Intermediate Level (B2)

This examination is based on the Independent User specifications worked out by the Council of Europe and assesses whether the candidates can create and maintain social, cultural and work relationships in a complex way and using the appropriate language in a Hungarian language environment. Passing the examination requires 550-650 hours of studying. A successful Independent User level examination creates the foundation for further progress towards the Competent User level.

The examination assesses the language skills in the following way:

Reading comprehension

The candidates must understand texts with various functions and content broadly and in detail as well. They must be able to distinguish opinions from facts and recognise the communicative intention in the phrasing of the text. The texts are followed by a series of tasks consisting of 20 units (information transfers exercises, multiple choice tests, multiple cloze, true/false questions).

Listening comprehension

The candidates must understand rather long, formal or informal dialogues and informative texts taken from the audio-visual media or announcements, the facts and the communicative intention in the text and must be able to distinguish opinions from facts. The language skills of the candidates are assessed through two different kinds of tasks, which are followed by a series of tasks consisting of 20 units (information transfer exercises, multiple choice tests, multiple cloze, cloze tests).

Speaking

The candidates can perform all the important communicative functions verbally: talking fluently about general and personal topics, giving information, giving an account of not only personal but public events, expressing their views succinctly and asserting their interests in a verbally complex way. In the oral examination the examiners have a conversation with the candidates about general issues, then the candidates express their impressions and views concerning a picture or some other visual aid and respond to the examiner's questions. Finally, there is a role play about a situation involving one of the examiners on the basis of Hungarian instructions on a sheet chosen at random.

Writing

The candidates can perform the following written functions: giving detailed information, giving an account of events, expressing their own views and others' views adequately, using language structures pertaining to the whole text correctly.

The task is to write a continuous text of about 150 words on the basis of the instructions. The candidates can choose between two topics.

Use of the Language

The candidates prove their intermediate level knowledge of grammar and vocabulary through solving a series of tasks consisting of 40 items and different types of tasks (multiple cloze, cloze, transformation exercise, etc).

Weighting of components

The weighting of the four basic skills are approximately the same at this level and the examination is supplemented by a series of task measuring the use of the language in a receptive way.

Results

The examination is evaluated on a pass/fail basis. The examination centre issues an official certificate both in case of failure and of passing, and mail it to the candidate.