Working with us Support and benefits for authorised centres
Helping you serve your customers better Cambridge English exams are delivered by 2,800 exam centres in more than 130 countries. We put our centres and your customers at the heart of our business. We re here to provide you with all the support you need in delivering our exams, from streamlined test administration to free marketing support materials. This brochure explains the different ways we can support you. 2
The world leader in English language exams Cambridge English Language Assessment offers the world s leading range of qualifications for learners and teachers of English. Our exams are recognised and accepted by over 15,000 organisations worldwide, including top employers, immigration authorities and leading universities. We provide assessment for all levels of language ability and for a wide range of uses, including study, work and professional contexts. Over 4 million people take Cambridge English exams every year. Our exams are expertly designed to provide learners with real-life, up-to-date language skills. Underpinned by the world s largest dedicated research team, our exams are accurate, fair and fit for purpose. 2,800 exam centres in more than 130 countries 46,000 registered preparation centres Over 4 million people take Cambridge English exams every year Over 1 million Facebook fans www.facebook.com/cambridgeenglish 3
Quick and easy exam administration We want to make the process of administering our exams as straightforward as possible. This makes it easier for you to run our exams and helps us standardise our exam delivery worldwide. We provide: clear and comprehensive documentation materials to help you run the exams checklists that you can adapt and personalise simple online entry systems online results for most exams regular email updates. Speaking tests To ensure the quality of our Speaking tests, we provide a Professional Support Leader network to help centres manage their Speaking examiners. In the UK, Speaking examiners are provided by Cambridge English Language Assessment. 4
Speedier exam processing, quicker results We are continuously looking for ways to speed up the processing of exams for you and your customers. Most results are now released within two weeks of the exam (four weeks for paper-based tests), thanks to our Faster Results initiative. From 2014 we will start introducing a system which will allow you to print and scan candidate answer sheets and send them straight back to us electronically, so we can start marking them quickly. This will provide a faster, more flexible service for you, and your candidates will receive their results even sooner. 5
Training for Centre Exams Managers and invigilators To make sure you re fully familiar with our regulations, and have everything you need to run our exams smoothly and efficiently, we offer: free face-to-face training online self-study modules real-time WebEx training with a member of our team training materials for your supervisors and invigilators. Our face-to-face training events, which take place in Cambridge several times a year, consistently receive excellent feedback: Great training event. The team were friendly and helpful, and answered questions with a wealth of knowledge. I was really impressed by the professional and friendly attitude of the staff. They made us feel valued and that all our queries and comments were welcome and deserved attention. Find out more about training events in your area by logging in at support.cambridgeenglish.org and searching on training. 6
Ongoing contact and support If you re a new centre, our Centre Support team will be in touch straight away to talk you through the essentials of running our exams. We also arrange free support visits for new centres with an experienced representative to offer advice as you deliver your first exam session. All centres also benefit from our programme of regular inspections, where we offer feedback and guidance to help optimise your centre s performance. Here s what centres say about support visits: We are very thankful for this support visit. It is a wonderful service and has helped us a great deal. Excellent advice and support, given in a very friendly manner, helped to put us all at ease during our first exam session. 7
Support with running exams Do you have any questions about running our exams? You ll find all your documentation along with lots of useful articles, frequently asked questions, short video clips and more at our online Helpdesk support.cambridgeenglish.org If you want to ask us a question directly, our Helpdesk team is here for you. Start by using the search at support.cambridgeenglish.org this has answers to many of the most frequently asked questions. If you can t find the answer to your question, you can contact our Helpdesk team through the same website. Tweet your query to @CamEngHelpers Technical support when running computer-based exams We have a team of highly trained technicians who will provide you with high-quality, real-time support during your computer-based exams. The team is available 24 hours a day whenever there is a computerbased exam running. We ll also contact you before your session, to make sure you are well prepared and to offer you any support you may need. For exams taking place on a Saturday or Sunday, we provide an emergency telephone helpline for any urgent last-minute questions. You can get the number by calling the Helpdesk and listening to the pre-recorded message. 8
Our pledge to you General enquiries Results enquiries For exams scheduled to take place on a Saturday or Sunday, we provide an emergency telephone helpline just in case We you aim have to respond any urgent to Helpdesk last-minute enquiries questions. within two working days. We aim to notify centres of the outcome of a results enquiry clerical check within When you apply for additional exams to be offered five working days and to notify them of the at your centre, we will confirm authorisation of outcome of a results enquiry remark within 15 We also have a team of technicians who know our systems in detail and can connect remotely to your PC to exam eligibility within four weeks of receiving your working days. provide completed high level exam service. authorisation This team form. is available Monday to Friday (8.30 17.00 UK time) and also during any computer-based exam, including at weekends and at any time of day or night. We will also contact you directly before We computer-based will update contact exams details to offer for your support. centre Complaints within two working days of receiving your new information. We aim to acknowledge receipt of all complaints within two working days and to investigate and provide an answer within 10 working days. 179
Supporting your marketing To help you promote Cambridge English exams, we provide a range of tools including: authorised centre logo to use on your website and printed materials authorised centre certificate to display at your centre free leaflets, including translations into several languages free posters seminars and training events for teachers around the world, including online seminars free online games candidates can play to improve their English free apps from Cambridge University Press that support English language learning. In many countries and regions, our local representatives can help you plan your marketing activity and advise on raising the profile of your centre. They also organise local meetings, where you can meet other centres and representatives to share ideas. Cambridge English website More than 4 million visitors a year access our site, and they can find you quickly and easily using our Centre Search facility. The website offers easy access to extensive information about Cambridge English exams, including free practice tests and other preparation materials for candidates and teachers to download. www.cambridgeenglish.org 10
