Letter

Band 7+: The younger sister of one of your friends is thinking about spending a year studying abroad as part of her university course. You did this recently, and she has asked you about your experience. Write a letter to your friend's sister. In your letter • tell her where you studied during your year abroad • describe what you learnt about the country you studied in • explain why your year abroad was helpful for your studies

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Dear Philomina,

I’m writing this letter to tell you about my experience studying overseas during my final year in college last year.

I studied at the Dalhouse University in Toronto, it is one of the most reputable universities in Canada. It is particulary known for its twenty story building library and you know I’m a sucker for literature. It was one of the most exciting period of my life. As you know, all my life I’ve lived in London and never had a vacation outside the U.K, so I was very scared but also excited to make the move.

I really loved how hospitable the people were towards me. Everyone was warm and welcoming.. Getting my apartment, car and a health insurance was such a breeze, as anyone I asked was willing to help with the formalities.

One of the many advantages of that study year abroad, was the fact that I did some internship programs while I was there, which helped me build a strong portfolio during my final year project. I used the experience from the volunterring job I was doing to write my journal and my Professors appaluded how natural and relatable it was.

I hope this helps you in making a decision.

Best wishes,

Pell.

Word Count: 209

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Overall Band Score

7.5

(+/- 0.5)

Vocabulary Complexity:
B2 - Upper Intermediate
Opt for even more advanced words when appropriate.

Grammar Mistakes: N/A

Vocabulary Repetition:
No noticeable repetition! Great job!

Task Response

The letter fully addresses all three requirements of the task. The writer provides specific details for each bullet point: the location (Dalhousie University in Toronto), what was learned about the country (the hospitality and ease of settling in), and how it helped their studies (internships and volunteering for their final project). The tone is appropriate for a friend's sister - friendly and informal yet informative. To further improve, the writer could ensure consistent spelling (e.g., 'particularly', 'volunteering', 'applauded') and minor grammatical accuracy regarding singular/plural nouns (e.g., 'exciting period' vs 'exciting periods'), but these do not detract from the overall task achievement.

Coherence & Cohesion

The letter is well-organized and follows a logical progression. Each bullet point from the task is addressed in a distinct paragraph, which makes the message easy to follow. To improve, ensure that transitions between sentences are even smoother; for example, the transition between describing the university and the personal feelings about moving could be more fluid. The use of paragraphing is effective and supports the overall structure.

Lexical Resource

You have used a good range of vocabulary and some natural idiomatic expressions, such as 'a sucker for' and 'such a breeze,' which are appropriate for an informal letter to a friend's sister. There are a few minor spelling errors (e.g., 'particulary', 'volunterring', 'appaluded') that should be corrected to maintain a high level of precision. Aim for more variety in your descriptive adjectives to further enhance the sophistication of your writing.

Grammatical Range & Accuracy

The letter demonstrates a good mix of simple and complex sentence structures. However, there are several grammatical inaccuracies that prevent a higher score. Specifically, there are issues with subject-verb agreement and noun number (e.g., 'one of the most exciting period' should be 'periods'), and some comma splices (e.g., 'I studied at the Dalhouse University in Toronto, it is one of...'). Additionally, the use of articles should be reviewed (e.g., 'a health insurance' should be 'health insurance'). Paying closer attention to these fine details will significantly improve your accuracy.

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