Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-10-31

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 Sneha,

How are you? It was great to hear from you. I recently received your letter in which you mentioned that a place has been offered to you at the university where I graduated.

Actually, I stayed with my uncle and aunt in an apartment during my studies. It was a great time for me as my uncle helped me financially. Moreover, that place was not too far from my university. It really saves my travelling time.

After graduating, I moved with one of my classmates for my further studies to New York. As you are also going to pursue your study from the similar university so I can help you to stay with my uncle. However, I have to clear it first from my uncle if they have space. Otherwise, a new building is constructed just next to the university which will be the better opportunity for you. Fortunately, one of my friends is the manager of that building so it will definitely help us.

There are two main things to keep in mind while choosing accomodation. Firstly, the rent should be genuine and the place should be completely furnished. So that you don't need to work on that place. Consequently, it will save your time and help you to focus more

on studies.

Goodbye to your family members and write back when you have time.

Yours lovingly,

Jasmeen kaur

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You cover the three requested points: you explain that you lived with your aunt and uncle, suggest staying with them or considering a nearby building, and offer advice about rent and furnishings. The personal tone is appropriate for a friend. However, the accommodation-search recommendation is not fully clear: mentioning your friend as the building manager does not explain how Sneha should find or compare available places. The warning also focuses mainly on rent and furniture, without clearly identifying common mistakes such as choosing before checking the location, contract, or extra costs. Some ideas are therefore relevant but under-developed or unclear. Make the recommendation more direct and expand the warning with specific checks she should make before committing.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The email has a generally coherent order: you begin with a friendly opening, describe your student accommodation, move to possible options for Sneha, and finish with advice and a sign-off. Paragraphing helps distinguish these stages, and connectors such as “Moreover,” “However,” and “Firstly” guide the reader. At times, though, the links between ideas are not fully clear. For example, the move to New York is not obviously connected to the accommodation advice, and “So that you don't need to work on that place” does not clearly follow from the point about furnishings. The final advice also stops abruptly. Keep each paragraph focused on one task point and use clearer references and transitions to show how each suggestion relates to finding a home.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of vocabulary for a friendly email, including “financially,” “pursue,” “furnished,” and “focus,” and the meaning is generally understandable. There are some inaccurate or unnatural choices, however, such as “a place has been offered to you,” “the rent should be genuine,” and “work on that place.” “Accomodation” is also misspelled, and “pursue your study” is not a natural collocation. These choices make parts of the advice less precise, even though they do not prevent the reader from understanding the main message. Aim for natural phrases connected to housing, such as “you’ve been offered a place,” “reasonable rent,” and “look for accommodation.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and more complex sentence forms, including clauses introduced by “as,” “if,” and “which.” Most of the message remains understandable, but some grammatical errors affect accuracy. For example, “It really saves my travelling time” shifts from the past account to the present; “if they have space” does not agree with the plural “my uncle and aunt”; and “So that you don't need to work on that place” is an incomplete sentence. There are also awkward constructions such as “going to pursue your study from the similar university.” Check tense consistency when describing past events, subject–verb agreement, and whether dependent clauses form complete sentences. These revisions would make your varied sentence structures more controlled.

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

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