The Cambridge Exams

When talking about “Cambridge Exams”, we use it as an umbrella term to group together
different exams at different levels. We can divide these into two groups- ESOL and IELTS. All of
these exams are recognized as qualifications by institutions all over the world.

The ESOL exams can be taken at different levels. Students who are at a very low level-
Elementary Level (A2) would be able to take KET or Key English Test, which recognizes the
ability in students to communicate at a basic level. The exam would consist of one paper for
reading and writing, a listening test and also a speaking test. Students at this level are able to
express simple opinions, understand straightforward questions and give simple answers, and
are also able to produce short simple sentences about familiar topics. The next level would be
PET or Preliminary English Test. Students taking PET would have to be between Lower
Intermediate level and a weak Intermediate level (B1). They would be tested on the four major
skills reading, writing, listening and speaking. This test would be able to prepare students for
everyday situations, be it for work, study or socializing.

Although KET and PET are a useful qualification, they are not as popular as the other ESOL
exams. FCE or First Certificate in English and CAE or Certificate in Advanced English, are two of
the more popular examination courses that are taken. Students sitting for these exams must be
at least of Intermediate Level (B2) for FCE and a strong Upper Intermediate Level (C1) for CAE.
Students at FCE Level should be able have conversations about a wide variety of topics, use the
language in writing and understand it in listening and reading. Apart from that candidates for
this exam need to be confident in using a wide variety of grammatical and lexical structures.
CAE students should be capable of using the language in the same way as FCE students and can
normally use the language more effectively in not only ordinary situations but also in formal
circumstances for example relating to business matters. Both exams are divided into five
separate papers: Reading, Writing, Use of English (Grammar and vocabulary), Listening and
Speaking. CPE or Certificate of Proficiency in English is also divided into these different papers.
Students taking this exam normally have an excellent understanding of the language and are
able to discuss complex issues using the appropriate language and expressions. A strong
advanced level of English or C2 level is needed to be able to take this exam.

Even though IELTS- International English Language Testing System- is also a Cambridge exam,
the format and level is different. The papers are divided into two levels- General Training and
Academic. The difference is in the reading and writing papers, which are more difficult in the
Academic exam. The Academic paper is aimed at people who need the exam to either study in
an English speaking university or even to work in professions which require a very good level of
English. The papers include reading, writing, listening and a speaking test. In the reading and
listening papers, the difficulty of the tasks increases the further along you get in the test. Unlike
the ESOL exams, which are graded A, B, C etc. IELTS is graded by using bands 0-9, with a 9 being
the highest band you can achieve. The IELTS exam is not about passing or failing, it provides a
profile of your level of English, but, as a general rule, institutions consider any mark lower than
a Band 5 in any of the parts, as being too low for academic study.

The last couple of years have seen a surge in popularity in the IELTS exam, with students opting
to do this exam rather than the ESOL ones. I think that the main reason for this is that in most
cases, it takes a shorter amount of time to prepare for it than to prepare for the higher level
ESOL exams. On the other hand, unlike the ESOL exams, the IELTS qualification is only valid for 2
years, after which students must retake the test to ensure that their standard of English is still
as good as it was when they took the test in the first place.