Linguaskill: The latest Cambridge exam [Guide 2022]
Certify your level of English and obtain a proficiency certificate in just 48 HOURS. I will tell you everything you need to know about this Cambridge exam.
Table of contents
In the world of English exams, everything has been invented, hasn’t it? We have Cambridge exams, Trinity, Escuela Oficial de Idiomas, Oxford, the British Council, etc. So, do you think there is room for one more? It seems so. In fact, in today’s article, I am going to tell you about the latest English exam to hit the market. It is Linguaskill, the new exam from Cambridge Assessment English, which bursts into this competitive market with a bang. And, of course, in this article you will find the best description of Linguaskill.
What is Linguaskill
Linguaskill is the new English exam from Cambridge English. Cambridge, as you will know, has accustomed us to their main suite exams, as we experts call them. That is to say, we all know the traditional B1 Preliminary, B2 First or C1 Advanced, among others. And for a while it had been «stuck» with these exams, so to speak.
However, at the end of 2018 Cambridge presented Linguaskill, an innovative test (according to them) that came to respond to the current demand, especially in Spain, for somewhat more agile exams with results obtained more quickly.
One of the characteristics that differentiates this exam from other relatively new ones like Aptis or the Oxford exam is that Linguaskill offers two versions of this exam: General and Business.
If you are interested in taking this exam, or simply want to know more, keep reading, as I am going to tell you everything you need to know about this exam.
What levels does this exam cover
Linguaskill covers the following levels of the Common European Framework (CEF):
- A1: Basic User – Breakthrough
- A2: Basic User – Waystage
- B1: Independent User – Threshold
- B2: Independent User – Vantage
- C1+: Proficient User
That is to say, with this exam you can demonstrate any level of English except C2 (Proficient User – Mastery).
What score do you need to pass Linguaskill?
One of the most positive aspects of this innovative Cambridge exam is that no one passes or fails. That is, the score you need to obtain is the one you set for yourself. Furthermore, you will obtain different scores in each part (Reading, Writing, Listening & Speaking).
The nice (or ugly, for some) thing about this is that the company that is going to hire you will be able to see which skills you handle best. This can be a good thing for hiring companies because, at times, they are looking for an oral profile, someone who can handle themselves well in speaking, while others are looking for someone for email marketing, for example, and simply require someone with good written skills.
What score do I need to obtain the level I want?
If you need a specific level, you must obtain a minimum score. This minimum score to pass corresponds to that of other Cambridge exams. You can see the table below:
Exam characteristics
Like the Oxford University Press exam, Linguaskill is an intelligent multi-level exam. What does this mean? This means that the exam adapts to the candidate based on their answers. In this way, the system determines the candidate’s exact level. Therefore, the duration of some parts, as we will see below, varies depending on the candidate. Below is a video and an image for you to know more about how it works.
What parts does it have
The Linguaskill Cambridge exam consists of 3 modules:
- Reading & Listening: variable number of questions. Among the types of questions you may find are:
- Reading:
- Read and select: read a short note, news item, diagram, label, etc., with a short text and choose one sentence out of three (A, B, or C) that is closest in meaning to the text. (Similar to B1 Preliminary Reading Part 1)
- Gapped sentences: read a sentence with a gap and choose the best option (A, B, C or D) to fill the gap. (Similar to Reading & Use of English Part 1 in B2 First, but at sentence level)
- Multiple-choice gap-fill: choose the correct word or phrase to fill gaps in a text (A, B, C or D). (Similar to Reading & Use of English Part 1 in B2 First)
- Open gap-fill: fill in the gaps in a text. A single word can be written in each gap. (Similar to Reading & Use of English Part 2 in B2 First)
- Extended reading: read a longer text and answer a series of multiple-choice questions.
- Listening:
- Listen and select: listen to a short extract and answer a question with three options (A, B or C). (Similar to Listening Part 1 of B2 First)
- Extended listening: listen to a longer audio and answer a series of multiple-choice questions. (Similar to Listening Part 4 of B2 First)
- Reading:
- Writing: 2 parts
- Part 1: write an email of at least 50 words (approx. 15 min.)
- Part 2: write a letter or a report of around 180 words (approx. 30 min.)
- Speaking: 5 parts. It is done on a computer, responses are recorded, and they are marked by a Cambridge oral examiner.
- Part 1: answer 8 questions about yourself
- Part 2: read 8 sentences aloud
- Part 3 (long turn): talk about a topic for 1 minute, with 40 seconds of preparation.
- Part 4 (long turn): talk about an image for 1 minute. The image has a graph, table, etc., which the candidate must comment on.
- Part 5: the candidate gives their opinion in the form of short answers to 5 questions about a specific topic. They have 1 minute of preparation.
However, although there are 3 modules, the results for the Reading and Listening parts are given separately.
Do I have to take all parts of Linguaskill?
No. This is another of the innovations of this exam. You do not have to take all the parts. If you only want to demonstrate your oral level, you can choose to do the Speaking; if you are interested in testing your written level, you can only take the Writing. It is a very useful and innovative solution, although Oxford University Press already allowed this with their own exam.
