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Breakout English

Advanced (CAE) Essay Questions and Sample Answers

The Cambridge C1 Advanced (CAE) essay is a formal, academic writing. You’ll find it in Part 1 of the CAE writing exam and, just like at other levels, Part 1 is mandatory. That means whether you like it or not, you’ll be writing an essay for your C1 Cambridge exam. Considering that, it’s probably a good idea to practise. The good news is, the CAE essay can be quite formulaic. Once you’ve done it a few times, you’ll notice the structure and style are always pretty similar. Before you know it, you’ll be writing them in your sleep! In this post, you’ll find some useful CAE writing tips and three essay questions with sample answers.

If you’re looking for a complete overview of the CAE writing exam, with CAE writing tips and much more, check out Advanced Writing Plus , our complete self-study course.

Topics for Advanced (CAE) essay questions

At C1 level, you are expected to be able to write about pretty much any topic you can imagine. However, CAE essay topics are generally going to be quite formal. You’re not going to be asked about your plans for the weekend!

These are some of the topics which are most likely to come up in an Advanced essay question:

• Environmental issues
• Public projects
• Science and nature
• Global issues

Make sure you’ve looked into these topics and studied relevant vocabulary. You can also read different articles and listen to radio broadcasts (or podcasts) related to the topics. Don’t forget to note down important vocabulary so you can remember it for your writings!

C1 Advanced (CAE) Essay Tips

You’ve probably got plenty of experience writing in English if you’ve reached a C1 level. Students who prepare for this exam often need their skills focused in the right way rather than being taught brand new ideas.

Here are my top tips for preparing the CAE essay task.

• Don’t do anything too strange – The essay question is likely to be on quite an interesting topic. It could even be on something you feel strongly about or specialise in. But be careful! When essays start to ramble too much or go too far, they lose their strength. This essay isn’t going to change the world, so don’t go overboard!
• Use advanced language – Remember that to get top points, you must use advanced structures in your writing. Take some time to practise inversion, cleft sentences and participle clauses, then use them in your essay.
• Don’t be stingy with linking words – Linking words (and expressions) are the glue of a writing. Without them, everything falls apart. This doesn’t mean you have to use ridiculous uncommon linking words, but you should use them frequently, probably more than you expect. Take a look at our post about linking words for some ideas.
• Be stylish! – An essay needs to read like an essay, just like a report needs to read like a report. This means it is a formal, academic text. Formal means no contractions, few phrasal verbs, complex sentences and an impersonal style. The essay needs to include your opinion, so you need to express that opinion through style and substance, supported by facts.
• Focus on argument and coherence – To score high in the CAE essay, it’s important to have a clear argument and structure. Plan your essay and stick to the plan, making sure each paragraph has a clear purpose. Ensure that your points are logically connected and that your writing is coherent.
• Use a variety of sentence types – Varying sentence types and lengths keep the reader engaged and demonstrate your writing skills. Mix simple and complex sentences to add interest to your writing.
• Check your writing! – Proofreading is critical for writing a top-scoring CAE essay. Check for grammatical and spelling errors and make sure the writing flows well. Also, don’t forget to check your writing style and tone to make sure you sound professional and academic.
• Practice, practice, practice – Finally, practise writing essays under timed conditions. This will help you to improve your time management and build confidence for the actual exam.

The materials

Here are three Advanced (CAE) essay questions. They each use different CAE essay topics. Use them to practise and improve in preparation for the Cambridge C1 Advanced exam. After completing your own essay, check the example answer and compare.

• How to write a C1 Advanced Essay

• Posted on 26/02/2020
• Categories: Blog
• Tags: C1 Advanced , Cambridge Exams , Writing

The Cambridge C1 Advanced is an excellent qualification to aim for if you’re thinking of studying or working abroad. It’s recognised by universities and governments all over the world and also helps you prove your language skills to future employers.

One of the most demanding parts of the exam is Part 1 of the Writing paper, which includes writing an essay. For many of you, this won’t come naturally… especially in another language.

So, to give you the best chance at success, we’ve created this in-depth guide full of Cambridge C1 Advanced Writing tips and useful language to get you producing excellent essays in no time.

So, pick up your pen, and let’s get started!

If you’d like to get more help with the C1 Advanced, consider our exam preparation class!

C1 Advanced Writing Requirements

The C1 Advanced Writing exam has two writing parts, which you must complete in 90 minutes. Both parts have a word limit of between 220-260 words. We recommend getting lots of writing practice under these conditions!

Part 1 is always a discursive essay . It requires you to think about arguments for and against a topic.

Part 2 is a situationally based writing task. This could be a letter , an email , a report , a proposal or a review and you have three options to choose from.

Today, we’ll be looking at how to do your best in part 1.

Before you begin

When you turn over the paper and begin Writing Part 1, take some time to read the task instructions. Identify all parts of the question, underlining which parts are obligatory and noting which parts are optional.

Let’s take a look at an example question!

Remember, you don’t have to use the opinions expressed in the box, but they may help you to get the ball rolling . Also, you only have to talk about two of the options given, not all three.

Make a plan

Take ten minutes to lay out your ideas. Make a pros and cons list for each of the three options and then decide which two you feel most confident with. Here’s some things you might come up with, can you think of any more?

Structure your essay

The essence of a good essay is a clear structure.

