Task
A museum near your home is looking for people to do part-time voluntary unpaid work. You would like to do some voluntary/unpaid work at the museum.
Write a letter to the museum director to apply for the voluntary/unpaid work.In your letter
- explain why you want to do voluntary/unpaid work at the museum
- describe some skills and qualities you have that would be useful
- give details of when you would be available
Candidate’s Answer
This is an answer written by a candidate who achieved a Band 6.0 score.
Dear Sir or Madam,
I saw an advert that said that people that want to do voluntary at this museum should contact you. That’s why I am writing this letter!
I would like to do voluntary work at your museum. I am keen on art and history, and especially I am keen on working with them. From what I kow, your museum is based on works of art that have fabulous history.
In the museum I could work as a guide. I already know some interesting information about the drawings that you have in the museum, but if there is something that I don’t know or something that needs improvement, I am opened to studying and developing my knowledge.
I really like working with other people and explaining things that they are interested in, and that is a good skill I guess for guiding.
I am free every Monday, Friday and Sunday from 3PM to 7PM.
I am waiting for your reply and I hope that you agree with my voluntary work.
Examiner’s Comment
The writer has made a fair attempt at the task, covering all three bullet points, with the second bullet point covered in more depth than the first and the third. Organisation is logical and there is a clear overall progression, slightly spoiled by the lack of a closing formula (Yours faithfully). The range of vocabulary is sufficient for the task [advert | contact you | keen on | work as a guide | drawings | studying and developing my knowledge | working with other people] and there are only minor errors [kow / know | opened / open]. There is a mix of simple and complex structures, generally used accurately, although there is a minor error in the lack of an article [have (a) fabulous history]. The score could be improved by expanding on the first and third bullet points and by using a wider range of grammatical structures.
