Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-10-17

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 Adam,

I hope this letter finds you in great spirits. I got to know that you got placement in the same university where I studied. I would like to recommand place where you can spend your time comfertably.

when I got my offer letter from university, I rented an apartment nearby which absolutely helped me throughout because everything was near to my apartment such as grocery store, liberary or shopping complex.

Finding a good apartment or a room in shared living is actully a hardest thing to do. Either you could ask broker to find you place you need in budget or you could search nearby students apartment yourself through Facebook marketplace and Kijiji.

Please make sure to schedule a viewing before renting a place. Also, make sure you should not transfer your money to random person's account as there so many scams going on online. If you are renting a place, make sure you note any damage beforehand.

I hope you will find a great place and the information I provided would help you.

Kind regards,

Dhruv

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

You address all three requested points: you explain that you rented an apartment near the university, suggest using a broker or searching Facebook Marketplace and Kijiji, and warn about viewing properties, online scams, and recording damage. These are relevant, practical details, and the friendly email format is appropriate. The description of your own accommodation is clear but brief, while the advice on how to search and what to avoid is more developed. To make the response more complete, explain why one search method is preferable or give a specific example of a common mistake, such as choosing a place based only on photographs. This would extend the ideas rather than simply listing useful tips.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The email has a clear overall sequence: greeting and purpose, your student housing experience, search advice, warnings, and a closing. Paragraph breaks help the reader follow the three main parts of the task, and linking expressions such as “Also” and “because” make some relationships clear. The progression is generally logical, though the transition from your own experience to the broader difficulty of finding accommodation is somewhat abrupt. The advice paragraph also presents alternatives without indicating how the reader should choose between them. A brief linking sentence and clearer sequencing—for example, recommending a first step and then a backup option—would make cohesion more flexible and less list-like.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use vocabulary suited to the topic, including “shared living,” “broker,” “schedule a viewing,” “scams,” and “damage beforehand.” These choices communicate practical advice, but the range is somewhat limited and several spelling or word-choice errors reduce accuracy: “recommand,” “comfertably,” “liberary,” and “actully.” Some phrasing is also unnatural, such as “got placement” and “a hardest thing to do.” Aim for accurate spelling and more natural collocations, such as “was accepted onto the course,” “live comfortably,” and “one of the hardest things.” More precise housing vocabulary, such as “rental listing” or “lease,” would also help you express advice with greater flexibility.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of simple and more complex sentences, including the explanation beginning “because everything was near” and the conditional advice “If you are renting a place.” The message remains understandable, but some grammatical errors recur. For example, “a hardest thing” needs a different article and structure, while “make sure you should not transfer” combines two incompatible patterns; use “make sure you do not transfer” or “you should not transfer.” In “as there so many scams,” the verb “are” is missing, and “when I got my offer letter from university” needs an article before “university.” Check sentence openings and punctuation too, including the lowercase “when.” More consistently accurate complex sentences would strengthen control.

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

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