Introduction

Here you want to introduce the topic in your own words. Your first line should also grab the reader’s attention, then you should paraphrase the question. Finally, try using a statistic or a rhetorical question. This will make them want to read on, right?

Paragraph 1

Discuss the first option you’ve chosen. Include a good topic sentence and remember to give reasons for your answer. Describe some of the advantages, and even some of the disadvantages too. This will give a well-balanced argument.

Paragraph 2

Here’s where you introduce the second option. Again, try to present both sides of the argument and give reasons for your ideas. Gradually work towards the conclusion.

State your final opinion. This should be a summary of the rest of the essay and point clearly to which option you think is the most important. Do not introduce any new arguments at this stage. The conclusion is where you tie-up any loose ends .

This is an advanced piece of writing, so make sure your choice of language reflects it. You will get marked for accuracy, however, occasional errors can still be present as long as they do not impede understanding. So don’t play it too safe . This is your opportunity to show what you can do, so take some risks and have fun with it!

In the writing paper you should use a range of vocabulary, including less common lexis. Brainstorm some vocabulary related to the topic. Take your time to think of nouns and compound nouns that you know at C1 level. Really let your vocabulary sparkle .

No one likes a broken record . Find synonyms for simple words. You want to use a variety of language, and try not to repeat yourself too much. Check out these different ways of saying the same thing:

advantage = benefit, positive, upside

disadvantage = downside, drawback

effect = influence, impact, result, outcome

problem = issue, challenge, difficulty, obstacle, setback, complication

important = valuable, essential, beneficial

expensive = costly, dear, high-priced, extortionate

cheap = inexpensive, affordable, economical

big = great, large, sizeable, considerable, wide, vast

small = slight, tiny, little

Quick tip: Visit Thesaurus.com to study more synonyms!

Experiment with different grammatical forms. At this level you’re expected to have a good grasp on the grammar. You should use a range of simple and complex grammatical forms with control and flexibility. So challenge yourself with some of these…

• Participle clauses
• Conditionals
• Modal verbs
• Passive with reporting verbs
• Cleft sentences
• Comparatives
• Relative clauses

Useful expressions

To make your essay flow it’s best to use some key phrases. These will link all your ideas together, and help it sound semi-formal. Take a look at the expressions below. Why not use some in your next essay?

Introduction:

It is often said that…

Many people feel that…

We live in an age when..

More and more…

Introducing & Addition:

Firstly, secondly, thirdly…

On the one hand…

In addition…

What is more…

For example…

For instance…

As a case in point…

Contrasting:

In contrast…

On the other hand…

Alternatively…

However…

Conclusion:

All things considered…

As far as I’m concerned…

In light of the above…

What the examiners are looking for

When writing your essay, bear in mind what you’ll be marked on:

Have you answered all parts of the question? Is everything relevant to the question?

Communicative Achievement

Is the style and tone appropriate? Remember it should be semi-formal and neutral.

Organisation

Does it follow a logical order? Have you used paragraphs and linking devices?

Are you using a variety of grammar and vocabulary? Is it accurate?

Now your masterpiece has come together. Remember to take time to check your work. Here’s the official Writing Checklist from Cambridge Assessment English . And our list of the most common mistakes:

• subject + verb agreement
• singulars / plurals
• question formation
• variety of tenses
• dependent prepositions

Some final tips

Avoid contractions (I’m, they’re, we’re) as this is a formal writing.

Don’t use first person pronouns (I, my, our, us).

Practise under timed conditions.

Use model answers to practise fixed expressions.

——

Looking for more help with your Cambridge C1 Advanced exam? Here are our other guides from our blog:

C1 Advanced Reading and Use of English – Part 1 , Part 2 , Part 3

And if you are not sure if you’re ready for the C1 Advanced, check out our article Am I ready for the C1 Advanced exam? to find out!

Glossary for Language Learners

Find the following words in the article and then write down any new ones you didn’t know.

Get the ball rolling (exp) : to start something.

Lay out (v): to explain something in detail.

Paraphrase (v): to say the same thing in a different way.

Tie-up any loose ends (exp): to resolve issues.

Play it safe (exp): to act cautiously.

A broken record (exp): when someone repeats themself.

Sparkle (v) : to shine.

Good grasp (exp): a good knowledge.

Bear in mind (exp) : to consider.

Masterpiece (n): an incredible work of art.

exp = expression

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Small Talk For Business English

• By: oxfordadmin
• Posted on 19/02/2020

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Cambridge C1 Advanced (CAE): How to Write an Essay

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Introduction

An essay in the C1 Advanced Writing paper is usually written for an academic tutor and may be written as a follow-up to a class activity, such as attending a seminar or watching a documentary. The main purpose of the task is to underline relevant salient issues on the stated topic, and to support an argument with subsidiary points and reasons. An essay should be well organised, with an introduction, clear development and an appropriate conclusion. It should hold the target reader’s attention and communicate complex ideas using an appropriate range of vocabulary and structures. Source: Cambridge English C1 Advanced handbook for teachers

Essays are part of the first section of the CAE Writing paper. The task is mandatory, which means that you always have to write an essay unlike the other texts ( emails/letter , proposals , reviews , reports ) where you can choose which one you would like to tackle in the exam.

Essay writing is not that difficult…

…if you know what you are doing. For most students, essay writing feels like this huge obstacle that they won’t be able to clear when, in fact, it is not as bad as you might think.

