CELPIP Writing Score Comparison: One Email at CLB 5, 7, 9 and 11

The prompt

Prompt (original CELPass example): The laundry room in your apartment building has been closed for three weeks for repairs, and tenants have not been told when it will reopen. Write an email to the building manager, Ms. Clarke (150–200 words). In your email: describe the problem; explain how it is affecting you; say what you would like the manager to do. Time: 27 minutes.

This is a formal email to someone you need something from, so tone matters as much as content: polite, clear and firm. Every one of the three bullet points must be answered, and the third one, the request, is where most answers lose marks.

Raters score CELPIP Writing on four dimensions: Content/Coherence (your ideas and how they are organised), Vocabulary (the range and precision of your words), Readability (grammar, sentence structure, linking, spelling and punctuation, and how easy the text is to follow) and Task Fulfillment (whether you covered every point, with the right tone, in the word range). The notes after each email follow those four dimensions.

• Writing Task 1: Writing an Email format

CLB 5: the message gets through, but with effort

Original CELPass sample (estimated CLB 5, not an official score; about 80 words):

Hi,

I am writing about laundry room. It is close since three weeks and nobody tell us when it open again. This is big problem for me.

I have two kids and we have many clothes to wash every week. Now I need go to laundromat it is far from building and is expensive, I pay like 20 dollars every week. Also I dont have car so I take bus with big bag, is very hard.

Please fix laundry room fast. Thank you.

Sam

• Content/Coherence: the problem and its effect are there, in a basic order, but the details are thin and the request is two words long ("fix laundry room fast").
• Vocabulary: a small, everyday range ("big problem", "many clothes", "very hard") with informal filler ("I pay like 20 dollars").
• Readability: frequent errors that slow the reader down: missing articles ("about laundry room"), wrong verb forms ("It is close since three weeks", "nobody tell us"), a run-on sentence, a missing apostrophe ("dont") and no subject in "is very hard".
• Task Fulfillment: the third point is barely answered, the greeting and sign-off are too casual for a building manager, and the email is well under 150 words.

CLB 7: complete and clear, but plain

Original CELPass sample (estimated CLB 7, not an official score; about 160 words):

Dear Ms. Clarke,

I am a tenant in unit 407 and I am writing about the laundry room in our building. The laundry room has been closed for three weeks because of repairs. There is a sign on the door, but it does not say when the room will open again, and nobody has given us any information.

This situation is very difficult for me. I have two young children, so we have a lot of laundry every week. Now I have to go to a laundromat that is twenty minutes away by bus. It costs me about twenty dollars every week, and it takes most of my Saturday. It is also very hard to carry heavy bags on the bus.

I would like to know when the laundry room will open again. Also, I think it would be good if the building can give tenants some money back for the laundromat. Please let me know.

Thank you,

Sam Ortiz

• Content/Coherence: one paragraph per bullet point, in a logical order, with a few useful details (unit number, twenty minutes by bus, Saturday). The request is clear but vague: "some money back" and "Please let me know" do not say exactly what should happen.
• Vocabulary: accurate but basic, and repetitive: "laundry room" appears three times and "very" twice, and there is little precise wording such as "reimburse" or "update".
• Readability: easy to follow, with mostly correct grammar. One error ("if the building can give" instead of "could give") and many short sentences that start the same way ("It costs", "It is").
• Task Fulfillment: all three points are answered, the tone is suitably polite and the length sits within the range.

CLB 9: specific, well organised and polite

Original CELPass sample (estimated CLB 9, not an official score; about 175 words):

Dear Ms. Clarke,

I am writing as the tenant in unit 407 about the laundry room, which has now been closed for repairs for three weeks. The notice on the door says only "Closed for maintenance," and tenants have not received any update on what is wrong or when the room will reopen.

The closure has had a real impact on my family. With two young children, we do several loads of laundry a week, so I now spend most of every Saturday at a laundromat twenty minutes away by bus. Between the machines and the bus fare, this costs me roughly twenty-five dollars a week, and carrying heavy bags on public transit is exhausting.

