Goethe Institut

The specific examination is addressed to children and adolescents and to those aged 10 to 16 years. The examination assesses the understanding and production of written speech. In the comprehension of written language, the children process various questions based on short notes, short notices or letters. The duration of the examination is 20 minutes. In the production of a written speech, the candidate is asked to respond to an email, letter, advertisement, etc. Here, too, the duration is 20 minutes. In the understanding of written speech, the children have to work out exercises based on information provided to them by the radio, messages on the answering machine, etc. The duration is also 20 minutes. In the final oral presentation, candidates must be able to introduce themselves and answer simple questions. Here the examination lasts 15 minutes. To participate, candidates must be at least 10 years of age. The competent authorities for Athens are the Erasmios Hellenic-German School and the Hellenic-German Agogi, while the Goethe Zentrum Patras is responsible for the city of Patras.

This examination is addressed to adults. It corresponds to the 1st level of the scale of 6 levels of language proficiency and certifies simple knowledge. It is addressed to those who want to certify their knowledge, to those who want an internationally recognized certificate or proof of knowledge so that they can be granted a visa within the framework of the family reunification law. It is addressed to those who would like to work as assistants in Germany. Successful applicants demonstrate that: - They can communicate in a simple way as long as the interlocutor speaks slowly and clearly. - They can use familiar, everyday expressions. - They can introduce themselves and introduce others as well as ask them for information about their person, let's say about the name or the place of residence. - The examination in question consists of the following 4 parts; written language production, written language comprehension, spoken language production and spoken language comprehension. In more detail, the comprehension of written speech, where the test lasts 25 minutes, the candidate must be able to process exercises that have to do with the information provided in various texts. In the production of a written speech where the examination lasts 20 minutes, the candidate needs to fill in a simple form or write a short text for an everyday occasion. In the subsequent production of the spoken word, he must be able to introduce himself and formulate questions, which relate to everyday life issues. The duration here for the examination is 15 minutes. Finishing with the comprehension of spoken language, the candidate must work through exercises, which refer to short conversations that he listens to. Duration is 20 minutes. Candidates must be at least 16 years old.

The specific examination is addressed to teenagers from 12 to 16 years old. The aim of this examination is for the candidate to: - to demonstrate basic knowledge - to have an official and internationally recognized certificate - to certify his knowledge at level A2 By succeeding in these examinations, he proves that he possesses the following skills: - Do not agree on the sides of simple and ordinary situations - To exchange information on intimate matters - Understand and use standard sentences and phrases in everyday situations The six schools responsible for conducting the examinations and their organization are in Athens: the Erasmios Hellenic-German School and the Hellenic-German Education and in Patras the Goethe Zentrum Patras. The units examined are the following. Production and understanding of written language as well as production and understanding of spoken language. More specifically, in order to understand a short speech (duration 30 minutes), the candidate will have to process various questions related to short texts such as electronic messages, advertisements or articles. For the production of a written speech (30 minutes) the candidate will have to write short messages on topics that affect his immediate environment. In order to understand spoken language, he must be able to process exercises, which refer to everyday conversations, voicemail messages or announcements he hears (lasts 30 minutes). For the production of an oral speech, an examination that lasts 15 minutes) the candidate will be asked to formulate questions or to answer them with reference to his personal details, to tell something about his life or to organize something jointly with his interlocutor

The specific examination is addressed to adults and presupposes basic language knowledge. Those who pass the exam can communicate in the context of simple and ordinary situations, describe with simple vocabulary things that concern them, such as their origin or education, as well as use phrases in everyday situations. It consists of the following 4 parts: production and understanding of written language // production and understanding of spoken language. All parts of the examination last one and a half hours except for the production of an oral speech, which takes 15 minutes. In more detail: - For the understanding of written speech: the candidate is asked to process questions based on various short texts such as emails, advertisements or signs that are in public spaces. - For the production of written speech: the candidate will be asked to write messages that relate to topics in his immediate environment - For the understanding of spoken language: the candidate should be able to work out exercises, which are based on everyday conversations, announcements or interviews. For the production of oral speech: the candidate must be able to formulate questions and answer them. These may relate to personal information or the possibility of organizing something jointly with the interlocutor. The minimum age limit is 16 years