Just like every other writing task in C1 Advanced you can apply a specific structure because the different tasks share the same characteristics. Obviously, the topic changes and the input you get from the question differs, but, essentially, it is like repeating the same task over and over again. For this, you can become pretty good at essay writing in a short time just by practising regularly until most of it becomes almost automatic for you.

Long story short, in this article I’m going to take you by the hand and guide you through all the different aspects of essay writing. We’re going to see what a typical essay task looks like, the structure and language and, of course, common problems and mistakes you should avoid on your way to mastering essays.

What a typical essay task looks like

As mentioned earlier, essay tasks in C1 Advanced look very similar to each other and once you understand what those common features are, you will see that everything becomes a lot easier. A typical task might look like the one below:

Every essay writing task looks like this with the content changing, but the structure staying exactly the same.

There are also a few things highlighted for you in bold which are definitely important for you to consider when you plan and, later, write your text.

First of all, in the bigger box there is always the question you have to answer and three option s to choose from and, as the rubric tells you, you have to pick two of them . These two points need to be discussed and compared and then you explain (with reasons!) which option you think is better, more suitable, nicer or whatever the task asks you to do (Here: Which facility is it more important for local authorities to give money to?).

Apart from that, you are also gifted a few ideas in the smaller of the two boxes . You can use these in your essay (You don’t have to.), but make sure that you don’t just copy them word for word. Instead, paraphrase them and make them your own, or simply come up with your own ideas.

If you have ever written a Cambridge B2 First essay , you will immediately see the similarities between the tasks, but in C1 Advanced there is less support for you and you have to make more decisions on your own before you can even start to make a plan for your text. Read the whole task very carefully and then choose wisely based on what feels best for you in any given case .

Formal or informal language in an essay?

I’ll keep this short for you because this works in every single task: Keep your language formal , which means no contractions ( I’m , don’t , etc.), no colloquial expressions ( Hey, what’s up? , I liked it heaps ., etc.), and no slang or phrasal verbs that convey informality ( I’m bursting vs. I have had enough to eat; carry on vs. continue).

How to organise your essay

OK, we know now what we have to do and what kind of language we have to use so it’s time to look at the organisation and structure of a good essay.

When organising a piece of writing you should always think about what it is that you have to include in your text. In a C1 Advanced essay there are basically four things:

• First topic point
• Second topic point

From that, we can make four paragraphs and this applies to every single essay you are going to write to practise or in the official exam.

Let’s have another look at our example from earlier. The three options are museums, sports centres and public gardens. Museums and sports centres are both buildings and probably similar to talk about so I’m going to choose sports centres and public parks, just because we can contrast them better in my opinion.

Adding our two topic points to the list from before, this specific essay structure looks like this:

• Sports centres
• Public parks

So there you go. I think that the process up this point is fairly simple and from there most students jump right into the deep end and start to write their essay – but not so fast!

Plan before you start writing

One of the most crucial yet most undervalued tools for excellent writing is a good plan. Unfortunately, I see too many students skip this step and they often end up revising their texts over and over until they run out of time and the result is still not satisfactory.

Please don’t make the same mistake. It takes around five minutes to make a plan which helps you organise your thoughts and ideas in a way that makes sense. You will be able to focus on your language and arguments instead of worrying about possibly forgetting to include content while saving you time. It works and you should do it as well.

To make your plan just take the list we created above and add a couple of thoughts to each point so you know what you want to write about.

• Introduction (panel discussion, local authorities, sports centres & public gardens –> Which one is more important?)
• Sports centres (public health, wide variety of activities, social aspect)
• Public parks (green lung of the city, place to relax from city life, social outdoor activities)
• Conclusion (sports centres better choice –> more variety, more social, greater health benefits)

It took me 4 minutes to create this plan. I used the idea from the task for sports centres (“Sports centrs mean healthier people.”), but I paraphrased it (public health) while the idea for public parks seems too vague for me so I left it out. Remember that it is optional to include these thoughts in your essay. if you feel that you have better ones, go for it.

The different parts of an essay

So far, we’ve looked at a typical essay task and we put everything in order. The next step, of course, is to put our pen to paper and turn our ideas into a great essay. Please be aware that these are simply my recommendations and if you feel that they are helpful, you’re welcome, and if not, modify them or change whatever you think makes more sense for you.

The introduction to your essay serves several different purposes. It presents the topic/question to the reader and puts it in context, introduces the topic points you are going to discuss and creates interest and anticipation in the reader.

All of this sounds like an awful lot of stuff to include, but with a little bit of practice you’ll find out that it is a fairly repeatable process. Once you’ve got the hang of it, you’ll produce one great introduction after another without having to think about it too much.

With all that being said, let’s look at a possible introduction for our example task.

In recent years, public funding for local facilities has become more problematic for many towns, which has become more obvious to me after listening to a panel on the financial needs of several different local facilities like sports centres and public parks. As these places battle for funds, the main question is which ones deserve the money more.

Let’s have a closer look at this intro. At the beginning the whole issue is put into the context of the financial problems many local authorities have experienced. Sports centres and public parks as our two topic points are included as well and, last but not least, a question is asked to create a little more interest in the reader.

With all our boxes being ticked we can now move on to the next part of the essay.

After you finish your introduction, you can turn your attention towards the main topic paragraphs. These are called ‘the body’ of you essay. I always compare it to a hamburger where the introduction and the conclusion are the bread bun while the patty, lettuce, tomatoes and sauce are the body. You want to make your essay tasty so make sure that the body is just as great as your intro.

