If you're prepping for B2 First and not sure you're actually ready, doing a mock exam first is just common sense. The real test isn't cheap, so it's worth knowing roughly where you stand before you book it.
Practicing under real conditions helps with the nerves, helps you get your timing right, and just gets you used to the format so it's not a surprise on the day.
Problem is, most free FCE practice online is either really basic or hides the good stuff behind a paywall after two exercises. So here's how to actually structure your practice, plus where to find a decent free mock test.
What's in a full FCE mock exam
A proper mock covers the same four papers as the real thing:
- Reading & Use of English, 75 minutes, 7 parts covering grammar, vocab, and reading comprehension.
- Writing, 80 minutes, two tasks (a compulsory essay plus your choice of email/letter, report, review, or article).
- Listening, around 40 minutes, 4 parts with monologues, conversations, interviews.
- Speaking, 14 minutes, done face to face in pairs, split into 4 parts.
If you're studying alone, Use of English and Reading are the two easiest to improve on your own, since they're more predictable and don't need a partner or examiner.
Mistakes people make when practicing
A lot of students grab a PDF, do the questions with their phone next to them, check the answer key, and call it done. That's not really practice, that's just checking if you know things you already knew.
A few things that actually help:
Time yourself properly. 75 minutes for Reading & Use of English, no exceptions, because running out of time in the real exam is where a lot of points get lost.
Actually look at what you got wrong, not just the score. Was it a negative prefix you missed? A collocation you mixed up? That's the part worth remembering.
Do it on a screen if you can, since the real exam these days is mostly computer-based anyway, and PDFs don't really prepare you for that.
Where to actually practice for free
You don't need to buy a textbook pack to get started. We've got an interactive practice section broken down by part:
Use of English Parts 1-4: multiple-choice cloze, open cloze, word formation, key word transformations, all self-correcting.
Reading Parts 5-7: multiple choice, gapped text, multiple matching.
Once you're done with an exercise, don't bother doing the maths yourself, just run your raw marks through our FCE score calculator and it'll tell you if you're at a Grade A, B, C, or still need more practice.
Pick a section below and see where you're at.
Sources
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