THE BERLITZ LEVELS/CEF

THE PROMOTION OF MULTILINGUALISM, COMBINED WITH PRECISE LEARNING OBJECTIVES AND LANGUAGE LEVELS, IS A PRIMARY GOAL OF THE COUNCIL OF EUROPE.

The “Common European Framework of Reference for Language Learning, Teaching and Assessment” (CEF) divides all languages into six levels of language competence in order to make language learning and testing more transparent
and comparable. Berlitz will test your language level, free of charge, prior to every course. The ten Berlitz levels can
then very easily be aligned with both the CEF levels and online score (for E-learning).

BERLITZ LANGUAGE LEVELS 1 AND 2
FUNCTIONAL ABILITY

Level 1: You can understand and use familiar, everyday expressions and formulate simple sentences. You can introduce yourself and ask other people simple questions about themselves, for example where they live, how they are or what things they like. You can also give your own answers to these types of questions. You can take part in a simple conversation
if the person you are conversing with talks slowly and helps you by repeating statements and questions.
Level 2: You are able to understand and communicate general, simple messages. You can understand information that is expressed concisely and clearly. You can hold simple conversations. You are able to describe daily activities at home and at work, using a range of simple expressions and sentences. You can ask for and understand information relating to daily activities, such as shopping or booking a holiday or hotel.

THE BERLITZ LEVELS/CEF

BERLITZ LANGUAGE LEVELS 3 TO 6
INTERMEDIATE ABILITY

Level 3: You can understand the general essence of a conversation on familiar topics, both in social and business situations. You can initiate, maintain and end a conversation. You are able to take part in simple discussions, give simple professional instructions, simply articulate a problem and present a solution. You can express congratulations, agreement, disagreement and make complaints.
Level 4: You are able to understand information about familiar topics in relevant contexts and hold a conversation about general topics. You are able to make professional contacts, give advice and make suggestions. You can carry out more complex tasks, such as exchanging goods or canceling orders in the target language. You can write messages and personal letters.

UPPER INTERMEDIATE ABILITY

Level 5: You can have conversations about a range of topics. You can explain or describe things in context. You can ask and respond to questions in the workplace. You find it easy to give general instructions for work processes. You feel comfortable in familiar situations with people or in a known professional environment, for example discussing the quality of a product or a service.
Level 6: You can communicate competently and effortlessly in many professional and private situations and you can also find multiple ways of expressing the same sentiment. You can deal with a variety of topics in the appropriate manner. You can easily take part in conversations with several native speakers. You can discuss a project and express suggestions,
opinions or ideas. You can conduct long telephone conversations or make travel arrangements effortlessly.

BERLITZ LANGUAGE LEVELS 7 TO 10
ADVANCED ABILITY

Level 7: You can express different points of view and can defend your ideas in a discussion. You can understand native speakers’ idioms. You are able to master challenging situations or, for example, mediate differences of opinion. You use the correct vocabulary in the correct context and can cope with the majority of professional situations. You can give presentations, summarize facts and also use the target language in complex situations.
Level 8: You can communicate efficiently and correctly in challenging activities and situations. You can effortlessly take part in all conversations in both a social and professional environment. You are able to give a professional presentation. You can express yourself with ease, using various nuances and can also easily understand speeches on challenging topics.

PROFESSIONAL ABILITY

Level 9: You can communicate efficiently and precisely with various audiences on a wide range of both familiar and new topics. You can take part in discussions and meetings confidently and competently, express different points of view and defend your ideas. You use correct, detailed expressions. You write all texts, such as emails or business letters, without any language errors.
Level 10: You effortlessly understand everything that you read or hear. You express yourself very spontaneously, fluently and accurately. You can accurately express subtle nuances – even under complex circumstances. You can understand and produce challenging reports, articles or specialized texts. Your language skills largely correspond to those of an educated native speaker.