Your topic paragraphs should be longer than the introduction and conclusion, but at the same time balanced and about the same length between the two of them. Remember, however, to stay within the limit of 220-260 words total.

A couple of characteristics that are useful and important for every topic paragraph are the following:

• Start with a topic sentence that makes it clear what the paragraph is about.
• Always support your arguments with reasons and/or examples .
• Avoid being too personal unless you give your own opinion at the end of the paragraph.

This is not rocket science, but let me show you what I mean in a couple of examples.

It is widely known that sports centres provide many different benefits to the local community. Someone on the panel mentioned that, from a public-health standpoint, it is crucial to offer opportunities to exercise in order to keep everyone healthy physically as well as mentally due to the social character of sports. In addition to that, exercise comes in many different shapes and forms, from team sports to individual activities like swimming, so there is something for everyone to enjoy in a dedicated group of people. While green spaces in a town or city have their own benefits, it can be difficult to maintain such large areas in order to keep parks pleasant and inviting to everyone. Nevertheless, considered by many as the green lung of a city their use as a refuge from hectic city life cannot be debated, and groups of people as well as individuals can be seen following their favourite pastime or socialising with others, which makes the discussion about allocating funds even more difficult.

At the beginning of each paragraph it immediately becomes clear what to expect as I mention sports centres and public parks (green spaces, parks). I managed to include all the points from our plan and I supported my arguments with some examples . Also, you can see that, for example, I didn’t use the word ‘I’ in these paragraphs at all even though my opinion on each point is pretty clear. Instead, I used more general statements (“It is widely known that…”, “considered by many as…”, “…can be seen”) which help convey your opinion without simply stating it .

Last but not least, both parts are balanced in terms of their length, but I don’t want you to think that they have to be perfectly equal. If there is good reason to give one part a little bit more attention over the other, that’s fine. For example, you can say in your essay that one of the ideas is more complex than the other, which tells the examiner that you actually thought about this instead of just having messed up your text. Be clear about it and think it through before you even start writing.

Finally, the conclusion of your essay is there to summarise and to give your opinion on the topic as well as to answer the question in the task (Which facilities should receive money from local authorities?). Your opinion can be nuanced and doesn’t have to be simply black or white as long as you can justify what you say.

In our example, a conclusion might look something like this:

Taking into account all the positions from above I come to the conclusion that funding should be allocated to both facilities as they provide essential resources to the local community. However, due to their more social character and possibly greater public health benefits I would give more funds to sports centres.

There you have it. The conclusion summarises the findings from the body of the essay and I answered the question giving my opinion. That’s really all you have to do in order to finish off your text well.

Time to start practising

With all the information provided in this article I hope you feel ready to start your journey to become an excellent essay writer. As you can see, the structure is clear and the tasks are always similar. Practise regularly in order to improve until essay writing becomes second nature for you.

Lots of love,

Teacher Phill 🙂

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C1 Advanced (CAE) essay example

FOR LEARNERS

C1 Advanced Writing Part 1: Essay (220-260 words, 45 min approx.)

TASK: Your class has watched a panel discussion on the areas which have benefited from the internet. You have made the following notes:

Entertainment

• Social relationships

Write an essay for your tutor discussing two of the areas in your notes. You should identify which area has benefited more from the internet, giving reasons for your choice.

Write your answer in 220 – 260 words in an appropriate style.

Task taken from Cambridge Write and Improve website. Link below. 

https://writeandimprove.com/workbooks#/wi-workbooks/bdc648bc-b760-4bac-98bc-161a95deff5e/tasks/62602255-69f6-4369-8224-48fc6013bd1d

Let’s analyse the task

The first thing when reading the task is to identify what two areas from the notes you are going to write about and choose the one that (in this case) has benefited more . Then, brainstorm some arguments .

While writing

For the introduction, try to rephrase the task and be as general on the topic as you can. Make sure to mention the two areas you have chosen to write about.

When writing the paragraphs don’t forget to include a Topic sentence . This sentence serves as an introduction of the paragraph. Then follow it by your arguments and reasons.  Here is a video explaining the whole process.

For the conclusion, repeat what you said before using other words and express your opinion clearly on which one area has benefited more from technology.

Here is my take on the task

Introduction.

There is no doubt that the new technologies have changed our lives. Education and entertainment can be identified as two main areas that have experienced a positive impact. 

First of all, schools have changed a lot since the Internet was introduced. They cater more to different learning styles using a wide range of media and tools such as interactive boards, tablets and Kahoot. Moreover, using technology in the classroom has proven to be more engaging than the old-fashioned blackboard. For instance, it results that students would readily write a text for a blog or a website rather than an essay. Last but not least, learners tend to do their homework more diligently if the task has to do with social media.

Another area that has changed for the better is entertainment. Streaming platforms such as Netflix have brought TV to our fingertips and made it incredibly cheap and easy to access. No more saving to go to the cinema or buy the latest DVD. Now you can Google almost anything and have it delivered or play it right away. What’s more, you can create your own content and monetise it as any aspiring You-tuber will tell you. 

In conclusion, the Internet and new inventions such as smartphones and tablets are shaping the way we consume information whether it is for work, studies or just fun. However, as far as I am concerned the field which has benefited the most is entertainment. It has become even more widespread than before and more and more people are spending their time and attention watching such content. 

