Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-08-28

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

You work for an international company. You have seen an advertisement for a training course which will be useful for your job.

Write a letter to your manager. In your letter

• describe the training course you want to do
• explain what the company could do to help you
• say how the course will be useful for your job

You do NOT need to write any addresses.

Begin your letter as follows:

Dear Sir or Madam,

Student answer (Band 6.5)

Dear Sir or Madam,

Greeting's of the day. I am writing in order to bring to your attention a training course on wine's that I believe is going to be of great use to my job.

The training course is a wine tasting and course over a period of 1 week where I will be able to learn the different basics of wine making and vine's and food pairing.

In order for me to attain the course I would like for the company to be allowing me paid time leave for the 7 days I will be attending the course.

As working as server on a daily basis and serving wine's to our guest I would love to be able to better explain the product I am serving. Also this course will help me to learn about food pairing which will eventually allow me to upsell better options to our guest generating more revenue for the company. Hence I would be obliged if I am allowed the paid time off.

Your Faithfully,

Ruben Mondal

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The letter addresses all three bullet points required by the prompt. You clearly describe the wine training course, explain the request for paid leave, and articulate how the knowledge gained will benefit your role as a server. The tone is generally appropriate for a formal letter to a manager. However, the development of ideas is somewhat basic. To reach a higher band, you could provide more specific details about the course provider or the specific skills you hope to master, which would make the request more persuasive and professional.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The letter is logically organized into clear paragraphs, each serving a specific purpose. The progression of ideas is easy to follow. You use some cohesive devices such as 'In order for me to', 'Also', and 'Hence' to link your sentences. However, some transitions feel slightly mechanical, and the opening 'Greeting's of the day' is an unconventional way to start a formal letter. Improving the variety of linking words and ensuring more natural transitions between your request and the justification for that request would enhance the flow of the text.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, such as 'attain', 'upsell', and 'revenue'. However, there are several persistent errors with apostrophes, such as 'wine's', 'vine's', and 'guest' (when plural 'guests' is intended). These errors are distracting and indicate a lack of control over basic punctuation rules. While the vocabulary is sufficient to convey your meaning, you should focus on using apostrophes only for possession and ensuring plural nouns do not contain them. Expanding your range to include more precise professional terminology would also be beneficial.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, such as 'As working as server... I would love to be able to...'. There are several grammatical inaccuracies, including 'attain the course' (should be 'attend'), 'be allowing me paid time leave' (should be 'grant me paid leave'), and 'As working as server' (should be 'As I work as a server'). These errors do not impede communication, but they are frequent enough to prevent a higher score. Focusing on subject-verb agreement and correct preposition usage will help improve your accuracy.

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

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