Tips for FCE - Preparations

1st Certificate exam preparations

Hey everybody! This is Paul writing about something David told me. He asked if I could tell you a bit of my experience and some advices while taking this world-opening exam. Thinking a little bit on David’s idea when he wrote telling me about giving an experience review I started thinking on a huge amount of things to say, all it intrinsic, how to dismantle all the work to take this exam I came up that the best way was like Jack the Ripper said “let’s go by parts”

Step 1: Preparation for exam
This is one of the most important parts for taking FCE since this is the time while you are getting ready to take it. There’s no secret recipe for best studying the FCE, everyone is a single person and each person is a world. YOU are the only one who knows what kind of study routine fits you the best to yourself, and yes, it’s a routine to study what will lead you to pass some parts of the exam, it really works this way. Every day you should study a couple of pages, review something you missed the last time, have a look to vocabulary by making vocab lists and read, read and read a little bit more. English doesn’t come alone, to improve vocabulary read everything you can in English, switch some usual things in your daily routine to English such as cell phones, computer, watching TV, even thinking in English and many other things. You’ll see this way sometimes you don’t notice you’re learning English but someday it will show up that something you read or listened you’ll know what does that mean or the use of it. Those in an academy, your teacher is the knowledge source, so ask, write to him, ask about where to go to practice English; There are some kind of English-Spanish meetings where you can practice the speaking and listening to different kind of accents and making your ear to a different language, because in the exam, there’s no time to say “I’m not ready for this kind of accent” or “I can’t understand because of his speed” the tape keeps going on and getting frustrated goes nowhere.

So now, coming to the end of Step 1, I must highlight a few ideas:
• Read as much as possible, books, magazines, food ingredients, everything that comes to your hands (in English of course)
• Listen to English speaking people, via watching series or TV films; I’d say more British English than American, because in the end, FCE is a British English exam, but American English could help you to get used to other accents
• Write: use as much vocabulary as you can, doesn’t matter if you fail here, then you’ll know how to use it when the real time comes. END of Step 1 – you now have a 15 min break, please leave the room

Step 2: Day before taking the exam
This day is a crucial day, today will set your body to D-Day, the day you’ll face most probably your largest time-consuming exam. You’ve been getting ready for the exam for a really long time and today, the day before the exam, you should be ready enough to take it. Today you mustn’t study anything because is most likely to be worthless. Today what you should do is to have a relax day, not getting anxious for what comes next day, there are still many hours left. What I’d do? Sleep enough to be ready, review a couple of things if you need it, maybe taking a good English book to read and that’s all. Of course you shouldn’t get as relaxed as going partying... that’s not what I meant. Think on what you should take to the exam, maybe some fruit, juices/water or cereal bars, you’ll be getting a great deal of mental effort and you have to fuel your brain, just like if you were running a marathon, your body will need this supplies, and please, today diet doesn’t exist. You’ll need some sugar in your body just to make your brain work at 100% Also, before going to sleep, chose what you’re going to wear next day, and one more time, loose and comfortable clothing, cotton is the best material, it is fresh, light and it stretches when needed, because while taking the exam, you’ll sweat, move, and many other things that could irritate you, so let the clothing not be one of them.

Ending this Step 2, another summary of key ideas
• Don’t study anything, what you know, you know it from the preparation months, whatever you “study” today for sure you have studied it before but your nerves has blocked your mind.
• You’ve done mock exams, you know how it works, and you know you’re up to it. You have to believe in yourself and if you have studied hard enough and you’re mentally prepared, it will come easy
• Take something to drink or eat in break time, and go to the WC even if you don’t need to go... better trying it than having a hurry in the middle of any part.
• You look perfect, nobody is looking at you shirt wrinkle.
• DON’T FORGET TO SET 2 OR 3 ALARMS!! Your cell phone, your stopwatch, your mother, whatever you have close to wake you up

Step 3 – D-DAY!
If you’ve followed the previous reading you should have woke up at the first alarm, but in a rested mood, happy and relaxed. Now another alarm will ring, just set it off. Have a light breakfast and take your bag with the eating and drinking stuff, even a pen and a pencil could be useful. Likewise, don’t forget your ID card, don’t leave anything to the last moment, you should have left everything ready the previous night. Now get to the examination point, arrive soon just in case you find traffic jams, all traffic light in red and so on... don’t leave anything to luck.