Don’t memorise examples!

You can use example essays to get a feel of the style. Compare your ideas and organisation. Learn some phrases to use in your own writing. But don’t forget that we all have different writing styles and there isn’t one correct way of doing it. 

Still not confident about your writing?

Check out my other articles:

How to write an essay using a template

How to write a B2 First essay

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Home » C1 Advanced » CAE Course » CAE Writing Course » C1 Advanced Essay CAE | 1 Amazing Technique

C1 Advanced Essay CAE | 1 Amazing Technique

Table of Contents

C1 Advanced Essay

What is a C1 Advanced Essay?

A C1 Advanced Essay is a writing task which forms part 1 of the C1 Advanced exam writing paper. There are 2 parts in the CAE writing paper. There is one question in Part 1 and this is always an essay. The aim is to answer this question, writing between 220-260 words.

If you follow the order of information on this page, you will know exactly what you need to do to pass the C1 Advanced essay and get the examiners smiling 🙂

The information follows a specific order, so make sure you don't skip any parts!

Before we continue, I want to tell you about my new e-book of writing samples . It contains 6 essays with my corrections and feedback. You can get it with a free Kindle Unlimited trial in some countries:

Cambridge English Assessment Scale

In order to prepare for the writing paper effectively, it is best to understand what the examiners look for. If you know how the examiners mark your writing, you are in a better position to get top marks!  Watch the video below because it explains the marking criteria in detail:

How To Write A C1 Advanced Essay - CAE Writing Part 1

Here is a video I made which shows you:

• How to find an example question.
• Advice for writing an essay.
• An example answer.
• What mark the examiner gave this example (based on the assessment criteria above).
• Typical essay mistakes.
• Extra essay tips.

You should open the video in a new tab and complete the rest of the page with me at the same time...

i. C1 Advanced Essay - Example Question

In part 1 you are given only one question to answer.

Here is an example essay question from page 33 of the Cambridge English Advanced Handbook for teachers: https://www.cambridgeenglish.org/images/167804-cambridge-english-advanced-handbook.pdf .

Write your answer in 220-260 words and in an appropriate style on the separate answer sheet.

The question tells us to only talk about two of the facilities. That gives us three options:

• Museums and sports centres
• Sports centres and public gardens
•  Public gardens and museums.

We also have to explain which is more important, which means we need to develop our points giving reasons to support them.

ii. C1 Advanced Essay Advice

Let's have a look at some instructions that are given for writing essays in the Cambridge English Advanced Handbook for teachers .

The advice above is important for the Communicative Achievement marking criterion.

It's important to know who your target reader is as this will effect the level of formality or register. We know from the information above that our target reader is likely to be an academic tutor, which means that your writing should be formal.

CAE Essay Tip:  sorry this tip is available for higher level members only. Register/upgrade here >>

Okay, so the information above means we need to find the most important issues with regard to a topic and back these up with reasons, extra points and extra ideas if you can think of them.

This will help with the Organisation marking criterion. You should follow a clear structure with a good flow. If the examiner can see that the points are developed in a clear way, you will get higher marks.

"Holding the target reader's attention" is important for the Communicative Achievement criterion. The way to hold their attention is to write in a way which is appropriate for the target reader, while using your Language to express simple and complicated ideas. The way you Organise and structure your essay as a whole and on an individual paragraph level can also help hold the reader's attention. 

Personally, I think planning your answer is also  really  important. I have a plan template which you can complete online here >> or print off here >>

My friend Charles Cornelius, a former IELTS examiner, runs a tutoring website for his IELTS students and he has some really useful tips for essay planning, including his 4 step essay planning approach .

iii. C1 Advanced Essay - Example Answer

While reading the answer, you should write down any mistakes you find here , along with their corrections.

I'd also like you to read the essay below which is based on the question above and give it a mark from one to five for each of the 4 marking criteria (Content, Communicative Achievement, Organisation and Language). You can use this online template or print this hard copy . Remember 1 is the worst mark and 5 is the best. If you give the content 5 out of 5 for example, write why it is so good.

THINK LIKE AN EXAMINER

If you can think like the examiner then you will get much better marks in the essay. In the words of Faithless, you can 'come 1' 😉 If you're tired, play their song, get up, jump around and then come back and complete the task with the example answer below the Faithless video...

https://www.cambridgeenglish.org/images/167804-cambridge-english-advanced-handbook.pdf

Examiners' Assessment Scale Template

Download the hard copy here or write on the online template .

iv. Examiner Comments

Now we're going to look at what the real examiner thought about this essay. I'd like you to compare the examiner's marks with your own marks and see if you had similar ideas or if you had different ideas. I recommend reading the examiner's comments in detail, this will help you know exactly what the examiners are looking for when you're writing your essay. Take as long as you like to do this...

Okay so hopefully you've read the comments above, so now I would like to show you some of the bits which I thought were really important from these comments:

This means the person answered all parts of the question. They have poured the perfect pint 😉

Communicative Achievement

The opening paragraph and conclusion leave no room for doubt that where the money should go. Having a clear structure and argument mean it's easier to follow the writing.

Consistency is key . Remember that 😉

This writing is consistently formal and it is objective, which is important. You should try to be objective and use objective language rather than subject language.

Clear paragraphs help to keep the reader's attention as well. This comes down to flow and organization as well as communicative achievement.

