Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-10-09

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 5.0)

Dear John,

I hope you are doing amazing, and congratulation for getting an offer in a community medicine course in my previous university. You will get a great company of teachers over there.

You asked me about the accommodation near the campus. I would suggest you to stay in one of the University's hostels, where I used to stay for almost a year. It is an amazing place to live because it is convenient in may ways. You do not need to grab a taxi every morning to reach at the campus.

You just need to write an application to HR department in order to get a room. I am very much sure they will consider your request to stay in one of the hostels.

Lastly, I suggest you to choose the ground floor to as every facility is on this floor of every building.

You can ask me anything further.

Best of luck .

Zubair.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.0

You address the accommodation topic and give a relevant personal detail: you stayed in a university hostel for almost a year. You also recommend applying to the HR department and mention choosing a ground-floor room. However, the task asks you to describe where you lived, explain the best way to search, and warn about mistakes. The description is brief, the search advice is limited to one application, and the ground-floor suggestion is not explained as a warning about common mistakes. As a result, the main requirements are only minimally covered. Develop each point with practical detail—for example, how to contact the accommodation office and what to check before accepting a room, such as cost, facilities, or distance from campus.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The email has a recognisable structure: a greeting, an opening, advice in separate paragraphs, and a friendly closing. The sequence from your own experience to application advice and then a final suggestion is generally understandable. However, the progression is not fully clear because the ground-floor recommendation appears abruptly and does not connect to a specific mistake students should avoid. Some linking is also mechanical, particularly “Lastly,” which introduces a point without explaining its relationship to the earlier advice. Use clearer paragraph purposes and connect each recommendation to the friend’s decision-making—for instance, explain what to inspect and why before choosing a room.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use enough everyday vocabulary to communicate the basic message, including “accommodation,” “hostels,” “convenient,” and “consider your request.” The tone is friendly and appropriate for writing to a friend. However, the range is limited, and several expressions are inaccurate or unnatural, such as “getting an offer in a … course,” “a great company of teachers,” and “reach at the campus.” These choices sometimes make the intended meaning less precise. Aim for more natural accommodation-related phrases and check collocations, such as “accept an offer for a course,” “learn from supportive teachers,” and “get to campus.” More specific vocabulary about room facilities, costs, and location would also help you give clearer advice.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You use a mixture of simple sentences and a few longer structures, including the relative clause “where I used to stay for almost a year” and the purpose clause “in order to get a room.” Most of the message remains understandable, but grammatical errors occur in several sentences. Examples include “I would suggest you to stay” (use “suggest that you stay” or “recommend staying”), “congratulation” where a plural noun is needed, and “reach at the campus,” where the preposition is incorrect. The sentence “Lastly, I suggest you to choose the ground floor to as…” is also incomplete or malformed. Practise verb patterns after “suggest” and proofread sentence endings, articles, and prepositions.

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

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