You recently booked a part-time course at a college. You now need to cancel your booking. Write a letter to the college administrator. In your letter: - say which part-time course you booked - explain why you need to cancel your booking - ask about booking a different course
Sample Response
Dear Sir or Madam,
I am Emily Jones, and I am formally writing to request the cancellation of my booking for the Evening Photography Course at your college, which was scheduled to begin on March 15th.
Unfortunately, due to unexpected work commitments at my office, I will no longer be able to attend the course as planned. My work schedule has changed, and I am now required to stay late in the evenings, making it impossible for me to participate in the sessions.
However, I am still very interested in taking a course at your college. Could you please provide me with information about any weekend photography courses or other part-time programmes that might suit my availability? I would appreciate any guidance on how to transfer my booking or enrol in a different course.
Thank you for your assistance. I look forward to your response.
Yours faithfully,
Emily Jones
IELTS Writing Correction
- 1. Remove unnecessary adverb Original: formally writing Suggested revision: writing Why it matters: The formal purpose is already clear from the request and tone.
- 2. Use formal date style Original: March 15th Suggested revision: 15 March Why it matters: The cardinal-number date form is conventional in formal correspondence.
- 3. Remove redundant detail Original: unexpected work commitments at my office Suggested revision: unexpected work commitments Why it matters: Work commitments already make the office context clear.
- 4. Use precise work phrase Original: stay Suggested revision: work Why it matters: Work late states the schedule change more precisely than stay late.
- 5. Use concise collocation Original: participate in the sessions Suggested revision: attend the sessions Why it matters: Attend is the more direct verb for taking part in scheduled classes.
- 6. Make request concise Original: provide me with information about Suggested revision: tell me about Why it matters: The shorter phrase remains polite while reducing unnecessary formality.
- 7. Use natural collocation Original: suit my availability Suggested revision: fit my schedule Why it matters: Fit my schedule is a more natural way to describe course-time compatibility.
- 8. Clarify booking request Suggested revision: Clarify whether you want the existing booking transferred or cancelled before making a new booking. Why it matters: The paragraph asks both to transfer the current booking and to enrol in a different course, leaving the preferred process slightly unclear.
Suggested Rewrites
- formally writing writing
- March 15th 15 March
- unexpected work commitments at my office unexpected work commitments
- stay work
- participate in the sessions attend the sessions
- provide me with information about tell me about
Why this response received Band 8.0
The response's strongest feature is its direct and complete fulfilment of all three requirements: it identifies the course and start date, clearly explains the work conflict, and politely asks about weekend alternatives or a transfer. The formal tone, paragraphing, and language are consistently controlled. The highest-priority improvement is minor refinement—replace the slightly redundant opening wording with a more concise cancellation request while preserving the letter's clarity.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Achievement
The letter fully achieves its purpose, develops every bullet point appropriately, and maintains a consistently suitable formal tone.
As a final refinement, ask whether any fee or administrative step applies to cancelling or transferring the booking.
Coherence and Cohesion
Each paragraph has a distinct communicative purpose, and the progression from cancellation to reason and alternative request is effortless to follow.
Keep this clear structure while making the opening sentence slightly shorter and more direct.
Lexical Resource
Vocabulary is precise, natural, and appropriately formal, with effective phrases for scheduling, availability, transfer, and enrolment.
Replace "formally writing" with the more idiomatic "writing to request" for maximum concision.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
A varied range of complex structures is used accurately, with punctuation and sentence control consistently strong.
Maintain this level of accuracy while avoiding any unnecessary wording in introductory clauses.
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IELTS General Training Writing Task 1
You recently booked a part-time course at a college. You now need to cancel your booking. Write a letter to the college administrator. In your letter:
- say which part-time course you booked
- explain why you need to cancel your booking
- ask about booking a different course
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.