Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-09-29
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 5.5)
Hi Sarah,
Hope you are doing well!
I am writing in response to suggest an advice regarding your options to be consierderd for your future. I would suggest you to search for a new opportunity rather than get admission to college.
As per my opinion, you may find quite boring to go to college and study therorotical subject after a long time. Also, you have to struggle to find a part -time job as a student. So, it will difficult for you to survive and manage your day to day expenses.
By finding employment opportunity can help you to ehnace your practical skill and boost your confidence as earliest. Wh, you will gain the experinece in industry soon and beneficial to mention in your future CV.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5
The response covers all three bullet points required in the task instructions. You suggest why Sarah might not enjoy college by mentioning that she would find studying theoretical subjects boring after a long time and struggle with expenses. You explain that getting a job helps enhance practical skills, and you attempt to suggest suitable jobs. However, the response is under the required 150-word minimum, containing only 126 words. Due to this under-length penalty, the development of ideas is somewhat limited and truncated, particularly in the final bullet point where the types of suitable jobs are not clearly detailed. To achieve a higher score, ensure you fully develop every bullet point and meet the word count requirement.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0
The letter maintains a clear overall progression and logical organisation. You use an appropriate informal opening greeting ('Hi Sarah, Hope you are doing well!') and divide the body into distinct paragraphs that address different aspects of the prompt. Cohesive devices such as 'Also' and 'So' are used to connect ideas, though some transitions are a bit mechanical or faulty, as seen in the slightly disjointed phrasing of the final paragraph ('Wh, you will gain...'). Paragraphing is generally functional, but the division and flow can be further refined to achieve higher bands. Overall, the text is easy to follow despite minor structural awkwardness.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.0
The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, but there are several noticeable spelling and word choice errors, such as 'consierderd', 'therorotical', 'ehnace', 'skill' instead of 'skills', and 'experinece'. You attempt some less common phrases like 'practical skill' and 'employment opportunity', but the persistent spelling mistakes and awkward collocations ('suggest an advice', 'study therorotical subject') restrict the lexical score. To improve, pay closer attention to spelling accuracy and strive for more precise word forms and collocations appropriate for an IELTS General Training letter.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0
The letter demonstrates a mix of simple and some attempted complex sentence forms, such as 'I am writing in response to suggest an advice regarding your options to be consierderd for your future.' However, there are frequent grammatical errors and awkward phrasing throughout, including 'I would suggest you to search', 'you may find quite boring to go', and 'So, it will difficult for you'. The final sentence is fragmented and grammatically incomplete ('Wh, you will gain the experinece in industry soon and beneficial to mention in your future CV.'). These persistent errors occasionally cause difficulty for the reader.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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