Organisation

There are a lot of different cohesive devices used. Cohesive devices are linking words (moreover, however) and organisational patterns (using parallel structures, 'He thinks x, while she thinks y'. Cohesive devices link different ideas and sentences together.

There is a range of vocabulary which is relevant to the topic. There is also a range of simple and more complex grammatical structures.

All of the above are positive points that you should try to incorporate into your writing. If you are confused by some of the terminology above, it explains most of these words and their meanings in more detail on pages 37 and 38 of the Handbook for Teachers: https://www.cambridgeenglish.org/images/167804-cambridge-english-advanced-handbook.pdf

I highly recommend having a look at my CAE writing samples book as well. I mention all these terminology while critiquing 21 CAE writings. If you read that book you will have a much better understanding of what the examiners want and how to get top marks in the exam.

Get The Book Now >>

v. CAE Essay Mistakes

When I read through the essay above, I noticed there were some specific mistakes with the language and so I've written these down here. They might be connected with spelling, grammar or whether the phrase is not very easy to understand. Are the mistakes below the same as the ones you identified above? If so, great. If not, it's possible I missed a couple of mistakes, so don't panic.

You should now write down the correct version of the sentences below. You can write your corrections on this worksheet .

People have lost the interest in visiting...

Moreover, the young men should be aware...

history museums provide people very interesting informations.

It can be organised events like...

there can be built spaces for kids to play

investment from local authority are...

vi. C1 Essay Corrections

Hopefully you've done the tasks above. Now have a look at my corrections below and see if you have the same corrections as mine...it's possible there may be more than one correct answer, so feel free to contact me if you want to check...but BE SPECIFIC in your email!

'People have lost interest in visiting'.. . (‘people have lost interest’ not ‘people have lost THE interest’).

'Moreover,  young  men should be aware... ' ( Not ‘the’ young men just young men in general without ‘the’).

‘history museums provide people WITH very interesting information’ (we always say to provide someone WITH something and information is uncountable so it shouldn't be ‘informations’ just ‘information’).

events like this can be organised... (I would say the subject first. ‘Events can be organised’).

‘spaces for kids to play can be built’. (Again the subject should be at the beginning of a sentence. ‘Spaces’ and ‘events’ at the beginning of the sentence and then say what you can do with these things).

' investment from local authorities are... ' ( it's probably more than 1 local authority and even if it is just one you would need to use an article ‘a/the’ before ‘local authority’). 

There are 6 sample essays with corrections and critique in my new book...take a look >>

i. C1 Advanced Essay 2

Here is another example essay question:

You must answer this question. Write your answer in 220-260 words in an appropriate style.

Your university has attended a conference titled ‘the greatest advantages of the internet for people in their everyday lives’. You have made the notes below:

Advantages of the internet in everyday life -communication -accessibility -retail

Write an essay for your lecturer discussing two of the points. You should explain which point you think is the greatest for people and provide reasons in support of your opinion.

ii. CAE Essay 2 - Example Answer

Read the essay below and write down any mistakes you find in the appropriate fields of this document .

Then mark the essay from one to five for each of the 4 marking criteria on the template below. 1 is the worst mark and 5 is the best.

You should also say why you gave it your score 1-5.

iii. Examiner Assessment Scale Template

Download here or fill in the online version here .

Make sure you have completed the examiners template with your own thoughts before continuing with this page.

Once you have completed the template above, you should read my notes below and compare my feedback with yours. When you become proficient at this skill and when your thoughts resemble mine for all CAE writing samples you read, you will have a good idea what the examiners are looking for in the CAE writing paper and this will DRASTICALLY improve your marks in this part of the exam.

iv. My Comments

Compare my mistakes, marks, comments and improvements below with yours...

Sorry, the content below is for members only. Register here >>

v. Pass or Fail

Pass or Fail

Content - 3 Communicative Achievement - 4 Organisation - 4 Language - 3

Total: 14/20

If you got the same marks for part 2 you would get 28/40. This would be a pass in the exam as the pass mark is 24/40. Well done!

Remember, there are 6 essays and 15 other writing samples with feedback etc. in my new book >>

There are some more useful tips for the CAE essay on this website.

C1 Advanced Essay 3

I. question.

Here is a question which one of my students submitted via my CAE writing assessment service . It has come from the ' Ready for Advanced ' coursebook (written by my friend Roy):

ii. CAE Essay 3 - Sample Answer

Read the essay answer below and note down any mistakes you find in this document .

Write a mark with a comment for each of the marking criteria on this document .

iii. My Comments

If you have written your mistakes here and completed the assessment scale , then you should compare your notes with mine...

"It goes without saying that the urban environment is a vitally important part of every city (Good first sentence - using a less common expression) . Councillors often do everything they can to sustain (We don’t normally say ‘sustain’ + noun + adjective. You can say ‘sustain this diverse system in a clean way ’, or you could simply replace the word ‘sustain’ with the word ‘keep’) this diverse system clean but not messy (‘messy’ is a slightly informal/colloquial word) . The majority of people do es n't (‘people’ is plural so say ‘people don’t...’) care about the environment at all. Although, throwing away (‘throwing away’ can have the same meaning as ‘throwing in the rubbish bin’ so it would be better to rephrase this) things such as plastic bottles instead of putting them into a rubbish bin has a detrimental effect on the whole eco-system. If we were more considerate of the urban environment, we would be able to achieve amazing results in terms of reducing pollution. What would be the most effective method to ensure this? 

