Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-08-23

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

During a recent plane journey, you sat next to a businessman who owns a chain of restaurants. You talked to him and he suggested that you should contact him about a possible job in one of his restaurants.

Write a letter to this businessman. In your letter

• remind him when and where you met
• tell him what kind of job you are interested in
• say why you think you would be suitable for the job

You do NOT need to write any addresses.

Begin your letter as follows:

Dear ................. ,

Student answer (Band 6.5)

Dear Sir/Madam,

I hope you are doing well.

Do you remember me? Recently we met on an Air Canada flight while coming from the USA to Canada. My seat was beside yours and we had a great conversation especially about my job opportunity in your restaurant.

I'm passionate about cooking, I would love to join in your cooking department as a chef. Regarding my availability, I'm also flexible for day or night shifts as your restaurant operates 24/7. In addition, my expectations for hourly pay would be 20 to $30 plus HST and it's negotiable. If there are no vacancies in cooking roles, my second option would be restaurant manager.

This opportunity is definitely suitable for my skills. Recently I have completed training also in it. In addition, I secured a certificate as a master chef. Also, for the Manager role my qualification is perfectly matching, because I have completed my MBA in hotel management, so I'm delighted to take this opportunity.

I look forward to see your positive response on confirming any of these position considering my qualifications.

Yours Faithfully,

John.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The letter addresses all three bullet points of the task. You successfully reminded the recipient of the meeting, specified your interest in a chef role, and provided reasons for your suitability. However, the tone is slightly inconsistent for a formal business letter; mentioning specific hourly pay expectations ($20 to $30) in an initial inquiry is generally considered premature and unprofessional in this context. While the ideas are relevant, the development of your suitability could be more professional by focusing on your passion and specific culinary achievements rather than salary negotiations at this stage.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The letter is logically organized into clear paragraphs, each serving a distinct purpose. You use some cohesive devices such as 'In addition' and 'Regarding my availability' to link ideas. However, some transitions feel a bit mechanical or repetitive. The flow between the introduction and the body paragraphs is clear, but the connection between your salary expectations and the secondary job option is somewhat abrupt. Overall, the message is easy to follow, and the paragraphing is appropriate for a formal letter.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'vacancies', 'qualification', and 'negotiable'. There are some minor inaccuracies, such as 'join in your cooking department' (better as 'join your kitchen staff') and 'qualification is perfectly matching' (better as 'qualifications are a perfect match'). While you communicate your meaning clearly, the vocabulary is somewhat functional and lacks the more sophisticated collocations or idiomatic expressions that would elevate the response to a higher band.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are several grammatical errors, such as 'I look forward to see' (should be 'I look forward to seeing') and 'I have completed training also in it' (awkward word order). Additionally, 'Yours Faithfully' should be 'Yours faithfully' (lowercase 'f'). While these errors do not impede communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent a higher score. You have a good grasp of basic structures, but more attention to verb patterns and formal punctuation is needed.

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

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