City life compared with the countryside
This is a model answer written to show what a Band 7 response looks like against the marking criteria. It is a worked example, not a graded submission. To see your own band, paste your writing into the free checker.
The prompt
An increasing number of people are choosing to live in large cities rather than in the countryside. What are the advantages and disadvantages of living in a large city compared with living in a rural area?
Band 7 model answer (256 words)
More people than ever are leaving villages for large cities, trading quiet streets for crowded ones. This essay will consider what city dwellers gain by that trade and what they give up compared with life in the countryside.
The clearest advantage of city life is opportunity. Cities concentrate employers, universities and training in one place, so an ambitious person can change careers or study further without moving house. Healthcare is another major gain: a city resident is usually minutes from a major hospital, while a villager may face a long journey for a specialist appointment. On top of this comes sheer variety, from restaurants and cinemas to communities of people who share any interest imaginable, which is especially valuable for the young.
The disadvantages, however, are just as real. Housing in large cities is painfully expensive, so many residents spend a third of their income to live in a small flat far from the centre. Air pollution, noise and long commutes wear people down in ways the countryside rarely does, and, perhaps surprisingly, loneliness can be worse among millions of strangers than in a village where everyone knows everyone. Rural life offers space, cleaner air and a slower rhythm that many city workers openly miss.
In conclusion, large cities offer unmatched access to work, education and healthcare, but demand a high price in living costs, pollution and daily stress. Which side of the trade wins depends largely on the stage of life: the city rewards those building a career, while the countryside suits those seeking calm.
Why this reaches Band 7
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Task Response
Both sides are developed with specific, comparative points (the specialist appointment, the third of income on rent), and the conclusion adds a genuine insight, that the balance "depends largely on the stage of life", rather than restating the body.
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Coherence and Cohesion
The "trade" metaphor introduced in the first paragraph returns in the conclusion, giving the essay a frame. Advantages and disadvantages each get a unified paragraph with clear internal progression.
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Lexical Resource
Natural, less common phrasing such as "sheer variety", "wear people down", "a slower rhythm" and "painfully expensive" used with full control.
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Grammatical Range and Accuracy
Comparatives, concessives and parenthetical structures ("and, perhaps surprisingly, loneliness can be worse...") are all accurate, with a wide range on display.
The one fix to reach Band 7
A Band 6 answer tends to describe cities and the countryside separately without ever comparing them. Since the question says "compared with", the fix is to make each point genuinely comparative: for every city advantage, show what the rural equivalent looks like.
Now check your own answer.
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