First of all (‘Firstly’ is better to use here as it is more formal) , I have to mention the (don’t put ‘the’ unless you specifically mention which ‘legislation’ you are referring to) legislation. It could be said that if we put forward ‘and enforce’ (‘put forward’ is only to suggest or propose) tougher laws, we would achieve amazing results. As far as I am concerned, I am not fully convinced about that. (Could you write the previous sentences without using first person pronouns (‘I have to…’ ‘I am...’). According to a recent study, implementing tougher laws can result in disrespect for the local council. Moreover, it can lead to rebellion. 

Another way of tackling the problem would be to focus on public services such as the underground, buses, hospitals etc. (don’t write ‘etc.’ in formal writing). If the government put a huge amount of money into funding new electric buses, it (‘this initiative’) would contribute to the decrease in air pollution and noise. 

To sum up, I think the advantages of the second solution weight up ‘outweigh’ those which are mentioned in the first one. From my point of view, if we want to sustain ‘keep’ the urban environment clean, we should embark on the refurbishment of public services."

Examiner Assessment Scale Feedback

Sorry, the critique below is for higher level members only. Register/upgrade here >>

iv. Pass or Fail

I have awarded the essay the following marks:

Content - 3 Communicative Achievement - 2 Organisation - 3 Language - 3

Total: 11/20

You need a minimum of 24 out of 40 possible marks to pass the CAE writing paper. Remember, there are 2 different writings to complete, so you need to average 12 out of 20 for each writing task. If this student got 13 out of 20 for their part 2 writing, they would pass the Writing paper at a C1 level. Remember, you do not need to pass every exam paper in order to pass the C1 Advanced (CAE) exam and get a certificate, you just need to average 60% across all 5 exam sections.

If you want to find out more about what marks you need in order to pass the exam, have a look at my CAE exam page >>

I really recommend having a look at my new book >> it will definitely help you improve your writing exam score!

C1 Advanced Essay 4

Instructions.

• Read the example CAE essay question and answer below and write down any mistakes you notice on a separate piece of paper.
• Complete the examiner's assessment scale below, according to the marking criteria you examined on the previous page . You can download a template of the assessment scale here .
• Read the answer again with my comments.
• Read what I wrote on the examiner's assessment scale.

Here is the same question that we looked at in example 1 above:

https://www.cambridgeenglish.org/Images/167804-cambridge-english-advanced-handbook.pdf

ii. C1 Advanced Essay 4 - Sample Answer

Complete The CAE Essay Assessment Scale Template

Download here >>

CAE Essay Answer With My Comments

Sorry, the content below is available for higher level members only. Register/upgrade here to access now >>

CAE Essay Marks

Sorry, this section is available for higher level members only. Register or upgrade here >>

C1 Advanced Essay 4 - Pass or Fail

Sorry, this section is available to higher level members only. Register/upgrade here >>

CAE Essay Examples

I created a book recently with loads of sample writings that students have sent me. I think this is the best body of work I have produced:

If you do not want to access the book, I also have a few more essay samples on my CAE essay examples page here .

When I have time I critique them according to the examiners assessment scale and sometimes turn them into a video for my YouTube channel .

Send Me Your C1 Advanced Essay

If you have a CAE/FCE writing task you would like me to consider marking and critiquing in a future article, you should complete the form on this Cambridge writing exam page .

You can check out some other CAE writings which students have sent to me, along with my feedback in my new book .

Class Activities For Teachers

Are you a teacher?

Why not use my resources to help your students either in class or as homework exercises.

With Computers

Do you and/or your students use computers in lessons?

• Become a full member of my website to access loads more useful information and exercises including more essays .
• Read this essay question and then write a plan for it here.
• Save, print and then note down any mistakes on this example essay answer.
• Complete an assessment scale template for the example answer.
• Compare your mistakes with the mistakes I found here .
• Compare your assessment scale with the examiner's assessment scale notes.
• Watch this video,  note down the most important points on this form and then add any extra essay notes to the form too. Students receive a copy of the form by email.

Without Computers

If you or your students don't have computers, follow these instructions:

• Read this essay question then write a plan for it in no more than 5 minutes here .
• Save, print and correct any mistakes on this sample essay answer.
• Fill in the examiner assessment scale template for the sample essay answer.
• Compare the last two steps with the mistakes I identified  and the examiner's notes on this assessment scale.
• Print off this form and complete it with notes from this video and elsewhere.

For homework, you should write your own answer to the essay question above or you could write an answer to the essay question on this page . If you write your essay on computer you can submit it via my CAE writing assessment service and if I have time I will put your essay on my website with some of my feedback and my marks. You can also pay to have your writing marked within 7 days. Again, you can find loads more past writings students have sent me in my new book .

Finally, you should read the Cambridge English Advanced handbook for teachers because there is loads of really useful information in there. I really recommend reading the whole handbook before going into the exam because it will really help you to prepare.

