If you are learning Spanish, one of your goals is to pass the DELE Exam. It is the official exam of the Instituto Cervantes that accredits your knowledge and level of Spanish. If you want to work for a company in Spain, you will most likely be asked for this qualification. Thanks to it, you will be able to prove that you really know how to speak Spanish. But, how can you pass the DELE Exam?
On the Instituto Cervantes website you will find test models for the different levels, from A1 to C2. They also make the answer sheet available to everyone, so you can easily prepare for the exam. At Academia Contacto we have a special DELE preparation course for you to get the best possible score. We explain how to pass the DELE Exam in the different levels.
Also, if you want to check your Spanish level you can use our online test. It is very useful to find out what your level is.
How to pass the DELE exam A1
The exam consists of the following tests:
- Reading Comprehension Test
- Listening Comprehension Test
- Test of written expression and interaction
- Oral expression and interaction test
The first part corresponds to the reading comprehension. Students are expected to answer 25 questions. The duration of the exam is 45 minutes. They will have to write or mark the correct choice on the answer sheet, not on the exam.
- In the first test a text is provided and the student must answer five questions about the text. Four answers (A, B, C or D) are given to each question and the student must choose the correct answer.
- In the second test, the student will have 10 grades. He must read them carefully and then relate each note to the corresponding phrase. There are three notes that are left over, that is, they do not have a corresponding phrase.
- In the third test, the student should read some house ads. Below are some numbers with a text. He should relate the ads to the numbers below. There are three ads that you should not select because there is no correspondence.
- In the fourth test they offer you information about cultural and leisure offers: time, place... Below are some incomplete sentences that the student should fill in with information about culture and leisure.
Listening test for DELE exam A1
After this first part comes the listening test. This also contains 4 tests. You have to answer 25 questions and you have 20 minutes.
- In the first test, the student will hear five short dialogues between two people. The dialogue will be listened to twice. After the second audition it is time to make the right choice. There are 4 options (A, B, C and D)
- In the second test the student will hear five very short messages. He will hear them twice. The audio must be related to the images provided. There are three images that do not have corresponding audio.
- In the third test, the student will hear a person talking about the classmates in the Spanish class. Each audio will be played twice. The student must relate each person to a letter. There are three letters that should not be selected.
- in the fourth test, the student must complete a text with the missing information. an audio will be played three times to give him time to understand everything.
Now is the time to take the test of written expression and interaction. This part of the test contains two tests. The student has 25 minutes to take the exam.
- In the first test you have to fill in the information requested by a website. you have signed up on a page to meet friends who speak Spanish. Fill in all the fields.
- In the second test you will have to write an advertisement about a flat you are going to rent. The student will have to explain what the flat looks like and how much it costs.
Write and oral test
We come to the last part of the exam: oral expression and interaction test. On this occasion.
- The first part of the exam is a personal presentation, between 1 and 2 minutes long. (name, age, nationality, languages spoken, studies, work...)
- The second part is the presentation of a topic, between 2 and 3 minutes in length. (meals, free time, studies, work, sports...)
- The third part is the conversation with the interviewer, between 3 and 4 minutes long. You will have a conversation with the interviewer about your presentation and your exposition of the topic.
- The last part is the dialogue based on slides, between 2 and 3 minutes in length.
For the first two parts, the student will have 15 minutes of previous preparation.
How to pass DELE exam A2
The exam consists of the following tests:
- Reading Comprehension Test
- Listening Comprehension Test
- Test of written expression and interaction
- Oral expression and interaction test
The first part of the exam corresponds to the Reading comprehension test. It has five tests in which the student must answer 30 questions. You have 60 minutes to do this.
- In the first test the student must read seven statements and ten texts. The student must select the text (A-K) that corresponds to each sentence (from 1 to 7). There are eleven texts including the example. You should select only seven. The rest will be without correspondence.
- In the second test, the student will have to read an email that Pedro has written to his friend Virginia. Once read, he must answer the questions (8 to 12). She is given three possible answers (A, B, and C). The student must choose the correct one.
