Cambridge First Certificate in English (FCE)

Who's it for?

This course is aimed at hard working, motivated adults who would like to prepare thoroughly for the Cambridge First Certificate and maximise their chance of succeeding in the exam.

Course content

The course is a highly intensive but broad programme of language development, focusing on all of the main skills that are required in the FCE exam. A lot of attention is given to developing the different forms of writing tested in the exam, and to achieving a high degree of grammatical accuracy. Vocabulary development is another extremely important aspect of the course. Listening and speaking are also significant parts of the course.

As part of the course, you will take a full mock examination to give you an idea of what to expect, and to get you used to working under examination conditions. You will also concentrate on developing good exam techniques and practise with past examination papers.

Throughout the course, you will be regularly set a wide variety of exercises for homework which will enable you to identify the areas that you particularly need to focus on improving. You will receive a lot of individual feedback, correction and advice.

A full online practice FCE exam is included in the course.  Some of this will be used on the course, but it can also be used by course participants in their own time to prepare for the exam.

By the end of the course you will be able to:

• take the exam with greater confidence
• approach the 5 different components of the Cambridge FCE exam (Reading, Writing, Use of English, Listening and Speaking) with greater confidence
• handle the language more effectively and with greater confidence
• understand what you read and hear more easily
• speak and write more accurately
• speak more fluently
• use a wider range of vocabulary in your written and spoken English
• understand the areas you need to work on the most

2013 Dates & Fees

Course dates

21st January – 15th March 2013 (exam on 15th March)
15th April - 7th June 2013 (exam on 8th June)
14th October - 6th December 2013 (exam on 7th December)

Course fee and exam fee

Course fees do not include the examination fee. Students will only be registered for the examination after payment of the appropriate fees.

• £3040 (8 week course)
• Exam fee £130

If you would like us to book an exam place for you, please tell us when you book your course.

A late fee may be payable for bookings received less than 3 weeks before the start date of the course.

The examination

The examination consists of the following five components and types of questions and tasks:

• Reading - you will practise reading a variety of different texts, such as advertisements, brochures, fiction, newspaper/magazine articles and reports. You will practise all of the different reading style questions that you will come across in the exam.
• Writing - you will practise writing formal and informal letters, articles, discursive compositions, short stories, reports and proposals.
• Use of English - you will practise all of the task types in Paper 3 of the exam, designed to test vocabulary and/or grammar: the multiple-choice cloze, the open cloze, key word transformations and word formation.
• Listening - you will practise listening to a variety of different texts, such as instructions, answer phone messages, public announcements, lectures, discussions, interviews and informal conversations; all of which may come up in the exam.
• Speaking - You will practise all of the task types in Paper 5 of the exam, which are designed to test your ability to respond to questions, speak and interact.

Bruna Cossi, Brazil

When I first arrived at The London School of English, I didn’t really know which course would be best for me. However Andy, the Courses Manager, advised me to do FCE after I spoke to him about my aims and needs. His advice was so valuable and so correct and in fact FCE was perfect for me as I could review all my grammar and fill in all the gaps in my knowledge. After that, I studied YBE for a few weeks and it was another great choice as I could expand my vocabulary a lot, get to know different people with different backgrounds and enjoy a completely different environment. Moreover, after all this time in London, I decided I wanted to study at a British University for a while, so I started doing the IELTS course, which prepared me very well for the IELTS exam and lead me to achieve the best score that I could. However I had to rush all the application documents for the university application, and once again the school staff helped me a lot. Rosie was amazing, she supported me filling in all the documents for the university in a week, a record time, and I was accepted for all that I applied for. I think I made a great decision going to London School of English, as to learn English you really need to spend time speaking English, and you can’t do that unless you take a full time course which this school offers, as well as having a friendly environment with welcoming people.

Courses at London School:
IGC 1 week
FCE 8 weeks
YBE 4 weeks
IELTS 7 weeks 

Progress 5 – 6.5

BA Business Administration Study Abroad Programme plus internship University of Westminster January 2013