Short answer: the problem-solution essay (often phrased as cause and solution) asks you to identify why something happens and what can be done. Use one body paragraph for the main problems/causes and one for realistic solutions — and make sure each solution actually addresses a problem you raised.
✍️ Open Typehush and practise problem-solution essays →Problem-solution prompts ask "What problems does this cause and what solutions can you suggest?" or, in the cause variant, "What are the causes and what can be done?" You have two clear jobs: diagnose and prescribe. The most common failure is imbalance — writing a long, vivid description of the problem and then offering one rushed solution. Both halves carry equal weight, so plan to develop your solutions as fully as your problems. If the wording says "causes," focus on why it happens, not just that it happens.
| Paragraph | Content |
|---|---|
| Introduction | Paraphrase the issue, preview problems and solutions |
| Body 1 | One or two main problems (or causes), explained with an example |
| Body 2 | Matched, realistic solutions to those problems |
| Conclusion | Summarise the key problem and its most promising solution |
Fewer, deeper points win: one problem fully explained plus one solution fully justified beats a list of four of each. A common structural question is whether to split by problem-then-solution across two paragraphs (as above) or to pair each problem with its solution in the same paragraph. Both can work, but the two-paragraph split is easier to control under time pressure and keeps the essay from turning into a rapid back-and-forth. Whichever you choose, keep the ordering consistent so the reader can always see which solution answers which problem.
This is the technique that separates Band 7+ answers: your solutions must directly address the problems you raised. If body one identifies traffic congestion caused by too many private cars, body two should propose something that targets exactly that — better public transport, congestion charging — not a generic "the government should raise awareness." A solution floating free of any problem reads as filler. The cleanest structure is to solve them in the same order you raised them, so the reader can trace each fix back to its cause.
Examiners reward plausible, specific solutions over sweeping ones. "The government should ban all cars" is neither realistic nor developed; "cities could expand cycle lanes and subsidise public transport to reduce car dependency" is both. For each solution, briefly say how it would work and why it would help. A single realistic solution, explained with a mechanism and a likely effect, demonstrates far more than three utopian one-liners that no examiner believes you've thought through. Naming the agent helps too — say who would act: governments, schools, employers, or individuals. "Schools could add financial-literacy classes" is stronger than the passive "financial literacy should be improved," because it shows a concrete route from problem to outcome.
Watch for: imbalance (problems over-developed, solutions rushed); unmatched solutions that don't answer the problems you named; vague fixes ("raise awareness," "educate people") with no mechanism; and overreach — proposing so many solutions that none is developed. Two matched, well-explained pairs of problem-and-solution make a complete, high-scoring essay. Before submitting, check that every solution can be traced to a specific problem in your first body paragraph.
The problem-solution essay lives or dies on that problem-to-solution link, and you learn to make it cleanly by reading and typing high-band examples that model it. You'll see how each solution answers a named problem, stays realistic, and gets a mechanism rather than a slogan. On the computer test, a tidy diagnose-then-prescribe structure is fast to plan and type, protecting your pacing. Drill enough of them and matching solutions to causes becomes automatic — which is exactly the discipline this question type is designed to test.
Type all 156 Cambridge Band 6–8 model essays with live word count →They are structured almost identically. A cause-solution question asks why something happens; a problem-solution question asks what problems it creates. Both pair the diagnosis with realistic solutions.
Usually one or two of each, fully developed. A single problem explained well plus a matched, realistic solution beats a long shallow list.
Yes. Each solution should directly address a problem you raised. Solutions that do not answer your stated problems read as filler and lower your Task Response.
Realistic and specific. Briefly explain how each solution works and why it would help, rather than offering vague fixes like "raise awareness."
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