You cannot go to a company where you received a job offer. Write a letter to the HR supervisor. In your letter: - explain why you are declining the offer - express your gratitude - explain why you like your current job very much
Sample Response
Dear Sir or Madam, I am writing this letter to convey my gratitude for considering me for the position of Assistant Manager at your company. Unfortunately, I have decided to continue my work with my present employer and hence cannot accept your offer. During my interview, I was impressed by the interviewers and their friendly yet professional attitude. Moreover,Not to mention, your company offers a great working environment and prioritises employee growth. I have a friend who works in your company who speaks highly ofwho highly speaks of your management and office environment. However, the remuneration package that was suggested in the final offer letter is considerably lower thanway less than my current salary. My employer offers several other benefits besides the salary and I see excellentcareer growth here. I am thankful to you for the opportunity you have offered me. However, considering my job satisfaction in my current rolejob satisfaction with the current employer and the remunerationreward package, I find no other way but to decline your offer. I, however, really appreciate your effort and support. Yours faithfullyFaithfully, Jayesh Bhuva
Why this response received Band 7.5
The letter fully addresses the decision, gratitude, and reasons for remaining with the current employer while maintaining a suitably professional tone. Its main limitation is presentation: the response is compressed into one block, and a few collocations and formatting slips reduce its polish. Prioritise clear paragraphing around the purpose, reasons, and closing, then refine phrases such as “highly speaks of” for greater precision.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Achievement
The purpose is immediately clear, all three bullet points are developed with relevant reasons, and the formal tone is appropriate.
Make the appreciation more specific by briefly linking it to the interview experience or the opportunity offered.
Coherence and Cohesion
The ideas progress logically from appreciation to the reasons for declining, but the entire letter is presented as one dense paragraph.
Separate the opening, explanation, and closing into distinct paragraphs so each stage of the message is easier to follow.
Lexical Resource
Vocabulary is varied and generally precise, with effective items such as “remuneration package” and “employee growth”, though a few collocations are unnatural.
Replace awkward phrases such as “highly speaks of” and the informal “way less” with more idiomatic formal alternatives.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
A wide range of sentence structures is used accurately, and the few lapses do not impede meaning.
Refine relative-clause phrasing and proofread word boundaries to make the otherwise strong grammatical control fully polished.
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IELTS General Training Writing Task 1
You cannot go to a company where you received a job offer. Write a letter to the HR supervisor. In your letter:
- explain why you are declining the offer
- express your gratitude
- explain why you like your current job very much
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.