7 tips for English exams to help you prepare

Tips for English exam

Know the format and the content of the exam

Most exams are divided into different parts (speaking, listening, reading, writing). Each paper is usually further broken down into different sections. Find out beforehand how many parts your exam has, how many sections each part consists of, what each one contains, and essentially – how much time you have to complete them.

Practice beforehand

No matter how good your English is, you’ll have a far better chance of doing well in the exam if you practice it first. There are past papers available for most exams so that you can practice at home. Make sure you time yourself according to the exam guidelines in order to get used to working under time pressure.

Learn from your mistakes

Don’t! Make a note of your mistakes, especially if you tend to make the same ones over and over, and work out why the wrong answers are wrong and, critically, why you got it wrong; that in itself is a valuable lesson and will ensure you learn much more vocabulary and get much more from the task than you otherwise would.

Make use of online resources

If you’re taking the PTE, IELTS, Cambridge PET, FCE or CAE exams, an ideal way to ensure success is to work your way through WordsCoach, which not only allows you to practice online with video lessons and interactive activities but which offers guided learning that you can do at your own pace and as often as you want.

Understand what is being tested

It might seem like grammar and vocabulary are all that’s being tested, but bear in mind that skills are often being assessed as well. In a writing exam, think about the type of text you have to write and who the reader would be, as this will dictate the style and formality of the language you use.

Practice exam technique

As with any test that involves more than just a straightforward test of knowledge, most English exams draw on a range of skills and techniques.

Read, listen, speak and watch and read 

When the pressure of an exam is upon you, it’s easy to lose sight of the bigger picture. You’re taking the exam to test and to prove your level of English, but there’s no end of English available to learn from and enjoy. Make it a habit to listen to music in English and work out the lyrics, listen to podcasts and watch videos, TV programmes and films, try to find a language exchange partner, practice your language skills online, and read as widely as possible.

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