- In the third test, the student must read six announcements. After this, he will have to answer the questions posed (from 13 to 18). The correct choice must be made between the three proposals (A, B or C).
- In the fourth assignment, the student should read six statements and ten texts that contain information about houses to rent or buy. He should select the text (A-J) that corresponds to each sentence (from 19 to 24). There are ten texts, counting the example. The student should select six.
- In the fifth test, the student should read a text about home exchange. Then he will have to answer the questions between 25 and 30. After this he will have to select the correct option among the 3 proposals (A, B or C).
The second part of the test corresponds to listening comprehension.
The listening compression part has five tasks. You will have to answer 30 questions. Each test lasts 35 minutes.
- In the first test the student will listen to seven radio announcements. The announcements are repeated twice to ensure understanding. The student should read questions 1 through 7 for each announcement and select the correct option from the 3 proposals (A, B, or C).
- In the second test, the student must listen to a part of a radio program. After this he will have to answer six questions. The audition is put twice for a better understanding. The student should read questions 8 to 13 and select the correct option among the three proposals (A, B or C).
- In the third test, the student will hear seven messages, including the example. Each message will be repeated twice. The student should select the A to J statement that corresponds to each message, from 14 to 19. The student will find ten statements, counting the example. Six should be selected.
- In the fourth test the student will hear a telephone conversation between a travel agency employee and a client. The conversation will be listened to twice. The student will read questions 20 to 25 and must select the correct option (A, B or C).
- In the fifth test, the student will hear a conversation between two people. The conversation will be listened to twice. Then the student must select the image from A to H that corresponds to each of the statements between 26 and 30. There are 8 images and only five can be selected.
Write and oral test
Now comes the test of written expression and interaction
This part of the exam has 3 tests and a duration of 50 minutes.
- In the first test, the student must write a message in the forum of the Sports Service of his university. You need to find people to practice a sport. In the announcement you will have to include what sport you do, why you need to find someone, where and when you want to practice it to inform how they can be.
- in the second test, the student will have to write an email to a friend explaining that this week has changed work. the email must include what the new job is and where it works. You can describe the place of work, the reason for the change, what the new functions are... It is important to remember to say hello and say goodbye. The mail should contain between 70 and 80 words.
- In the third test, the student will have to write an essay about his last vacation. The exam will include some photos that can be used as a guide
In last place we have the tests of oral expression and interaction. This part consists of four tests.
- The first test consists of the exposition of a topic. Here the student should talk to the interviewer about a topic. It should last between three and four minutes.
- The second test consists of a description of a photograph. It should also last about three to four minutes.
- In the third test the student should do a dialogue in a simulated situation. This means that he will have to talk to the interviewer as a result of the photograph he has previously commented on.
- The fourth test consists of a conversation to reach an agreement. At this point, the student will have to dialogue with the interviewer to reach an agreement on a decision to be taken jointly.
This test takes a total of 15 minutes. For the first three parts, the student will be able to write and take notes of the answers.
How to pass DELE exam B1
The DELE exam B1 consists of the following tests:
- Reading Comprehension Test
- Listening Comprehension Test
- Test of written expression and interaction
- Oral expression and interaction test
The first test consists of checking the reading compression. In this part the student will have to answer a battery of 30 questions. The duration of the test is 70 minutes.
- The first test consists of reading six texts in which people talk about the television programmes they usually watch. There are also ten texts reporting on television programmes. The student will have to relate people (1-6) to the texts of the programs (A-J). There are three texts that cannot be related.
- The second test consists of reading a text about jewels. Then, you will have to answer a series of questions (from 7 to 12) by selecting one of the three proposed options (A, B, C).
- In the third test, the student will have to read three texts in which parents talk about the organization of a birthday party. The student must relate the questions (from 13 to 18) to texts A, B or C.