Linguaskill duration
Linguaskill does not have a fixed total duration, as it depends on how you answer the questions. But the durations of each module are as follows:
| MODULE | DURATION |
| Reading & Listening | 60-85 minutes (approx.) |
| Writing | 45 minutes |
| Speaking | 15 minutes (approx.) |
Exam types
As I mentioned earlier, Cambridge offers two versions of this exam:
- Linguaskill General: this exam assesses everyday English and is a valid option for university admission or in selection processes for non-executive or business positions. Typical topics in this exam include work, study, future plans, travel, and technology, among others.
- Linguaskill Business: this version of the exam, obviously, exists to be used in an executive and business environment, for selection processes where candidates must have a thorough knowledge of business English. Some topics covered in this exam include buying and selling products, the office, business trips, human resources, etc.
Linguaskill Sample Test
Unfortunately, there are no Linguaskill exams available for download in PDF. Currently, we only have the sample tests offered by Cambridge, which are basically a demo of the exam you will find. So here are the links below:
- Linguaskill Reading and Listening Sample Test:
- Linguaskill Writing sample test:
- Linguaskill Speaking sample test:
As you can see, you cannot download any Linguaskill exam, as everything is done online.
Results in 48 hours
Perhaps one of the greatest attractions of this Cambridge English exam is that candidates obtain their results in just 48 hours. Yes, two days. This, compared to the current Cambridge exams, is a huge step forward. Until now, even when taking the Cambridge exam on a computer, results took at least 2 weeks to be released. With Linguaskill, you get your results in 48 hours.
How results are presented: Test Report Form
You receive the results of your Linguaskill exam in the form of a computer-generated Test Report Form, i.e., a PDF document with your results, so you won’t have to wait to receive a physical document. In fact, no certificates are sent for this exam, only the downloadable Test Report Form.
In the Test Report Form, you will see the level according to the Common European Framework (CEFR) and according to the Cambridge scale. These results are specified for each of the language skills separately, so you will have 4 different sections: Reading, Writing, Listening, and Speaking. This way, you can see at a glance what you obtained in each skill. And if you have taken more than one skill, you will also be able to see an average score of all skills.
Below you can see an example of a Linguaskill Test Report Form:
Download a full Test Report Form here: Linguaskill Example 4-Skill Test Report.
Is Linguaskill a certificate?
No, it is not. Like Aptis and Oxford, this test does not offer a level certificate, but a report (Test Report Form). It is actually a slightly silly difference, but for some entities it is important. Therefore, remember: if they require a certificate, these exams are not valid. The purpose of these exams is not the same as that of B1 Preliminary, B2 First, and other Cambridge exams which are indeed certificates for all purposes.
Linguaskill Price
The price of Linguaskill is variable, as we saw earlier, you do not have to take all the modules. Furthermore, although I am not 100% sure about this, I believe it depends on the examining centres. In Granada, for example, the price is as follows:
- Full exam: 95€
- 2 modules: 90€
- 1 module: 50€
But if you want to know how much Linguaskill costs, I encourage you to contact the nearest examining centre, they will be able to inform you more adequately about this.
How Linguaskill is marked and evaluated
Here Cambridge has covered itself in glory, for better or worse, in my opinion. Obviously, the Reading & Listening module is marked by the computer as you take the exam. However, it was expected that the other two modules (Writing and Speaking) would be marked by people. But no! While the Speaking is indeed marked by people, trained for the purpose, the Writing is marked by an artificial intelligence system. This system is called Linguaskill automarker, and you can see how it works here:
In this way, waiting times are reduced significantly, and results are delivered in 2 days.
Linguaskill sittings in Granada: how to register
Another innovation of this alternative to Aptis is the flexibility of dates to be able to demonstrate your English level. If you want to take Linguaskill in Granada, you just need to contact ExamsGranada a few days beforehand, and register. Below are the details of this examining centre, so you can ask them about Linguaskill sittings in Granada:
ExamsGranada
Calle Recogidas 18, 1º Derecha
Granada 18002
Telf.: 958 25 64 58
Email: info(@)examsgranada(.)com
KSE Academy is an Official Preparation Centre for Cambridge Assessment English, affiliated with the Exams Granada examining centre (ES815), so you can ask me anything you want, and I will be able to inform you without problems. And if I don’t know the answer, I will ask and get the information to you.
Books to prepare for Linguaskill
As of today, there is no preparation material for Linguaskill that is exclusive to this exam. And honestly, it doesn’t make much sense for there to be any, although I’m sure they are already working on it. Therefore, the best thing you can do, given the format of this exam, is to prepare with material for the level you are interested in. If you want to prepare for level B1, buy B1 level books; if you are interested in B2, try with books to prepare for the FCE, and so on.
Furthermore, remember that all questions have a similar format to existing Cambridge exams, so practicing with Cambridge exams is a great idea.
