Cambridge ESOL Statements of Results are sent two months after the exam has taken place. Candidates can also access their results online as they are released by Cambridge ESOL. Certificates are issued to candidates with passing grades within 1.5 months from issue of the statements of results at an awarding ceremony organised by the British Council. If candidate is not able to come to the ceremony, the certificate can be collected at the British Council.

If you lose your Cambridge ESOL certificate, you can apply for a Certified Statement of Results, for which you pay an additional fee.

IELTS is specified as fulfilling English language requirements for entry to academic courses by the majority of institutions of Further and Higher Education in Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, South Africa and the United Kingdom and currently by over 380 universities and colleges in the USA. You can search IELTS Global Recognition system database on line by institution or by your bandscore.

The Cambridge ESOL examinations are recognised by thousands of employers, universities & colleges, professional bodies and ministry & government organisations throughout the world. A list of organisations using Cambridge ESOL examinations can be checked on Cambridge ESOL website.

If you are going to study we strongly recommend you check with your university which test is required.

Dates for written parts of the Cambridge ESOL exams (FCE, CAE, CPE and BEC) - papers 1, 2 & 3 - are set in advance by the University of Cambridge. They are fixed and cannot be changed. The dates for Listening and Speaking for FCE, CAE, CPE and BEC are set by the British Council.

We can accept timely requests for change only for serious and justified reasons provided we have free time slots on other Speaking or Listening Test dates.  If a candidate has problems with the Speaking/Listening dates, he/she must notify the British Council immediately.

A team of highly trained examiners are employed to mark the tests.

The written part of the test is marked by examiners in Cambridge and the Speaking test is marked by local Cambridge ESOL examiners. All examiners undergo a rigorous selection process and thorough training. They are also coordinated regularly to make sure they all mark to standard. All marks are double checked to eliminate the possibility of mistake. A certain percentage of exams are marked for the third time by Examiner Team Leader in Cambridge.

IELTS tests are prepared by Cambridge ESOL and are the same for the whole world.
IELTS has a rigorous, quality-assured system for marking every IELTS test.

Marking of Listening and Reading parts

Every Listening and Reading answer sheet is marked by 2 trained IELTS markers and according to the table of acceptable answers which is prepared and sent by Cambridge ESOL. As you can see, there is no possibility of subjectivity or a mistake. Candidates should take care when writing answers on the Listening and Reading answer sheets as incorrect spelling grammar are penalised. Both UK and US varieties of spelling are accepted. If a candidate is asked to write an answer using a certain number of words and/or numbers, they will be penalised if they exceed or do not meet this requirement. In questions where candidates are expected to complete a gap, candidates should only transfer the necessary missing word(s) on to the answer sheets. Candidates should read and follow the instructions and questions very carefully. In listening part especially, care should be taken when transferring answers on to the answer sheet.

Marking of Writing and Speaking parts

Marking of writing scripts and speaking interviews are carried out by trained examiners who follow standardised guidelines. The examiners hold relevant teaching qualifications and are certificated by Cambridge ESOL. Each examiner is tested every two years to retain their certification. Speaking and writing mark are sum of 8 marks, which are input in special software which generate one mark. Speaking interviews are recorded in order to enable interview to be re-marked if necessary and to ensure that the examiner is following the correct procedures during the interview.

With this kind of rigorous procedures, standard of IELTS marking is kept in the whole world. If there is a 2 marks difference between the parts of the test (which means that there is overbalance in candidate’s knowledge), those parts are re-marked by different examiner.

If the candidate is not satisfied with received marks, he/she can ask remarking of certain part of the test or of all parts of the test. This remarking is done in Cambridge ESOL. This procedure is called “Enquiry of results” and can take up to 6 weeks. Candidate should ask for this service no later than 6 weeks after the test date and the fee is 5500 denars. If the candidate receives higher mark, he/she will be refunded and will receive a new TRF (Test Result Form).