- In the fourth test, the student must read a text from which six fragments have been extracted. Afterwards, the student must read the 8 fragments in rounds (from A to H) and decide where in the text (19-34) each one should be placed. There are two fragments that the student will not have to choose.
- In the fifth test, the student will have to read a text that is missing some words and fill in those gaps with one of the correct options proposed (A, B or C).
The following set of questions refers to Listening Comprehension Test
The listening test consists of five tests. The student will have to answer 30 questions for which he has 40 minutes.
- In the first test, the student will have to listen to six voice messages from a telephone mailbox. The message can be listened to twice. After this, he will have to answer the questions (from 1 to 6) by selecting the correct option among the proposals (A, B and C).
- In the second test, the student will listen to a fragment of a radio program in which a person tells about his or her life in Spain. You can listen to it twice. Then you will have to answer the questions with one of the answers provided (A, B or C).
- In the third test, the student will listen to a Colombian radio program with six news items. The program will be played twice so that the student understands perfectly. He will have to answer questions 13 to 18. The student must select the correct answer (A, B, C).
- in the fourth test, the student will listen to six people who talk about their time in college. Each person's audio will be played twice. You will need to select the A to J statement that matches each speaker.
- In the fifth test, the student will hear a conversation between two friends. He should see if the statements (25-30) refer to what Alvaro, Beatriz or neither of them speaks. The conversation will be listened to twice.
Write and oral test
The next phase consists of written expression and interaction tests. It contains two tests and the student has 60 minutes to complete them.
- In the first test, the student should read an email sent to him/her by a friend. Once read, he will have to write an email to his friend answering the questions he asks. You will have to say hello, tell the reasons for your trip, where and how the meeting with another friend was and what plans you made. You should also talk about your intention to go to Barcelona and, finally, say goodbye. The email should contain between 100 and 120 words.
- In the second test, the student will have to choose between two options.
- In option A) the student reads an advertisement published in a gastronomy blog. They are looking for collaborators and want followers to write about their experience of food at special moments in their lives. In this option they will have to tell what moment it was, who was with and why, what they ate, who prepared the food and why it is a special moment. The text should be between 130 and 150 words.
- In option B) the student must read a message that appears on the website of the City Council of his or her city. In it, citizens are invited to participate in the photo expressing their opinion about last year's festivities and talking about the activities they would like to see in the next festivities. The text should contain: a presentation. Tell what activities you attended last year. Explain which activities you liked the most and why. Propose several activities for the next holidays. The text should be between 130 and 150 words.
The next phase corresponds to the oral expression and interaction test. This contains four tests. The student has 15 minutes to prepare tests 1 and 2. The student will be able to take the necessary notes and make an outline that can be consulted in the exam. however, he will not be able to read the outline as such.
- The first test consists of a short presentation that should last between 2 and 3 minutes. Two topics are proposed and the student will have to choose one.
- In the second test should participate in a conversation, between 3 and 4 minutes. The student will have to dialogue with the interviewer about the topic chosen for test 1.
- In the third test, the student will have to describe a photograph and participate in a conversation. The duration of this test is between 2 and 3 minutes. He will have to choose one of the two options. The interviewer will ask some questions.
- In the fourth test there will be a dialogue in a simulated situation. You will have to dialogue with the interviewer in a simulated situation between two and three minutes.
How to pass DELE exam B2
The first phase is Reading Comprehension and has four tests. The student has to answer 36 questions. He has 70 minutes to do this phase.
- In the first test the student will have to read a text about electronic garbage. After this, the student must read the questions (from 1 to 6) and select the correct answer among the three proposals (A, B and C).
- In the second test, the student will have to read four texts. Four writers remember how they published the first book. They should relate questions (7 to 16) to texts A, B, C or D.
- In the third test, the student will have to read eight fragments (from A to H) and decide where in the text (from 17 to 22) each of the six extracted fragments should be placed. Between the options there are two fragments that should not be chosen.
- In the fourth test, the student has to read a text and fill in the gaps (from 23 to 36) with one of the three proposed options: A, B or C.
