PET (ESPAÑOL)

Cambridge English: Preliminary (PET)

Difficulty level: B1 / low intermediate
The Preliminary English Test is one of the Cambridge ESOL exams.

Who is it for?
Do this test if you want to know that you have an intermediate level of English. With this level of English you will enjoy holidays in English speaking countries. You should probably continue studying once you have passed the PET exam.

What is the PET test like?
The test has these sections:

Reading and Writing are taken together - 90 minutes

Listening - 30 minutes

Speaking - an interview, 10 minutes

There are two versions of the PET test:

PET

PET for Schools

Both versions have the same type of questions. The PET for schools test has content of interest to school-age learners.

Paper-based or computer-based exams
You can do the PET exam on a computer or on paper. The computer-based exam is available once a month. The paper-based exam is only available six times a year.

Score
‘pass’, ‘pass with merit’, ‘narrow fail’, or ‘fail’

Level
B1 / Alte 2 / low intermediate. Click here to see how it compares with other exams.

PET Reading and Writing

Reading and Writing are taken together - 90 minutes

Reading part 1: signs and short texts 1, test 2

Reading part 2: match 5 people to 8 texts

Reading part 3: text with True/False questions

Reading part 4: long text with multiple choice questions

Reading part 5: text with multiple choice gaps

Writing part 1: sentence transformations

Writing part 2: write a short message

Writing part 3: write an informal letter OR a story

Scoring

The Reading and Writing sections are each worth 25% of the total score for the exam.

Each of the 35 reading questions scores 1 mark.

Writing part 6 questions score 1 mark each

Writing part 7 is marked out of 5

Writing part 8 is marked out of 15

How to prepare for PET Reading and Writing

read the instructions carefully before you start each section

think about the timing. Spend about 50 minutes on the reading, 40 minutes on the writing

study these vocabulary topics

study grammar at B1 level

practise writing short texts, including emails

PET for Schools Reading and Writing

Reading and Writing are taken together - 90 minutes

Reading part 1: short texts

Reading part 2: match 5 people to 8 texts

Reading part 3: text with True/False questions

Reading part 4: long text with multiple choice questions

Reading part 5: text with multiple choice gaps

Writing part 1: sentence transformations

Writing part 2: write a short message

Writing part 3: write an informal letter OR a story

Scoring
The Reading and Writing sections are each worth 25% of the total score for the exam.

Each of the 35 reading questions scores 1 mark.

Writing part 6 questions score 1 mark each

Writing part 7 is marked out of 5

Writing part 8 is marked out of 15

How to prepare for PET for Schools Reading and Writing

read the instructions carefully before you start each section

think about the timing. Spend about 50 minutes on the reading, 40 minutes on the writing

study these vocabulary topics

study grammar at B1 level

practise writing short texts, including emails