Those who pass the exam are able to demonstrate that they: - Can deal with a variety of communication situations - Can express themselves fluently, simply, on topics that are familiar to them - Can understand the main points of spoken language when it is delivered clearly - Can narrate or describe dreams, experiences, events and goals This exam consists of the following parts: Comprehension and production of written and spoken language - the oral exam takes place in pairs. Candidates also have the option of either combining modules with each other or participating in individual modules. In the event that individual certificates are issued, these correspond to one general certificate. The exam was jointly edited by the Goethe Institut, the Ösd and the University of Freiburg in Switzerland. Today it is conducted worldwide under the following name: Goethe Zertifikat B1 or ÖSD Zertifikat B1. It consists of the following parts: - Reading comprehension, lasting 65 minutes. The candidate is able to understand not only the basic information of a text but also important details. - Writing is the second section and lasts 60 minutes. The candidate is able to write personal or formal letters and, on the other hand, express his opinion in a forum in writing if asked. - This is followed by listening comprehension, lasting 40 minutes. The candidate can understand the main points and important details of short texts that he hears. - Finally, writing is 15 minutes long. The candidate talks with a fellow examinee about a topic related to everyday life, answers questions and expresses his opinion. In order to take part, the candidate must be 12 years old. If the candidate wants to take part in the adult exam, he/she must be 16 years old. The exams are conducted electronically at the Exam Center only. The exam cannot be taken from home. At the exam center, it is conducted on the Institute's laptops with a German keyboard. The exams are held in January, March, May, September and November. The exam is considered successful when the candidate has obtained 60% of the maximum possible score. Specifically, if he/she obtains 0-59 points, he/she is considered to have failed, from 60 to 69 points he/she passes the exam with the grade of sufficient, from 70-79 with the grade of satisfactory, from 80-89 he/she is considered to have passed with the grade of good and from 90 to 100 with the grade of very good. If the organizational capabilities of the exam centers allow it, the candidate can repeat the exam as many times as he/she wants.

This certificate certifies advanced level knowledge. The holder of this certificate can express himself fluently, in a clear and analytical manner, as well as understand the basic meanings of complex texts. This certificate is made up of the following modules: Reading comprehension, speaking comprehension and writing and speaking production. The exam is available in printed and electronic form. Reading comprehension: The candidate can understand basic information as well as important details of texts with a variety of content, such as newspaper and magazine articles, forums, etc. The duration of the exam is 65 minutes. Writing production: The candidate can express and justify his point of view in writing, as well as write official messages in the context of professional communication. The time is 75 minutes. Speaking comprehension: The candidate is able to understand the main points/important details of interviews, lectures or various discussions. He has approximately 40 minutes at his disposal. Speaking production: With 15 minutes, the candidate can both briefly present a given topic and discuss it with his interlocutor. Participation in this exam is only permitted for candidates who have completed their 16th year of age (adults) and 15th (teenagers). Any difference lies in the degree of difficulty, while it should be noted that the certificates issued are identical. The price is 160 Euros for the entire exam and 65 Euros for the individual modules.

This exam is aimed at adults. It corresponds to the 5th level out of 6, of the linguistic proficiency of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages and certifies knowledge at a very advanced level. Candidates at this level can: - Understand a wide range of extensive and simultaneously demanding texts and also understand the meanings implied. - Express themselves without searching for the right word. - Use language effectively and flexibly in both their social and professional lives and finally - Can formulate their opinions using clear and well-structured speech. The exam is held both in electronic and printed form. Interested candidates must be 16 years of age or older. Below is a detailed description of each examined unit: Reading comprehension: The candidate at this level is able to understand both the main points of a text and individual details and opinions as they are expressed. Time: 65 minutes Written production: The candidate here can seamlessly use different tones, linguistic styles and the code that suits each situation and recipient. Time: 75 minutes Oral comprehension: The candidate is able to understand both the main points and individual details and opinions on specific topics Time: approximately 40 minutes Oral production: He can analyze a topic with arguments as well as present it briefly, but also discuss with his co-candidate that it is related to the specific content. Time: 20 minutes.

The C2 exam is aimed at adult candidates and certifies excellent knowledge. It corresponds to the 6th level of the six-level scale of language proficiency for the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages. Passing this exam proves that: - You can understand what is read and heard in German without difficulty - You are fluent and precise in your wording, even on difficult topics The federal states of Germany recognize this exam as a certificate for the purpose of granting teaching qualifications. The competent bodies for more information are: the Ministries of Culture, Education and Training. This certificate replaced the certificates: Oberstufenprüfung (ZOP), Kleines Deutsches Sprachdiplom (KDS) and Großes Deutsches Sprachdiplom (GDS), from 01/01/2012. Interested candidates may participate either in individual modules or in a combination of modules. The sections Comprehension of written and spoken language as well as the production of spoken language are assessed by the Examination Center, while the Goethe Institut headquarters are responsible for the assessment of the section Production of written language. In order to take part in this examination, candidates must be 18 years of age or older. Below is a more specific description of each section of this examination: - For comprehension of written language: (80 minutes) The candidate reads with ease texts of encyclopedic content, as well as reports and is able to process various exercises. - For production of written language (80 minutes) The candidate is able to reformulate excerpts of short presentations and to compose well-structured texts in the form of e.g. a letter, using the appropriate stylistic and structural means. - For oral comprehension (35 minutes) The candidate must be able to work through various types of exercises after listening to conversations or interviews, where the speech is done at a natural pace. - For oral comprehension (15 minutes) The candidate presents a topic, which is complex and at the end must answer questions. To achieve this, he uses various linguistic modes.