The second phase corresponds to listening comprehension. This phase has 5 tests and the student must answer 30 questions. The student has 40 minutes to do this.
- In the first test the student will hear six short conversations. You will hear each conversation twice. After this, the student will have to answer the questions (from 1 to 6) by selecting the correct option among the three proposals (A, B and C).
- In the second test, the student will hear a conversation between two friends. He will have to indicate whether the statements (from 7 to 12) refer to Antonio, Barbara or neither of the two (A, B or C). The conversation will be listened to twice.
- In the third test, the student will listen to an interview with a Mexican chef. The interview will be played twice. The student will have to answer the questions (from 13 to 18) selecting the correct answer (A, B or C).
- In the fourth test, the student will listen to six people who give advice on how to set up a business. Each audio will be played twice. The student must select the sentence (from A to J) that corresponds to the topic of which each person speaks (from 19 to 24). There are ten statements including the example and you only have to select six.
- In the fifth test, the student will listen to a woman who talks about her own company. The audio will be played twice. The student will then have to answer the questions (25 to 30) by selecting the correct option (A, B or C).
Write and oral test
The third phase corresponds to the test of written expression and interaction. The test consists of 2 tests and there are 80 minutes to do them.
- In the first test, the student will have to put himself in the shoes of an art lover who visits many museums. The student will have to write a letter to the director of the local newspaper. In ellam you will have to show your rejection to the precious rise of the tickets. First you will hear a news item in which the next price increase will be announced. The audition can be played twice. It is recommended that the student take notes and then use them. The letter should be presented. Explain why you are affected by the price increase and cite the consequences of this increase. the text should be between 150 and 180 words.
- In the second test, the student must choose only one of the two options proposed.
- Option 1. In the first option, you collaborate with a university journal. They have asked you to write an article on the cultural activities most frequently carried out by young university students. This article has to include and analyse the following information:
The importance of cultural leisure among young people; compare different cultural activities in general; highlight the most important facts; express their opinion on the information in the graph and draw a conclusion. The text should be between 150 and 180 words. Ç
- Option B. In this second option you are a collaborator in a theatre blog. You have attended a play that was premiered and you must write a review. The exam provides the necessary information. With this, you will have to write a text in which you add:
A short introduction to the importance of children's theatre; valuing the work of the actors; tell how the public reacted; to elaborate an opinion on the work.
The fourth phase corresponds to the test of oral expression and interaction. The phase consists of 3 tests.
- The first test consistsof evaluating proposals and talking about them. The student will have to talk in between 3 and 4 minutes about the advantages and disadvantages of certain proposals. In total, the test should last between 6 and 7 minutes.
- In the second test the student will have to describe an imaginary situation from a photograph and talk about it. On this occasion he has between 5 and 6 minuyos. You should describe the photograph in 2 to 3 minutes and then talk to the interviewer about his or her opinion. There are no correct answers. It is an opinion. Oral expression is valued.
- In the third test, the student will have to give an opinion on the data observed in about 4 minutes. He will talk to the interviewer about the survey data and will have to express his opinion.
The student has 20 minutes to prepare tests 1 and 2. He or she can take notes and write an outline that can be consulted during the test. However, the student cannot limit himself to reading.
How to pass DELE exam C1
The first phase is reading comprehension and use of the language. This phase contains five tasks. You will have to answer 40 questions. For this, the student has 90 minutes.
- In the first test the student will read a lease. You will have to answer questions 1 to 6. You will have to select the correct option among the three proposals: A, B and C.
- In the second test, the student must read a text from which six paragraphs have been extracted. Then he should read the seven proposed fragments (from A to G) and decide where in the text (from 7 to 12) each one should be placed.
- In the third test, the student will have to read the text and answer questions 13 to 18. He will have to select the correct option among the 3 proposals (A, B and C).
- In the fourth test, the student has in front of him six texts (from A to F) and eight statements (from 19 to 26). The student must read it and choose the text that corresponds to each sentence. There are texts that must be chosen more than once.
