Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-09-20

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 6.0)

Dear John,

I hope you are doing well. I am writing this letter to advice whether you should continue studies and join a college or to get a job.

Firstly, I am glad that you have completed your bachelors in software engineering. I would say that your hardwork really payed off. It is my responsibility to give you a logical advice.

I would suggest that you should start a job in your field because it will give you an oppourtunity to apply your knowledge and polish your skills. Moreover, you can earn a handsome amount of money. This will enable you to fulfill your dreams and you will gain valuable experience which will help you in future promotions.

Secondly, I believe that going to college for higher studies could cause unnecessary boredom and can halt your progress because in the field of software engineering experience is the key to excel in career. I would highly suggest you to apply for software development companies and get a suitable job as soon as possible to commence your career. I will surely visit you next week. We will spend quality time together and talk about the good old days.

Best wishes,

Anadil

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The response successfully covers all parts of the task prompt. You adopt a clear, friendly tone and adopt a distinct position recommending a job over college. You provide reasons why he would not enjoy college, explaining that it could 'cause unnecessary boredom and can halt your progress'. You also explain the benefits of getting a job, such as applying knowledge, earning money, and gaining valuable experience. Furthermore, you suggest suitable types of jobs by advising him to apply to 'software development companies' and 'get a suitable job'. The purpose of the letter is clear, and all bullet points from the prompt are adequately addressed and supported with relevant ideas. Therefore, this performance comfortably achieves a Band 7.0 for Task Achievement.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The letter exhibits a clear, logical progression throughout. You successfully use appropriate paragraphing, dividing your thoughts into a proper greeting, an introduction, distinct body paragraphs handling the separate prompt requirements, and a warm closing. Cohesive devices such as 'Firstly', 'Moreover', and 'Secondly' are employed to guide the reader through your arguments, although the paragraphing structure could be slightly refined to separate the advice on jobs from the reasons against college more neatly. Nonetheless, the overall arrangement is coherent, and referencing is handled well, ensuring easy navigation of your ideas. This demonstrates the characteristics of a solid Band 7.0 in Coherence and Cohesion.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

Your vocabulary range is adequate and generally appropriate for a semi-formal letter. You successfully incorporate topic-specific vocabulary such as 'bachelors in software engineering', 'practical experience', and 'software development companies'. However, there are a few lexical inaccuracies and minor spelling errors, such as writing 'advice' instead of 'advise' in the opening sentence ('to advice whether'), and spelling 'hardwork' as one word and 'oppourtunity' with an extra 'u'. These minor lapses in word choice and spelling prevent you from reaching a higher band. Because your vocabulary is sufficient to convey your meaning with some precision despite these occasional errors, a Band 6.0 is appropriate.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

You demonstrate a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing relative clauses and conditional-like structures effectively (e.g., 'which will help you in future promotions' and 'because in the field of software engineering experience is the key'). There are some grammatical errors and punctuation issues present, such as a missing comma in compound constructions and minor tense slip-ups like 'payed off' instead of 'paid off'. Despite these errors, they rarely impede communication, and your meaning remains clear to the reader. Your command over basic and moderately complex structures aligns well with the descriptors for Band 6.0.

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

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