Exams

At Oxford House students may prepare for any of the following examinations:

Cambridge Examinations

• Cambridge Preliminary English Test (PET)
  Entries 6 weeks before examination dates in March, May and November.
• Cambridge First Certificate (FCE)
  Entries 6 weeks before examination dates in March, June and December.
• Cambridge Certificate in Advanced English (CAE)
  Entries 6 weeks before examination dates in March, June and December.
• Cambridge Certificate of Proficiency (CPE)
  Entries 6 weeks before examination dates in March, June and December.

We recommend a full term’s preparation for the Cambridge examinations or IELTS. However, for students unable to attend for a whole term we now offer short (2 to 4-week) Exam Booster Courses with flexible starting dates for the Cambridge First Certificate / Cambridge Advanced examinations. Please contact the school for details.

(Although it is now possible to take the Cambridge FCE exam in August, no specific exam practice is offered during the short summer corses.)

IELTS (International English Language Testing System)

This is an academic examination which tests a student’s competence in listening, speaking, reading and writing, and assesses whether the student is ready to study in English at undergraduate or postgraduate level at a British university or college.

We arrange regular IELTS preparation classes for students wanting to take the IELTS exam, and assist students in entering for the exam at the local IELTS Centre, where it is offered on a monthly basis. Results for IELTS are available after 2 weeks.

Other examinations (e.g. Cambridge BEC or TOEIC / TOEFL) can be prepared for and taken by arrangement. Otherwise, preparation for these exams is done through guided self-study or private tuition rather than in class.

We shall be pleased to help students requiring advice or information on the content or suitability of examinations and on application procedures for courses of further study in the UK.

Below is an overview and indication of approximate levels of examinations listed above.

LEVEL	Council of Europe Global Scale	Cambridge	IELTS	BEC	TOEFL
7 Almost native speaker	C2	Proficiency (CPE) Grade A	9	9	660
6 Proficient user	C2	Proficiency (CPE) Grade A/B	8	8	620
5 Good User	C2 C1	Proficiency (CPE) Grade C Advanced (CAE) Grade A	8	BEC Higher	600
4 Competent User	C1 B2	Advanced (CAE) Grade B/C First Certificate (FCE) Grade A/B	6	BEC Higher	560
3 Independent User	B2 B1	First Cert. (FCE) Grade C Preliminary (PET) Grade A	5	BEC Vantage	500
2 Threshold User	B1 A2	Preliminary (PET) Grade B/C	4	BEC Prelim	460
1 Beginner / Elementary	A1	Key English Test (KET)			400 & less