Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-10-23

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 6.5)

Dear Sarah,

How have you been? I hope you're doing well! I am writing in response to your letter asking for advice whether to opt college or try to find a job.

As you already completed your bachelors in computer science and technology, and you have a have huge loan to pay, which you borrowed during your graduation from the bank. I really don't think so that you'll enjoy going to university again because your family expectations eventually increase after your graduation regarding your career prospects. It would be quite overwhelming for you to reach your parents expectation while devoting your time to further studies.

From my perspective, I think that hunting for a job that suits your qualification could be the best idea to choose, this way you would easily pay your bank payments as well. If I would be you, I would definitely look for suitable job to gain experience and improve my finacial stability.

There are several jobs that will suit your education such as software engineer, system analyst, progammer, database technician, which would help you to polish your skills.

I hope you find my suggestion useful and would think about it before taking important decision of your life.

Till then take care of yourself.

Best wishes,

Rashim

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.0

Your letter addresses all three points and maintains a clear recommendation to seek work. You explain that further study may be difficult because Sarah has a bank loan and family expectations, and you give relevant examples of suitable roles, including software engineer and system analyst. The advice is supported with reasons such as paying off the loan, gaining experience, and improving financial stability. This gives the response a clear, relevant purpose. To make the ideas more fully developed, explain more specifically why Sarah would not enjoy college—for example, whether she dislikes academic study or would find returning to student life stressful. You could also connect the suggested jobs more directly to her interests or strengths.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

The letter has a clear progression: an opening that refers to Sarah’s question, a paragraph about college, a recommendation to work, and a list of suitable jobs before the closing. Paragraphing helps the reader follow the three requested points, and phrases such as “From my perspective” and “There are several jobs” signal shifts between ideas. The friendly greeting and sign-off also suit the purpose. Some links within sentences are less controlled, particularly the long opening of the second paragraph, where the loan and family expectations are joined in a way that makes the relationship between them harder to follow. Aim for more direct sentence connections and clearer referencing, while keeping the overall logical structure.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of vocabulary for giving personal advice, including “overwhelming,” “career prospects,” “financial stability,” and “polish your skills.” These choices help communicate the main ideas, and the job titles are relevant to Sarah’s computer-science background. However, some word choices and collocations are inaccurate or awkward, such as “opt college,” “bank payments,” and “taking important decision.” There are also spelling errors in “finacial” and “progammer.” These do not prevent understanding, but they reduce precision and naturalness. Choose familiar, accurate collocations rather than reaching for a phrase that does not fit, and proofread spelling. More precise language about Sarah’s preferences would also make the advice more individual.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of simple and complex structures, including the conditional “If I would be you” and a reason clause beginning “because.” The message remains understandable, but some grammatical errors occur in sentence construction, verb forms, articles, and agreement. For example, “asking for advice whether” needs a construction such as “asking for advice on whether,” while “your parents expectation” requires a plural possessive form. The sentence beginning “As you already completed…” is also a fragment because it does not form a complete main clause. In addition, “If I would be you” should be “If I were you.” Practise building complete sentences and checking verb patterns and possessives; this will improve accuracy while preserving your attempts at complex forms.

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