College English Level 4 | Caregiver-Level Preparation Guide

Introduction to the Exam#

The National College English Test (CET) for Levels 4 and 6 is a large-scale standardized exam organized by the Ministry of Education, hosted and implemented by the National Education Examination Authority (formerly the Examination Center of the Ministry of Education). It is a national teaching examination aimed at promoting college English teaching in China, providing an objective and accurate measurement of college students' English proficiency, and serving to improve the teaching quality of college English courses in China. CET began in 1987 and has gone through more than thirty years, having a positive impact on the development and reform of college English teaching in China.

The CET written exam is held every June and December; the CET speaking exam is held every May and November, and candidates for the speaking exam must first register for the corresponding level of the written exam.

CET also offers non-English exam subjects, including: Japanese Level 4 (CJT4), Japanese Level 6 (CJT6), Russian Level 4 (CRT4), Russian Level 6 (CRT6), German Level 4 (CGT4), German Level 6 (CGT6), and French Level 4 (CFT4). These subjects are tested once a year in June and are all written assessments, with no speaking assessments.

Official Website#

National College English Test (CET) - China Education Examination Network

Exam Schedule#

Two sessions each year, divided into the first half and the second half. The first half has registration in mid-March and the exam in mid-June; the second half has registration in mid-September and the exam in mid-December.

Exam Process#

8:40 | Candidates enter the venue
Present admission ticket, ID card, student ID, check for prohibited items, mobile phones are strictly prohibited in the examination room, candidates need to bring their own listening headphones, and the headphones need to be adjusted to the correct frequency; otherwise, the exam audio cannot be received.
9:00 | Distribution of exam papers and answer sheets
Read the "Notice to Candidates" on the front of the question booklet, check the printing quality of the question booklet, barcode, and answer sheet, affix the barcode, and fill in personal information.
9:10 | Official start of the exam (Essay question)
First write the essay, the essay exam lasts 30 minutes, within the question booklet, after finishing the essay, proceed to the listening exam.
9:40 | Listening questions
The listening exam lasts 25 minutes, the listening question types have no stems, and each question is played only once, so before doing the listening, be sure to roughly browse through the questions, underline key words, and identify the subject, verb, and object. After playback starts, underline the words you hear; these are mostly the answers, which follows the principle of audiovisual consistency. After starting to answer questions, underline the answer sheet while listening, because the answer sheet will be collected after the listening playback is finished, and there will be no time to fill it out afterward.
10:05 | Collection of essays and listening answer sheets
Stop answering for 5 minutes, collect essays and listening answer sheets.
10:10 | Continue answering (Reading and Translation questions)
Start working on reading and translation questions.
11:20 | End of the exam
Collect reading and translation answer sheets, and leave the examination room after the invigilator has finished checking.

Detailed Explanation of Question Types#

Writing#

Question Type: Short essay writing
Number of Questions: 1
Score: 106.5 points
Score Proportion: 15%
Exam Time: 30 minutes
Priority: First

Listening Comprehension#

Test Content: Short news, long dialogues, passages
Number of Questions: 8 passages, 25 questions in total
Score: 248.5 points in total
Exam Time: 25 minutes
Priority: Second

Section A | Short News#

Question Type: Multiple choice
Number of Questions: 3 passages, 7 questions
Score: 7.1 points per question, total 49.7 points
Score Proportion: 7%

Section B | Long Dialogues#

Question Type: Multiple choice
Number of Questions: 2 passages, 8 questions
Score: 7.1 points per question, total 56.8 points
Score Proportion: 8%

Section C | Passages#

Question Type: Multiple choice
Number of Questions: 3 passages, 10 questions
Score: 14.2 points per question, total 142 points
Score Proportion: 20%

This question type has the highest score among all multiple-choice questions in the Level 4 exam and requires special attention.

Reading Comprehension#

Test Content: Vocabulary understanding, long reading, careful reading
Number of Questions: 4 passages, 30 questions in total
Score: 248.5 points in total
Exam Time: 40 minutes
Priority: Third

Section A | Vocabulary Understanding#

Question Type: Fill in the blanks with words
Number of Questions: 1 passage, 10 questions
Score: 3.55 points per question, total 35.5 points
Score Proportion: 5%

The length of the text is 200-250 words, and selecting the correct option from the given choices is the most difficult question in reading, time-consuming and hard to score high.

Section B | Long Reading#

Question Type: Matching
Number of Questions: 1 passage
Score: 7.1 points per question, total 71 points
Score Proportion: 10%

The length of the text is 1000 words, finding the corresponding paragraph in the original text is the easiest question in reading.

Section C | Careful Reading#

Question Type: Multiple choice
Number of Questions: 2 passages
Score: 14.2 points per question, total 142 points
Score Proportion: 20%

Each passage is 300-350 words long, which tests grammar knowledge extensively.

Translation#

Test Content: Chinese to English translation
Question Type: Paragraph translation
Number of Questions: 1
Score: 106.5 points
Score Proportion: 15%
Exam Time: 30 minutes
Priority: Fourth

Length is 140-160 words, content is generally related to social hot topics, economic development, traditional Chinese culture, and historical culture.

Essential Items for the Exam#

Black pen
2B pencil
Eraser
Sharpener
Level 4 listening headphones (search for Level 4 headphones on Taobao, priced around 20-30)
Admission ticket
Student ID
ID card

Other Experiences#

At least memorize the vocabulary from past Level 4 exam papers; regardless of any language exam, difficulty, or question type, vocabulary is the most crucial prerequisite, and it is the beginning of everything. Without a solid vocabulary foundation, you will struggle to understand listening and reading.
At least go through the past Level 4 exam papers at least once.
Memorize essay templates and fixed collocations.
The Level 4 exam tests not only knowledge reserves but also the speed of answering questions; the more you practice, the better your answering skills will be.
In any exam, besides knowledge reserves, answering speed, focus, and mindset, persistence is key; a sporadic study schedule is not advisable. If you have ample preparation time and can persist, that is the best.
The essay and listening questions are on the same paper; under normal circumstances, even if you write the essay faster than others, the remaining time does not allow you to flip back to preview the reading questions, although some lenient exam rooms may allow it.

后山漫雾