Now comes what you are ready for: THE EXAM a part where I would tell you what I went through. These are based on true events
08:30 – Entered the building and headed to the desk with my surname. This is a checkpoint where you show your ID and they’ll tell you where you will be taking the exam. Remember the number they say and head to the room (go to the WC if needed)
09:00 – Reading: Sitting in my place, watching people running to their seats, sweating and nervous, what happens coming late! Just relax, breathe and keep your mind in blank. Start reading and write as many notes as you wish, don’t be hurry, just keep the pace you’ve been practicing while in Step 1, there’s time enough to read everything and fill in the answer sheet
10:00 – Break until 10:15. You have to leave the room; the invigilators will prepare the place for the next part. Once out, have something to drink, go to the WC and most important DO NOT TALK ABOUT THIS PART! You know how it went, you don’t need someone else saying “oh, that was terrible, this is my worst day, blablablah” or just “hey, I did it great! I’m going to pass it for sure, I’m the king of the exam, blablablah” This isn’t helping you, there’s no need to know it, what is written, written stays, you can’t change it and it’s time to focus to next part
10:15 – Writing: You’re called to come in again and take the same place as previous. You now have a pen on your desk to write your letter and whatever is in part 2. Think you have spare sheets to write some notes and getting sure you don’t get under the minimum or over the maximum length on each part of the writing. You can have a try with pencil but remember the final writing must be written by pen. Sometimes you don’t need to do this practice, you’ve done enough writings that your brain just search in your mental library, copy text and paste it on the paper, and sooner you expect, you will have finished this part and leaving the room eating something.
11:50 – Use of English: This part is the quickest one, 45 min where you’ll be finished in 30 or less and reviewing it one and another time, ensuring you have chosen what you think are the best answers.
12:50 – Listening: Probably the toughest part, why? You can’t go on your own pace, here you’ll need to have your tricks for the exam... maybe trying to fill in all the gaps at the first try and then trying to correct everything; listening once and in the second try filling the gaps; mixing both styles. Each part of the listening needs a different skill, but in the end, you have your style and that’s what is important. Don’t get anxious if you missed something, there’s a second chance to hear it and if you don’t get it, it doesn’t matter, one or two misses won’t make you fail an entire part (but be sure there are only one or two...) at the end of the listening test, you will have 5 min to type all the answers to the answer sheet.

DING DING DING DING! You know what??? THIS IS THE END OF THE LISTENING TEST, you now can leave the room and say “Yeah, a great Saturday morning to get FCE” You can now go home and tell everyone you did it great in the exam, update your Tuenti/Facebook status and whatever you want, only if you aren’t as lucky as I was to have Speaking the same day 3 hours later.

What did I do? I had my lunch in the bag and I had to go to British Institute (BI) to get the speaking part and what can you do before entering this part? What I did was looking for a relaxing spot (this time was Murillo Gardens close to the BI) watching tourist coming and going, eating my sandwich and getting a bit sunbathed. Remember, not to get too asleep or completely sleep. Just to be ready for speaking part
16:34 – Speaking: When I got to the door of the BI I saw a lot of people, some of whom I talked during the breaks of FCE (not about the exam, of course).
Once there, you wait until you’re called and you are given a sticker with your name and an evaluation sheet, be sure your names and numbers match. You are lead to an interior courtyard where you meet who’s going to be your speaking partner. There’s something funny here, at the beginning of this part you don’t know him, you talk to him/her a little bit just to get known, talking a bit of how the morning exam went and set your exam tactic.
When you are in the room, you’ll find two invigilators: one will be the asking one and the other one will be taking notes of both of you. This part goes smooth, just be kind, smile and DO NOT answer too short “– Where are you from? – I’m from Seville” If you say this, there would be an uncomfortable silence where you think “Oh damn it, I should have said more” and the invigilator saying “oh yeah, here comes a 0 as big as the door” but don’t be greedy and try to take all the time for you.
Answer correctly, fully, relaxed (yeah, I’m sort of a tiring one with being relaxed but this is the key for doing exams) be collaborative in part 3 and don’t you worry about the timing, it’s better to be stopped in parts 1 and 2 but don’t be selfish in part 3. Collaborative task, where the main point is being collaborative, ask a couple of questions and “pray” to find a competent partner. This way you’ll have an easy going test.

Nonetheless, this is the real end of the FCE exam, now you’re free to do whatever you didn’t while studying this exam, now you’ve done your best, there’s nothing you can change. Just have to wait till the day the marks are released, nothing more to do, nothing less to say. All your efforts, time, ups and downs, everything ends with this moment when you step outside with this partner you came in not knowing him but coming out as really good old friends even telling some jokes and laughing!

Some tips I’d like to add to finish are these ones:
• You know you can get it
• Give the max on each part, don’t leave anything behind saying “I’ll pass with the other parts”
• Cheating is useless, there are more cons than pros in this exam
• Leave your worries out of the exam, just one morning focused on FCE

This is how my exam went and that’s what I wanted to tell you after thinking on David’s idea, I know it is lengthy, but hey, take it as a reading practice! I hope this is helpful to whoever reads this and know that whatever you need I’ll be pleased to help... if I can of course.
Best wishes and may the force be with you all. Good luck my friends

Paul L. Dennis (proud FCE owner :D)