Exams in schools
Cambridge English exams in private, grant assisted and state schools.
  • Exams at the school
  • How to organise exams in your school
  • Information for parents
  • Support for teachers
  • International recognition
  • Preparation Centre Logos
  • How to officially accept Cambridge English exams
 
Cambridge English examinations in your own school…
The initiative to promote Cambridge English exams within the school sector continues to have a widespread positive impact on the students’ level of English.

The main aim is to facilitate and reinforce the learning and teaching of English within the Spanish schools system through Cambridge English exams.

All formal education schools may apply to organise exam sessions in their own premises.



Since the National Schools Project was set up in 2005 thousands of candidates in Spain have been able to take the Cambridge English exams in their school with many significant advantages:
  • Greater confidence: younger students lose the ‘stage fright’ that comes from taking an exam at an unknown external venue. They are more relaxed and this has a positive effect on their overall performance.
  • Increased motivation: children work harder and want to show what they have learnt.
  • Normality: Cambridge English exams become a familiar part of the learning experience as they are integrated into the school curriculum.
  • Projection: Schools aim for students to finish ‘Batxillerat’ with C1 Advanced.
Our Cambridge exam centre provides a wide range of help and support to schools and teachers. We offer an extensive support programme which includes free seminars, round table sessions for teachers, materials, etc.





How to organise an exam session at your school
You can hold an exam session at your school as long as you have a minimum of 10 candidates per level.

If you do not have enough candidates they can still take the exam at one of our open session venues.



Organising an exam session at your own centre
 
Entering your students for a Cambridge English exam is easy to do. If you are a registered Exams Madrid Preparation Centre you can now enter and manage your exam candidates via our new portal Exams Madrid Online. This secure new portal will give you control over the registration process and a direct line to our centre to ensure that your candidates are correctly registered for their exam. In order to access Exams Madrid Online all you have to do is log in.


If you still don’t have access to Exams Madrid Online and wish to enter candidates for an exam please click on the following link to register https://centres.exams-madrid.com/sign-in/register.

In order to register candidates securely and reliably, Preparation Centres should always use the Exams Madrid Online portal.









All exams (except Young Learners, A2 Key for Schools and B1 Preliminary for Schools)

1. Choose a date for your session from our exams calendar. We can organise an exam session in your school on any of the dates offered by Cambridge English including those not available on our current exam calendar. Remember that minimum candidate numbers apply for all exam sessions in schools.

Once you have chosen the date our centre will confirm the session and final entry date. (Please note that final entry dates are normally 3 - 7 weeks before the exam in the case of paper based tests and 2 - 3 weeks before the exam in the case of Digital Tests.
2. Once we have confirmed the date of your session you should register your candidates and make payment before the final entry date.
3. You will receive all the exam documents, instructions and timetables in advance of your exam session.


A2 Key for Schools, B1 Preliminary for Schools and Young Learners (YLE)

The A2 Key for Schools, B1 Preliminary for Schools and Young Learners (YLE) tests are on-demand and you can choose the date.

If you would like to organise a session at your school please request a session via the Exams Madrid Online portal.
Once we have aproved your session you should register your candidates and make payment before the deadline.

Rules and regulations
If you would like your students to take Cambridge exams at their school it is essential that you comply with the following basic guidelines:

Paper based exams
Exam room requirements:
Individual tables/desks which must face in the same direction.
Each candidate must be seated no less than 1.25m away from other candidates in all directions.
A reliable, good quality sound system for the listening test.
A black/whiteboard.
A wall clock.
There should be no books, papers or materials under/in the tables/desks.
All posters/materials with English on them must be removed from the walls.
Exam day staff:
Your school must provide a supervisor who should be available for the duration of the exam session.
Your staff must ensure that there is silence outside the exam room while the test is in progress.
Secure storage:
Prior to the exam session the exam materials must be locked unopened in a solid metal cabinet or secure store-room.
The store room must have a solid locked door and limited access. If there is a window it should have bars or there should be a burglar alarm installed.

Digital exams
Exam room requirements:
Your computers can be laptops or desktops - please contact us for the technical specifications at [email protected] or tel. 911 741 761.
Good quality headphones.
Internet (Cambridge exams can be administered on Wi-Fi but we prefer cable!).
Separator panels.
If your computers are less than 1.25m apart you will need to place separators between them to prevent students from seeing other candidates’ work.
A black/whiteboard.
All posters/materials with English on them must be removed from the walls.
Exam day staff:
A computer technician must be available for the duration of the exam session.
Your school must provide a supervisor who should be available for the duration of the exam session.
Your staff must ensure that there is silence outside the exam room while the test is in progress.
Secure storage:
Prior to the exam session the exam materials must be locked unopened in a solid metal cabinet or secure store-room.
The store room must have a solid locked door and limited access. If there is a window it should have bars or there should be a burglar alarm installed.