- In the fifth test, the student must read the text and fill in the gaps from 27 to 40 with the proposed choice between the 3 correct: A, B or C.
The second phase includes tests of listening comprehension and use of the language. This phase contains four tasks with 30 questions. The student has 50 minutes to answer them.
- In the first test the student will hear a fragment of a lecture in which notes were taken. For each note (from 1 to 6) you must choose the corresponding word or phrase fragment from the twelve options that appear (from A to L). The audio will be played twice.
- In the second test, the student will hear four conversations. Each conversation will be played twice. In student will have to select the correct option of the three proposals: A, B or C.
- In the third test, the student will hear a fragment of an interview. Then he will have to answer the questions, between 15 and 20 and select the correct option among the three proposals: A, B or C.
- In the fourth test, the student will listen to ten brief dialogues. Each dialogue will be reproduced twice. The student has to answer questions 21 to 30 and select the correct option among the three proposals: A, B or C.
Write and listening test
The third phase includes tests of listening comprehension and written expression and interaction. The test contains two tasks and the student has 80 minutes to complete them.
- The first test the student will listen to a fragment of a lecture. He will do it twice. He can take notes. Afterwards, the student must write an article summarizing the main points of the conference. At the end you will have to express your opinion on the topic. It should be between 220 and 250 words.
- In the second test the student has two options.
- Option A). The student should write a review of a magazine on his blog. This should include a brief presentation of the magazine, comment on the collaborators or sections, talk about the design and graphic material, allude to an issue or article and express the opinion and assessment of the magazine mentioning the positive aspects and those that can be improved.
- Option B) The student will have to carry out postgraduate studies in Spain and has read an advertisement in the newspaper. They must write a letter of application for one of the scholarships, following the guidelines indicated in the advertisement.Interested parties should send a letter of application to: becas@fundacioncristina.es. In your letter must include: their special interest in the course they want to take (personal goals, why that course is so important). university...); the reasons why they consider themselves worthy of the scholarship (training, experience...); the reasons why they consider themselves worthy of the scholarship (training, experience,aptitudes, attitude...)
The fourth phase corresponds to integrated skills: reading comprehension and oral expression and interaction. The approximate duration of the test is 20 minutes. This phase has three tests:
- In the first test you will have to make an oral presentation on a text that you will have read before. you have between 3 and 5 minutes to do this first test.
- In the second test you have to have a conversation with the interviewer about the subject of the text of Task 1. For this test you have between four and six minutes.
- In the third test the student should have an informal conversation. He will have to negotiate with the interviewer and come to an agreement. For this test, the student has between four and six minutes.
How to pass DELE exam C2
The first phase focuses on language use and reading comprehension. This phase has a total duration of 60 minutes. It has three exercises with 26 questions.
- In the first exercise, the student must read a text and fill in the gaps (from 1 to 12) with one of the proposed options: A, B or C.
- In the second exercise, the student will have to read the text, from which six paragraphs have been extracted. Afterwards, he will have to read seven proposed fragments: from A to G and decide where in the text (from 13 to 18) each one should be placed. There is a fragment that does not have to be placed.
- In the third exercise, the student will have six texts (from A to F) and eight statements (from 19 to 26). The student will have to read and choose the text that corresponds to each sentence. There are texts that will have to be chosen more than once.
The second phase refers to listening comprehension. It has three exercises and the approximate duration is 45 minutes. You will have to answer 26 questions.
- In the first test the student will hear a fragment of a lecture in which notes were taken. Twelve options appear (from A to L) and the student will have to choose the five that correspond to the conference. The audio will be played twice.
- In the second exercise, the student will hear two conversations. In the first one, a man and a woman talk about their studies as university teachers. After listening to the audios, the student will have to mark the 7 options given for the first one (from 32 to 38) and the 8 given for the second (from 39 to 46): which are the ideas expressed by the man (H), which are the woman (M) and which are none of the two (N).