I would appreciate it if you could post an estimated reopening date and keep tenants informed by email until the work is finished. I would also like to ask whether the building could reimburse tenants' laundromat receipts for the period of the closure.

Thank you for your attention to this matter. I look forward to your reply.

Sincerely,

Sam Ortiz

• Content/Coherence: each paragraph does one job, and every point is supported with specifics: the exact wording of the sign, several loads a week, twenty-five dollars, bus fare. The request has two concrete parts.
• Vocabulary: precise and suitably formal ("has had a real impact", "reopening date", "reimburse", "for the period of the closure") with almost no repetition.
• Readability: varied sentence structures, accurate grammar and punctuation, and linking that makes each step clear ("so I now spend", "Between the machines and the bus fare").
• Task Fulfillment: all three points fully answered in a formal register, with a professional opening and closing.

The jump from CLB 7 to CLB 9 comes mostly from precision. The CLB 7 email says what happened; the CLB 9 email says exactly what happened, exactly what it costs and exactly what the writer wants.

CLB 11: precise, persuasive and fully controlled

Original CELPass sample (estimated CLB 11, not an official score; about 190 words):

Dear Ms. Clarke,

I am writing on behalf of my household in unit 407 regarding the laundry room, which has been out of service for three weeks. I appreciate that repairs take time, but apart from a brief "Closed for maintenance" sign, tenants have been given no explanation of the problem and no indication of when the room will reopen.

For my family, the closure has turned a routine chore into a weekly ordeal. With two children under six, we cannot simply let the laundry pile up, so every Saturday now involves a twenty-minute bus ride to the nearest laundromat with two overstuffed bags. Between the machines and the fares, I am spending around twenty-five dollars a week, on top of rent that already includes on-site laundry.

I would therefore ask for two things. First, could you share a realistic timeline for the repairs and email tenants whenever it changes? Second, since the laundry room is part of our lease, I would ask that the building reimburse reasonable laundromat costs, with receipts, until it reopens.

I would be grateful for a reply by the end of next week.

Sincerely,

Sam Ortiz

• Content/Coherence: the email builds an argument, not just a list. It acknowledges the manager's side ("I appreciate that repairs take time"), links the cost to the lease to justify the request, and sets a reply deadline.
• Vocabulary: exact and natural, with confident collocations ("out of service", "a routine chore into a weekly ordeal", "overstuffed bags", "reasonable laundromat costs, with receipts").
• Readability: complex sentences handled with full control, signposting ("therefore", "First", "Second") and no errors that distract the reader.
• Task Fulfillment: every point answered with detail and a tone that is diplomatic but firm, exactly right for asking a landlord's representative for money back.

What changes from CLB 5 to CLB 11, at a glance

Notice that the CLB 9 and CLB 11 emails are not much longer than the CLB 7 one. They score higher because every sentence carries more: a specific detail, a precise word or a reason behind a request.

How to move your own email up one level

1. Write your own answer to the prompt above in 27 minutes, aiming for 150 to 200 words.
2. Compare it with the four samples, one dimension at a time, and decide which sample it sits closest to on each.
3. Pick the one change that separates you from the next sample. From CLB 5, it is answering all three points in full sentences with a formal opening and closing. From CLB 7, it is replacing general statements with specific details and making the request exact. From CLB 9, it is giving the reader a reason to agree, such as acknowledging their side or linking your request to something they are responsible for.
4. Rewrite the email with only that change in mind, then reread it once for grammar and spelling.

Do not memorise these emails. Real prompts differ, and text that does not fit the prompt hurts Task Fulfillment. Learn the moves instead: one paragraph per point, specific details, and a request the reader can act on.

CELPass scores practice Writing answers on the four CELPIP dimensions with an estimated CLB, so you can see which level your own email reaches. The free plan includes three AI-scored Speaking or Writing answers, and the free diagnostic predicts your CLB in each section in about 25 minutes.

• CELPIP Writing Task 1: how to write the email
• CELPIP Writing sample answers
• Common grammar mistakes in CELPIP Writing
• CELPIP Writing word count
• Take the free CELPIP diagnostic

Frequently asked questions

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