Exam Security:
Cambridge English and Exams Madrid take exam security very seriously.

Watch this video to learn more about the high levels of security have built into every stage of the exam process; from the production of exam papers and what happens on exam day at the exam centre, to the integrity of exam data.


For further information or queries please contact us at [email protected]
or telephone 911 741 761
ALL THE INFORMATION AND SUPPORT YOU NEED TO PREPARE FOR THE CAMBRIDGE ASSESSMENT ENGLISH EXAMS ON OUR NEW PORTAL...
Official support site of Exams Catalunya,Exams Madrid and Exams Balears for Preparation Centres, Teachers and Candidates

Exams Owl is our new support site for candidates, schools and teachers. The site provides comprehensive information on exam structure and content as well as support to help you or your students prepare for their exam and understand their results:



ALL THE INFORMATION AND SUPPORT YOU NEED TO PREPARE FOR THE CAMBRIDGE ASSESSMENT ENGLISH EXAMS ON OUR NEW PORTAL...
Official support site of Exams Catalunya,Exams Madrid and Exams Balears for Preparation Centres, Teachers and Candidates

Exams Owl is our new support site for candidates, schools and teachers. The site provides comprehensive information on exam structure and content as well as support to help you or your students prepare for their exam and understand their results:

- Information about the exams - Teaching resources
- Webinars and training - Handbooks for teachers
- Information for Preparation Centres


International recognition
Cambridge English certificates open the door to exciting study and work opportunities for students when they leave school.



The Cambridge English certificates are the most valuable, widely recognised English qualifications in the world, accepted by over 20,000 organisations internationally. In Madrid these include:
  • Universities, institutions and colleges, such as ESADE , San Pablo CEU, La Salle Centro Universitario, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Universidad Carlos III, IESE Business School, Universidad de Alcalá de Henares, Colegio Universitario Cardenal Cisneros .
  • Employers, such as Banc Sabadell, Grupo Danone, IKEA Ibérica, Caixabank, Nestlé España, Sol Meliá, Sony España, Barceló Hotels & Resorts, Catalana Occidente.
To find organisations, employers, universities, colleges and other organisations that recognise Cambridge English exams, visit the Cambridge English Recogniton Online Database.

The Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR)
All The Cambridge English exams are linked to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) - the internationally agreed standard to describe language ability. This makes it easy to see the progress your students are making in English.

Students gain confidence as they work their way up the exam levels - getting experience and qualifications that show their skills in reading, writing, listening and speaking.

Click on the image to enlarge.


Research

The Cambridge English exams for schools are informed by years of research and reflection on how children like to learn, and how they learn best. Research helps to ensure that the exams are designed for children first – that they are non-threatening, motivating and have a positive impact on teaching and learning.

For more on research and validation go to the Cambridge English Research site
https://www.cambridgeenglish.org/research-and-validation
Preparation Centre Logos
The Exams Madrid Preparation Centre Logos

Centres that register students for Cambridge Assessment English examinations through Exams Madrid are welcome to use these logos on their websites, leaflets or other publicity material.  The logos can be downloaded  in both high and low resolution via the related sites and links page on our Exams Owl portal.
Recognising our Preparation Centres

Cambridge Assessment English is happy to provide schools which actively prepare candidates for the Cambridge English exams with the graphics below (which are Cambridge English trademarks) to help promote exam preparation courses. Please note, however, that permission to use these graphics is dependent on you continuing to prepare students and your agreement (by use of any of these graphics) to comply with these regulations (which permission and compliance is governed by English law and subject to the English courts).



How to officially accept Cambridge English exams
You can start officially accepting The Cambridge English exams in just three simple steps:

  • Step 1
    Go to this link and fill in the form. You can use it to ask for further information too.
  • Step 2
    Amend your website, course literature and offer letter to state which Cambridge English exams and which scores are accepted by your institution – and for which courses.
  • Step 3
    Sign up for the free, secure online Results Verification Service to instantly verify applicants’ exam results and view their test-day photo. To register, go to www.cambridgeenglish.org/verifiers.
Find out more
To find out more about how you can use The Cambridge English exams to benefit your institution, email the Recognition team at [email protected] – Cambridge English will be delighted to provide more information or organise a meeting.
Already accept Cambridge English exams?
Make sure you let Cambridge English know so it can keep you up to date on developments and include you in the Global Online Recognition Database so candidates know they can apply to your institution.

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