Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-09-13
IELTS Writing Task 1 question
You recently received a letter from a friend asking for advice about whether to go to college or to try to get a job. You think he/she should get a job.
Write a letter to this friend. In your letter
- say why he/she would not enjoy going to college
- explain why getting a job is a good idea for him/her
- suggest types of job that would be suitable for him/her
You do NOT need to write any addresses.
Begin your letter as follows:
Dear ................. ,
Student answer (Band 5.0)
Hi dear ,
I hope you are doing well. I received your letter and i read it . You need my advice related to choose a college or try for a job. Firstly , I want to suggest you can join the college and take a short course which is complete in the 1 year due to this you can gain a lot of knowledge and information related to various things. which is also help for you in future to get good job make sure choose that course which have more demand in the furture.
Secondly , you can also find part time job with your study because of this you can manage your expense and fulfil your basic needs.I hope you can understand everything but if you have any doubts related to college or job you can call me anytime .All the best for your future and never take any stress related to anything . I am also with you.
Yours lovely
Jasdeep Kaur
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0
The response presents a slight misunderstanding or contradiction of the task prompt. The prompt asks you to advise your friend who is deciding between college and a job, and specifically instructs you to argue that he should get a job, explain why he would not enjoy college, and suggest suitable jobs. However, your letter actually suggests that he should join college for a short course and also find a part-time job, completely missing the instruction to discourage him from college and failing to suggest specific types of jobs. Although the letter covers some aspects of the prompt, the failure to follow the specific stance and requirements pulls the task achievement down into the Band 5 range, as the task is only partially addressed.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0
The letter lacks appropriate paragraphing, being presented as one dense block of text, which significantly hinders readability and the logical flow of ideas. While basic cohesive devices such as 'Firstly', 'Secondly', and 'due to this' are used to link thoughts, their punctuation and integration are faulty, creating run-on sentences. For instance, writing '...various things. which is also help...' demonstrates poor boundary control between clauses and sentences. Referencing is sometimes unclear, and the overall mechanical nature of the cohesion places the response firmly within the Band 5 descriptors, where organisation is limited and cohesive devices are frequently inaccurate.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.0
The vocabulary used is relatively basic and repetitive, relying on everyday terms like 'knowledge', 'information', 'job', and 'things'. There are noticeable word choice and collocation issues throughout the text, such as 'which is complete in the 1 year' instead of 'which can be completed in one year', and 'furture' instead of 'future'. Additionally, expressions like 'take any stress' could be expressed more naturally. The lexical range is minimally adequate for the task, but the frequency of errors and limited vocabulary precision reflect Band 5 performance.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The response features a limited range of grammatical structures, relying heavily on simple sentences and joined clauses connected by conjunctions like 'and' or relative pronouns. Attempts at complex sentences often result in run-on structures with major punctuation and capitalization errors, such as starting sentences mid-line with commas or failing to capitalize properly ('Firstly , I want to...'). There are frequent grammatical errors, including tense and preposition misuse like 'help for you' instead of 'help you', and 'related to choose' instead of 'related to choosing'. These errors cause occasional difficulty for the reader, aligning the grammar with Band 5 descriptors.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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