For many test-takers, IELTS Writing Task 2 is the hardest 40 minutes of the exam — and the one that most often drags the overall score down. The good news: examiners reward a fairly predictable set of things.

What examiners score

Four criteria: task response (did you answer the question fully?), coherence and cohesion (is it organised and easy to follow?), lexical resource (vocabulary), and grammatical range and accuracy. Band 7 means you address all parts of the task, organise clearly, use a good range of language, and make only occasional errors.

Answer the actual question

The most common reason strong writers get band 6 is not answering the specific question. Read the prompt carefully — is it asking your opinion, discussing both sides, a problem and solution, advantages and disadvantages? Address every part. A beautifully written essay that answers a slightly different question caps your task response.

Structure that works

A reliable four-paragraph structure:

  • Introduction: paraphrase the question and state your position/approach.
  • Body 1: your first main point, explained and supported.
  • Body 2: your second main point, explained and supported.
  • Conclusion: restate your position — no new ideas.
Clear structure does most of the work for coherence.

Develop ideas, don''t just list them

Band 7 essays explain. Make a point, then extend it — say why, give an example, spell out the consequence. Listing lots of shallow ideas scores worse than developing a few properly.

Range and accuracy

Show a mix of sentence types and some less common vocabulary, used correctly. Don''t force rare words you don''t control — accuracy matters. A range of well-formed sentences beats ambitious ones riddled with errors.

Common band-6 traps

  • Not fully answering the question.
  • Under-length (write at least the minimum, comfortably).
  • Memorised phrases that don''t fit the topic.
  • Listing without developing ideas.
  • Weak paragraphing — no clear main idea per paragraph.

The bottom line

Band 7 in Task 2 comes from answering the exact question, organising clearly, developing a few ideas properly, and writing with accurate range. Nail those and avoid the band-6 traps, and you lift the score that most often holds people back.