Cambridge English Skills Test Business helps learners assess English language skills for professional and workplace contexts quickly, accurately and flexibly. It provides reliable results aligned to the CEFR from A1 to C1.

Exam format

Cambridge English Skills Test Business is a flexible, online, modular assessment designed for adult learners aged 16+ who need to demonstrate English language skills in workplace and professional environments, which tests:

Reading

30-40 minutes* (approx.)

The Reading module assesses a candidate’s ability to understand written English across a range of texts and situations. Tasks are designed to evaluate comprehension, vocabulary and the ability to identify key information and meaning.

*The Reading and Listening modules are adaptive, which means they end when the algorithm establishes the test-takers level. Maximum test length is 59 mins.

Open Cloze

A text with 5 gaps, each to be filled with a single grammatical word. The length of the text may range between 60 – 150 words depending on the level.

Multiple-choice Cloze

A text with 5 gaps each with 3 or 4 multiple choice options (3 at A1-B1, 4 at B2 and above). The length of the text may range between 60 – 150 depending on the level.

Cross Text Matching

Candidates read across four texts on the same topic in order to find the relevant information to match to prompts or questions. The combined length of all texts may range between 500 – 600 words.

Discrete cloze

A gapped sentence task with a single 3 or 4option (3 options at A1-B1, 4 options at B2 or above) multiple-choice item.

Reading Discrete with a graphic

Candidates read a short text e.g. a notice or a message (or at A1 look at a picture) and answer a single 3-option multiple-choice question. Some contextual support is available for the presentation of texts including pro-forma templates such as email screens, post-it notes, text messages, other templates such as notices and labels, and a variety of fonts and text styles.

Gapped Text, Sentences

Candidates read a long text with five gaps representing extracted sentences. Candidates match the extracted sentences to the gaps, selecting from a set of eight options, five of which are keys while three are distractors.

Gapped Text, Paragraphs

Candidates read a text from which five sections have been removed and fill each gap by choosing the appropriate paragraph from six options 5 of which are keys while 1 is a distractor. The total text length of the text (i.e. base text plus the six paragraph options) may range between 600 – 700 words.

Comprehension Task with 5 items

This is a reading comprehension text followed by five 3- or 4-option multiple choice questions (3 options at A1-B1, 4 options at B2 or above). Texts may range between 200 – 600 words depending on level of difficulty.

Comprehension Task with 2 items

This is a reading comprehension task but with a shorter text and just two 4-option multiplechoice questions. Texts may range between 200 – 250 words depending on level of difficulty.

Listening

30-40 minutes* (approx.)

The Listening module assesses a candidate’s ability to understand spoken English in different contexts. Candidates listen to a variety of recordings and complete tasks that test comprehension, attention to detail and understanding of the speaker’s meaning.

*The Reading and Listening modules are adaptive, which means they end when the algorithm establishes the test-takers level. Maximum test length is 59 mins.

5-item comprehension

Five multiple-choice questions about an audio, featuring one, two or three speakers. Depending on level, the task will have three or four options per question and the audio will be between 120 and 650 words.

2-item comprehension

Two multiple-choice questions about an audio, featuring one or two speakers. The task will have three options per question. The audio is between 160 and 260 words depending on the level.

1-item comprehension

One multiple-choice question about an audio, featuring one or two speakers. The task will have three written options, or three image options. The audio is between 70 and 150 words depending on the level.

Note completion

A title and five gapped sentences summarising key points from a monologue. The monologue is between 300 and 400 words. Each gap can be completed with up to three words heard in the audio.

One question multimatching

A series of five themed monologues of approximately 30 seconds each. The same question is asked of each monologue and candidates must select the correct answer for each from a list of eight options.

Writing

45 minutes

The Writing module assesses a candidate’s ability to communicate ideas effectively in written English. Tasks evaluate organisation, language use and the ability to respond appropriately to different writing purposes.

Part 1: Email

A short email in response to an input text with guidance on content and structure provided.

Part 2: Scenario

A report, email, article or other appropriate form of extended writing based on brief instructions in the rubric.

Speaking

16 minutes

The Speaking module assesses a candidate’s ability to communicate clearly and effectively in spoken English. Candidates complete a range of speaking tasks designed to evaluate fluency, language use and communication skills.

Part 1: Interview

The candidate answers eight questions about themselves.

Part 2: Reading Aloud

The candidate reads aloud eight sentences

Part 3: Presentation

The candidate speaks on a given topic.

Part 4: Presentation with visual information

The candidate gives a presentation based on the graphic information given.

Part 5: Communication Activity

The candidate gives opinions on five questions related to a scenario.

Candidate advice sheets with top tips

Read the top tips for Cambridge English Skills Test Business, created by Cambridge English assessment specialists to give you the best chance of succeeding in your test:

Reading
Listening
Speaking
Writing

Sample tests

Cambridge English Skills Test Business

Reading
Listening
Writing
Speaking

Use these online sample tests to familiarise yourself with the types of questions used in Cambridge English Skills Test Business. These sample tests do not provide a result or save your answers.

Note: The Reading and Listening sample test is not adaptive and is shorter than a real test. The Speaking sample test requires a headphone set and microphone.

Writing assessment criteria & sample responses

Writing is one of the skills which candidates can improve very quickly with the right guidance and tools, so make sure they are equipped to pick up all the extra marks they can!

To help you do this, we have provided sample writing answers for levels A1, B1, B2 and C1 and, covering each part of the exam. Alongside these examples, you will find examiner comments explaining the reasoning behind the level achieved and highlighting the key content that needs to be included.

We also provide two sections of sample answers:

Writing sample responses

For further reference, you can also download the Writing Assessment Criteria here.

In addition, Write & Improve, a free tool developed by the University of Cambridge to help students improve their written English, is an excellent resource to help you prepare.

Speaking practice and assessment criteria

Speak & Improve is a great way to practise your speaking skills and get used to the experience of taking an online speaking test like Linguaskill.

The Speaking Assessment Criteria gives you information on what you need to demonstrate in order to reach each CEFR level.

Test designs and specifications

These materials will help you understand more about the research behind the test.

Test Your English

Skill Test - Business

Information for candidates