IELTS semi-formal letter: Asking your manager for time off to take a course

Semi-formal letterRequest · General Training

The task

You would like to take a short course that would help you in your job, but it takes place during working hours. Write a letter to your manager.

In your letter
• describe the course
• explain how it would benefit your work
• suggest how your work could be covered while you are away

Write at least 150 words. You do NOT need to write any addresses at the top of your letter.

Begin your letter as follows:
Dear Ms Wanjiru,

Write your letter

Then get an estimated band, with checks on every bullet point, your tone and the letter format.

0 words · 150 more to reach 150

Write your own letter first, then compare. Reading a model before you write tends to make you copy it.

The plan

Purpose: ask for time off for a named course.
Bullet 1: what, where, when, how long.
Bullet 2: a direct benefit to the team.
Bullet 3: who covers what, and catching up.
Close: offer to discuss; “Yours sincerely” with a name.

Model letter

187 words

Our checker: 7.5Task 8Coherence 8Vocabulary 7Grammar 7

Dear Ms Wanjiru,

I am writing to ask whether I could take five days off next month to attend a training course in project management.

The course is run by the Kenya Institute of Management in Nairobi and takes place from 10 to 14 November, from nine to four each day. It covers planning, budgeting and managing risk, and participants who pass the final assessment receive a recognised certificate.

I believe the course would make a real difference to my work. As you know, our team is about to start the new warehouse project, and I will be responsible for coordinating the suppliers. At the moment, I organise schedules using my own spreadsheets, so learning professional planning methods would help me keep the project on time and within budget.

While I am away, my colleague Brian has kindly agreed to deal with any urgent orders, and I will make sure that all my reports are finished before I leave. I would also be able to check my emails each evening.

I would be happy to discuss this with you at a convenient time.

Yours sincerely,
Faith Otieno

The highlighted paragraph states the purpose; each paragraph after it covers one bullet point. Scored by the MyBandPrep checker on 7 October 2026. An estimate, not an examiner’s mark. How scoring works

Why it works

Task Achievement: The request is clear in the first sentence, and each bullet is developed with specifics: dates, content, a concrete benefit linked to a real project, and a workable cover plan.
Coherence and Cohesion: Good paragraphing, with natural links between ideas (As you know, At the moment, While I am away).
Lexical Resource: The register suits a manager the writer knows: would make a real difference, kindly agreed, at a convenient time.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Indirect questions (whether I could…), future forms, relative clauses and a range of complex sentences with very few errors.

Phrases worth reusing

I am writing to ask whether I could
I believe the course would make a real difference to my work.
has kindly agreed to
I would be happy to discuss this with you at a convenient time.