It is an best option which I would like to share with you. Moreover, You just need to find home or flat and rent it. If you are 4 or 5 people, then it is going to be cheapest and comfortable space. Furthermore, I recommend you a home which is very near to the university and best location for you. The house name is Tulsi Bhavan, you will find it very easily. However, I will share a contact number of the house owner.
Please, do not choose any apartment randomly because there are many crimes happens and do not rely on any person.
Yours faithfully.
Khushbu Chawda
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0
The response addresses the three bullet points, but the development of ideas remains limited and under-developed, placing it at this level. The first bullet point is covered by mentioning living in a flat with friends, while the second and third bullet points are touched upon through advice on finding a home near the university and a brief warning about scams. However, these points lack expansion and detail. For instance, the warning regarding crimes is generalized without sufficient context or explanation, and the recommendations lack specific strategies for searching. To move to a higher band, the writer needs to extend and support all ideas more fully, providing deeper descriptions and practical advice for each required section of the prompt.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5
The email shows some organization with a basic greeting and sign-off, but there is a lack of clear overall progression between the ideas. Cohesive devices are sometimes inaccurate, repetitive, or mechanical, such as the frequent use of 'Moreover', 'Furthermore', and 'However' to link short sentences. Paragraphing is attempted, but the grouping of ideas could be more logical; for example, the transition between discussing specific housing options and warning against random apartments is abrupt. To achieve a higher score, the writer must ensure a smoother, more natural flow of ideas throughout the text and manage cohesive devices with greater flexibility and precision.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.0
The vocabulary used is limited and minimally adequate for the task, resulting in noticeable errors that can cause some difficulty for the reader. There are several word choice and spelling inaccuracies, such as 'gald' instead of 'glad', 'advive' instead of 'advice', and 'cheapest' where 'cheaper' or 'more affordable' would be more appropriate. The writer attempts some basic descriptive language, but the range is restricted and repetitive. To reach the next band, the student should expand their vocabulary range, incorporate less common lexical items with greater precision, and eliminate basic spelling and word choice errors.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5
The text displays a limited range of structures, relying mostly on simple sentences with frequent errors in grammar and punctuation. There are noticeable errors in verb tenses, articles, and prepositions, such as 'in the university' instead of 'at the university', 'It is an best option' instead of 'It is the best option', and 'many crimes happens' instead of 'many crimes happen'. Attempts at complex sentences often contain errors, and punctuation is sometimes faulty, such as the incorrect capitalization in 'Moreover, You just need...'. To improve, the writer needs to increase the variety of complex sentence forms and improve overall grammatical accuracy to reduce frequent errors.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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