Social media Our social media pages are powerful tools for raising awareness of our exams across the world, and offer lots of fun ways of using online communities to get the most out of learning or teaching English. Why not get involved? It s a great way to raise your profile and interact with learners. Facebook Interact with over 1 million fans on our global Facebook page: www.facebook.com/cambridgeenglish Twitter We have over 8,000 followers on Twitter: www.twitter.com/cambridgeeng You can tweet your question to @CamEngHelpers YouTube There are lots of helpful tips on exam practice and English language learning advice on our YouTube channel, Cambridge English TV. ww.youtube.com/cambridgeenglishtv Local social networks Many countries also have their own Cambridge English social communities. Find out more at www.cambridgeenglish.org/social-networks 11
Extra benefits for high-achieving centres For our highest-performing centres worldwide, we offer membership of our Platinum Centre Scheme. Platinum Centres enjoy a range of additional benefits, such as extra sales and marketing training, free seminar resources and rebates on exam fees. There s also the opportunity to become more closely involved in our development projects and initiatives which help us improve exam administration. 12
Support for teachers We support teachers around the world with access to the highest-quality training and teaching materials: Teaching Support website A wealth of free resources for teachers, including downloadable lesson plans, worksheets, classroom activities, teaching ideas, sample papers, handbooks and online forums. www.cambridgeenglish.org/teachingsupport Cambridge English Teacher A professional development platform where teachers can grow their skills and connect with other teachers and experts in English language teaching across the world. Teachers can find courses, articles, webinars and other teaching resources. www.cambridgeenglishteacher.org Cambridge English Language Assessment website A wide range of resources and support for teachers, including free practice tests and other preparation materials to download. www.cambridgeenglish.org Face-to-face support We also attend hundreds of events globally to provide face-to-face support for our exams and to offer teacher development. 13
Pretesting programme Pretesting gives students the opportunity to practise taking a Cambridge English exam by answering real questions under exam conditions. For students, pretesting helps them understand how best to focus their preparation; for teachers, it helps highlight areas where students might need more help. Pretesting is a vital element of our exam development process. It helps us to ensure that: our exams are accurate and fair, with each individual item pitched at the right level test content is appropriate, and people from all backgrounds can do equally well. Find out how your centre can get involved in pretesting at www.cambridgeenglish.org/about-pretesting 14
Help for your preparation centres Preparation centres are schools and other institutions that prepare candidates for Cambridge English exams. We can help you support your preparation centres by providing them with access to: online results marketing materials a special logo certificates to display regular updates via email newsletter an annual competition with the prize of a free trip to Cambridge for a series of seminars and activities. Find out more about what you can do to encourage the schools that send candidates to you at support.cambridgeenglish.org 15
Free, secure online results verification Cambridge English results can be verified instantly via our free, secure online Results Verification Service. The user-friendly service is available to organisations that accept our exams such as universities, colleges and employers. Find out more: www.cambridgeenglish.org/verifiers 16
In-depth research The development of all our exams is underpinned by the expertise of our world-leading Research and Validation team. Their work ensures that our exams reflect best practice, and that preparing for our exams always encourages real-life language skills. You can access the results of their work through a range of publications. Free research publications Research Notes: a quarterly publication featuring the latest research into language learning, test development and validation from Cambridge English Language Assessment. Cambridge Research Update: a quarterly newsletter summarising the latest research about language testing. Examination reports: available on our website, these are useful for schools, teachers and centres. www.cambridgeenglish.org/research Studies in Language Testing (SiLT) This series of academic volumes addresses important issues and new developments in language testing and assessment. SiLT is published jointly by Cambridge English Language Assessment and Cambridge University Press. www.cambridgeenglish.org/silt Principles of Good Practice Our Principles of Good Practice outline the systems and processes that drive our search for excellence and continuous improvement. They give deeper insight into our processes and enable us to share best practice with the wider world of language learning and assessment. www.cambridgeenglish.org/principles 17
Updated exams, increased flexibility All our exams and learning materials are regularly reviewed to keep them in line with our latest research findings. Cambridge English: Proficiency (CPE) was updated for 2013. We have also introduced a computer-based version of the test and a computer-based version of the popular Cambridge English: Young Learners tests. Cambridge English: Advanced (CAE), Cambridge English: First (FCE) and Cambridge English: First (FCE) for Schools are being reviewed and will be updated in 2015. Excellent examination availability We now offer over 300 exam dates throughout the year. Some exams are also available on demand. More choice and flexibility Candidates can usually choose whether to take their Cambridge English exam as a paper-based test or on a computer. An increased number of exam dates means you can offer your candidates even more choice in how and when they take their exam. 18
Working to serve you better As members of the UK Institute of Customer Service, we work hard to integrate the principles of customer service excellence across all parts of our business. To keep us focused on our goal of providing you with all the support you need to run Cambridge English exams, we set out our service commitment as a series of aims. These aims provide a framework for us to benchmark our service and identify opportunities to improve. This includes consulting with you in the early stages of any changes we are planning. We may contact you to ask for feedback about initiatives and ideas, and offer you the chance to get involved in projects and trials of new systems and processes. 19
Find out more Already a Cambridge English exam centre? Find out more via our Helpdesk at support.cambridgeenglish.org Want to apply to become a centre? Find out more at www.cambridgeenglish.org/become-a-centre UCLES 2014 CE/1198/4Y03 *3949786902*