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The Cambridge ESOL examinations have more than a million candidates every year. There are five different levels of general English exams, starting with the Key English Test for people who have studied English for about 200 hours, right up to the “Certificate of Proficiency in English” which most native speakers of English would probably fail (if they were allowed to take it). In total, these five exams make up a complete description of everything modern teachers think you should be able to learn to do with a foreign language. People tend to prepare for one exam at a time, but I thought it might be interesting to look at the whole lot as one system and what they have in common.
All the exams have parts that test each of the four skills – reading, writing, listening and speaking. The two lower level exams (KET and PET) test reading and writing together in one paper, while the higher level ones have separate sections for these, and also another paper called “Use of English” which tests grammar and vocabulary. As you go up the levels, the number of words that you have to read and write increases. The CPE writing paper asks for 2 compositions, each at least 300 words long. The FCE and CPE exams also have set books which students can read during the year, this will then give them the chance to answer a writing question about that book. This year the set books for FCE are as follows:
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
The Prisoner of Zenda by Anthony Hope
1984 by George Orwell
The Citadel by A. J. Cronin
Three Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle
For the lower levels, people in the recordings speak more slowly. Even in the highest levels you nearly always listen twice (except in part 2 of the CAE listening test). Often it seems surprising to students that the answers to questions are things that you don’t actually hear people say. For example, in a CPE test you have to say whether the speaker felt proud, embarrassed or confused. What he actually says is “I would somehow swallow my pride and stand up”. Good exam-takers get used to spotting tricks like this.
Candidates nearly always attend their interview in pairs, although sometimes it can happen that a group of three is organised because there is an odd number of candidates. For most of the levels, there is a stage where students have to speak on their own. The examiners call this a “long turn” although it is usually only a minute long. There isn’t a long turn in KET because it would be too difficult. Instead, one student gets a card with information on, for example about a bookshop, and the other gets some words like “sell/ travel books?” which they have to make into a question (“Do they…?”) In the levels PET, FCE and CAE candidates talk about a photograph in their long turn. In the top level, candidates for CPE have to talk about much more abstract and complicated things - so there is no photograph. Their long turn question might be “How far can human beings control the future of life on this planet?”
The most popular Cambridge exam is the FCE or First Certificate in English, taken by about 270,000 people every year. People who pass it are rated at B2 on the Council of Europe scale and this means that they should be able to use English in their work or studies. The level of an “A grade” pass at FCE is the same as a “C” in the next level up - CAE. The Certificate in Advanced English is a good objective for people who want to do a more linguistically complex kind of job, or for university-level studies. Generally it’s better to choose the level where you can get a good result…but of course that’s up to you and your teachers to decide.
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What do you think of this article? Have you ever sat one of the exams described above, or any other exam? What was it like? Why did you decide to do it? Has it helped you in your studies or job? Send us your opinions.
Núria Figuerola from Catalonia writes “As I see it Cambridge exams are essential to be succesful once you have finished studying and would like to find a job. Actually, they are quite fashionable in Catalonia (Spain) where I come from. Besides, we must bear in mind students need to pass any Cambridge exam to get a diploma in English. On the other hand, however, not everybody is able to pass it depending on their understanding, listening and speaking. To be frank, these things have improved since the introduction of new technologies and low cost planes have turned up.”
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Ana Torres Guerrero writes “In my opinion, Cambridge’s exams are good for evaluating your global knowledge of the English language. However, for working in English cities, Trinity’s exams are more important that Cambridge’s ones because they check the oral skill.
I learnt English in school but I have forgotten much vocabulary and grammar because in the university I didn’t study it.
I would like to prepare for both exams, the Cambridge ones and the Trinity ones, but as I haven’t got too much time and my oral skill is very bad, I have decided to study for the FCE.”
BuiDuyQuang writes “In my country the exams also have four skills, which are reading, writing, listening and speaking. The levels are different from other countries as they are divided into three levels: A, B and C. The C is the highest level of the exams and it can be used in Vietnam. I think now the world is developing and speaking English with the other people each day is normal. The first thing if you want get a job is to have a diploma in English. So English is very popular in the world and if you want to study English very well you have to remember the four skills. It is very important in English.”
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Article specifc link
University of Cambridge ESOL Examinations
More exams links
Take an Exam in English
BBC Exams – advice on how to deal with exams
Hoover Digest: A Brief History of Testing and Accountability
BBC: h2g2 Written Exam Technique
IELTS (International English Language Testing System) official site
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