- In the third exercise the interviewer will listen to an interview. After listening to it, the interviewer must answer the questions (47 to 52) and select the correct option among the three proposals (A, B or C).
In the third phase the student will have to overcome integrated skills: listening and reading comprehension and written expression and interaction. The test consists of 6 exercises and has a total duration of 150 minutes.
- In the first test, the student will hear an audio twice. The student will be able to take notes and use all the provided sources. You should select only the information you consider appropriate. After this, you will have to organize it and write a text about the doucmento. It should contain between 400 and 500 words. the subject: The environmental organisation to which you belong has asked you to write a text about the document. leaflet on the current state of forests in Spain. For this you can count on the audio of an interview, a newspaper article and a review of another booklet, in which the deal with different aspects of the subject.
- In the second exercise, the student will observe a transcript of a fragment of a lecture on the subject. An e-book that took place at a librarians' conference. The following are now being elaborated the proceedings of the Congress and have asked him to prepare the final version of the text and edit it for their publication. You will have to use the resources you consider necessary. You will have to make a coherent structure, correct punctuation, select the most precise lexicon and eliminate possible redundancies, repetitions or inconsistencies. It should contain between 150 and 200 words.
- In the third test, the journal of the university where you work has asked you to write a short article in which you can summarize and assess the data obtained on the television habits of teachers. From this graph it will have to elaborate a report that reflects the situation with a final conclusion. it will have to contain between 200 and 250 words.
- In the fourth test, the student will hear a fragment of a lecture. Among the twelve options that appear (from A to L), you will have to choose the five that correspond to the conference. the audio will be played twice.
- In the fifth test, the student will hear two conversations. In the first one, a man and a woman talk about their studies of teaching in the university and in the second one of road education. Then, of the 7 options given to you for the first one (32-38), and the 8 options given for the first one (32-38). which are given to him for the second (39-46) which ideas the man (H) expresses, which the woman (M) and which of the two (N) in each conversation. You will hear the two conversations times.
- In the sixth test, the student will hear a fragment of an interview. He or she will then have to answer the questions. He has three options (A, b or C) and must choose the right one.
Listening, write and reading test
In the fourth phase, the student will have to overcome integrated skills: listening and reading comprehension and written expression and interaction. This phase has three tests and the approximate duration is 150 minutes.
- In the first test, the environmental organization to which you belong has commissioned you to write a leaflet on the current state of forests in Spain. For this you can count on the audio of an interview, a newspaper article and a review of another booklet, in which the deal with different aspects of the subject. First you will hear the audio twice. You can take notes and then use all the sources provided, selecting only the information you consider appropriate. Then organize it and write the text of the document. You should have between 400 and 450.
- In the second test, the student will see a transcript of an excerpt from an e-book lecture at a librarians' conference. The proceedings of the Congress are now being prepared and the student has been asked to prepare the final version of the text and edit it for his or her own use publication. To do this, you must use all the resources you consider necessary: give it a coherent structure, correct the punctuation, select a more precise lexicon and eliminate possible redundancies, repetitions or inconsistencies. Number of words: between 150 and 200.
- In the third test, the journal at the university where you work has asked you to write a short article summarizing and evaluating the data obtained in a survey on television habits. of the teachers. From the following graph, you will have to elaborate a brief report reflecting the situation with a final conclusion. Number of words: between 200 and 250.
The fifth phase covers the integrated skills: reading comprehension and oral expression and interaction. The test lasts approximately 20 minutes. In this phase there are three tasks:
- The first task is oral presentation and should last between 6 and 8 minutes. You must prepare an oral presentation by reading several texts.
- In the second test, it consists of a conversation about the presentation. It should last between 5 and 6 minutes. You will have a conversation with the interviewer about the presentation and texts of Task 1.
- In the third test, you must keep, from a selection of headlines on the same subject. The student should improvise a conversation with the interviewer, with an exchange of personal opinions. For this test he has between 5 and 6 minutes.
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