Why Linguaskill instead of Aptis or Oxford
In this section, as in all of them, I am going to be brutally honest, as we say in English. As an English language teaching professional, I hate Aptis above all else. Let me explain. I think it is great that there is variety in English certification exams. It’s brilliant. The problem is that I see candidates with a very low level taking Aptis en masse, and obtaining relatively good results. This leads me to the conclusion that Aptis does not really demonstrate anyone’s English level well.
I repeat: THIS IS MY OPINION, I have not carried out any experiment to prove it, but it is what I see around me, and unfortunately, I am not the only English teacher who thinks this way. Therefore, I do not recommend taking Aptis, because although you can get the certificate quickly, Aptis’s reputation is in tatters and, in the long run, that will harm you in finding employment.
To give you an idea, if you get level C in Aptis General, depending on the region, they certify a C1 or a B2, because in some regions they believe the level is too low to be a C1. THIS IS NOT SERIOUS AND DOES NOT MAKE SENSE, and does not happen with Cambridge exams, LanguageCert, Trinity, Oxford, or EOI.
CLARIFICATION: The opinion I express here refers to Aptis General, not Aptis Advanced, which is the exam aimed at C1 and C2 levels. With that one, I do not have enough information or experience to say whether the level adapts or not to the Common European Framework.
As for the Oxford exam, I said at the time that it seemed like a good alternative. However, Oxford launched its exam without having an appropriate network of preparation and examining centres. So the infrastructure leaves a lot to be desired. And, on the other hand, not everyone recognises this exam for validations, public examinations, and so on, so I recommend you inform yourself very well before taking it.
In short, by having the backing of Cambridge, the most recognised and international English certification and examination institution in the world, especially in Europe, I am sure that Linguaskill is better than Aptis, and once it is a little more established in the market, it will be more recognised than Aptis or Oxford. Therefore, with this innovative English exam, you will avoid the problems you might encounter with Aptis or Oxford, especially the former.
In my case, if I had to choose between Linguaskill or Aptis, I would have no doubt in taking the former. The latter, honestly, is the laughing stock of English exams among teachers.
Is Linguaskill valid for public examinations?
UPDATE (15 JANUARY 2020): The Junta de Andalucía now recognises Linguaskill for scoring in public examinations, its B2 and C1 levels.
As of today (July 2019), in Andalusia, this new test is not yet recognised by the Junta de Andalucía, so Linguaskill still does not give you points for public examinations. However, it is a matter of Cambridge putting some pressure on the Junta (who are not known for being efficient) for it to be recognised. Therefore, if you are not in a particular hurry to submit a test report form to prove your English level, you can take it and submit it when you need to.
Regarding other regions, I am currently unaware of their recognition, but I assume they are in the same situation as Andalusia.
As for the recognition of this test for other types of merits, for now the only thing I can recommend is that you contact the entity to which you will present the Linguaskill results directly and ask them if they recognise this exam as proof of your English level.
My opinion about Linguaskill: advantages and disadvantages
I’m going to be honest here too. Linguaskill hasn’t really won me over, even though I don’t speak too badly of this exam in this article. Below I break down the positive and negative points I see:
- Advantages:
- You receive results in 48 hours.
- You can print or send your results immediately for whatever you need.
- You can take the part of the exam you want.
- It is a multi-level test, so you don’t pass or fail.
- It has the prestige of Cambridge Assessment English, which is no small feat.
- Flexible dates. In Granada, for example, you can take it every Friday.
- It offers two versions of the exam: General and Business.
- Companies can decide to assess the English of their employees or potential employees.
- Disadvantages:
- It devalues more solid exams like B1 Preliminary, B2 First and C1 Advanced. I honestly don’t know whether this is positive or negative in the long run, or for whom. But definitively, for invigilators and supervisors like me, it is not good, as it will probably reduce the number of sittings for these other exams.
- It contributes to the «certificate obsession» that we suffer from in Spain. It is one more exam, one more certificate, and can be understood as another money-making scheme.
- It devalues the role of oral examiners and does not offer real oral interaction. The fact of doing the Speaking on a computer, without real interaction with a human being, takes away a lot of the veracity and authenticity of the oral exam itself, and reduces the importance of the oral examiner, thus reducing the number of examiners who currently work for Cambridge.
- It devalues the role of Writing markers. With one stroke, Cambridge has just eliminated the role of Writing markers. And probably, if this model works and is effective, in the long run they will stop using them for the rest of the computer-based exams. A real shame.
Obviously, there are not many opinions about Linguaskill yet, and what I think about this exam is not very important either, so you should inform yourself well about what you need and whether this multi-level English test provides you with that same thing or not.
Conclusion
Linguaskill is the new multi-level test from Cambridge with which you can get your results in 48 hours. It is the best alternative to Aptis or Oxford exams, with much more quality (in my opinion), but obviously it is not perfect. Personally, I think that the other Cambridge exams will suffer cannibalisation by this new English exam, and honestly, I think it’s a bad thing, as the other exams seem to me to be much more solid options that truly certify a candidate’s level much more effectively.
For more information, from Cambridge itself, download the following document: Linguaskill Brochure