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C1 Advanced: Writing Part 1 Formal Essay

This is yet another designed to help students prepare for part one of the C1 Cambridge Advanced (CAE) writing exam. Some of the content has been rehashed from old posts but the approach is slightly different. Download the student handout below:

Give out the handout and draw students’ attention to the task on page one and the first version at the bottom of the page. Have them read the task, then the model answer, then answer questions 1-3 with their partner:

• Which of the three areas (convenience, cost & enjoyment) does the writer focus on? cost and convenience
• Which one do they decide has the biggest impact on where people choose to shop? cost
• Content (have they answered the question?) 4.5 – 5 – yes, question is fully answered
• Range of language 2.5 – reads more like a B2 First essay
• Appropriate style (formal/informal) 1.5 – too informal, not the right style: contractions, words like “stuff”, too personal (too much “I” and “we”), “first let’s look at”

Now have students look at question 4. If you’re pressed for time, you could skip this part. Have students brainstorm more formal and advanced ways of expressing the parts in bold in pairs or groups. Perhaps you could assign one paragraph to each group and have them report back in open class. Board their ideas.

Now have students flip the paper over. Version 2 essential expresses the same ideas but with more advanced language and a more appropriate register. Direct students to find the “fancy” equivalents of the underlined phrases from version 1 in version 2.

Set students the homework task by first encouraging them to discuss the topic:

Factors when deciding where to go on holiday:

• Cultural activities

Encourage them to use the language from version 2 and the language on pages 2 and 3 in their compositions.

Read version 1 and answer the questions:

• Which of the three areas (convenience, cost & enjoyment) does the writer focus on?
• Which one do they decide has the biggest impact on where people choose to shop?
• Content (have they answered the question?)
• Range of language
• Appropriate style (formal/informal)
• Look at the sections in bold, how could you express the same ideas in a more impressive/formal way?

We’re always hearing in the news about how more and more people are buying things on the internet . It’s a big problem that fewer people are going shopping in physical shops nowadays . But, what makes people decide where to shop?

First, let’s look at convenience. It’s true that shopping online is much easier than shopping in physical shops. You can buy stuff on your computer and you can sit on your sofa , you don’t need to leave your house . Also , the stuff gets sent to your house . When you go to the physical shop you have to take it home yourself.

Now I’ll talk about cost. Some people think that cost is the most important thing people think about when they decide where to shop. For example, when the sales are on people buy things in shops they don’t normally go to. But some people don’t care about the price. It doesn’t matter if it’s expensive or not.

In conclusion, looking at the facts, I think that cost is the most important thing for most people because if you don’t have enough money , you can’t buy it.

Find and underline the ways that the same ideas are expressed in this version.

Hardly a week goes by without another news report about the recent dramatic increase in online shopping. The decline of the high street shop is undoubtedly a major issue in this day and age. However, which aspect of shopping has the biggest influence on where people shop?

The first area to take into account is convenience. It is undoubtedly the case that shopping online is much more convenient than shopping on the high street. Not only can you make a purchase with the click of a button, but also you can do it from the comfort of your sofa without setting foot outside your door.  In addition, the goods are delivered directly to your door whereas when you shop in physical shops you have to carry it home yourself.

Another aspect to consider is cost. There are those who argue that cost has the biggest impact on where people decide to shop. This is illustrated by the fact that during the sales many people buy things in shops they would not normally enter. Nevertheless, for some people the cost is not an issue, they buy what they want to buy no matter the price.

In light of the above, weighing up all the evidence, it is probably true to say that cost does indeed have the biggest influence on where people decide to shop due to the fact that most of the time, if you cannot afford something then you will not be able to buy it.

(247 words)

Homework Task

Your class has had a class debate on the most important factors when it comes to deciding on a holiday destination.

Some opinions expressed in the debate:

• “If it’s not a sunny place, then I’m not going. Why would I visit a cold, rainy city?”
• “I want my money to go further. For the price of a weekend in Paris, I could spend 2 weeks in Morocco.”
• “I can’t stand just lying on a beach, I need to get out and learn something about the places I’m visiting.”

Write an essay for your tutor, discussing two of the factors in your notes. You should explain which factor is the most important for most people , giving reasons to support your argument.

You may, if you wish, make use of the opinions expressed in the debate but you should use your own words as far as possible. Write your essay in 220-260 words in an appropriate style.

Language for introductions

• In this day and age…
• … is a hotly-debated topic that often divides opinion.
• … is a growing issue in today’s society
• We live in an age when many of us are…
• More and more families are choosing to have only one child.
• The trend nowadays is towards having smaller families.
• Over the past ten years or so the media have frequently carried reports of ……………
• Recent research indicates that the number of teenagers who smoke is increasing.
• Hardly a week goes by without another report of …………….. appearing in the media.
• Although most people would generally agree that …………… few would deny that ……..

Language for topic sentences

Second Paragraph

• …. clearly/undoubtedly has an impact on…
• It is common knowledge that… plays a crucial role in…
• It is undoubtedly the case that…
• There is little doubt that…
• … is widely believed to contribute to…
• It is generally considered that…
• Recent research suggests that…
• Studies have shown that… has an impact/influence on…
• Few people would contest/dispute the fact that…

Third Paragraph

• Another factor to consider is…
• On the other hand/In contrast…
• It is often claimed that…
• All the evidence suggests that…

Language for supporting ideas

Language for introducing supporting ideas:

• For example,
• For instance,
• An obvious example of this is…
• A clear example of this is…
• This is illustrated by…
• As a case in point…

Paragraph Skeleton

It goes without saying that …………………………………………………………………… A clear example of this is ………………………………………………………. In addition, ……………………………………………………………………. Nevertheless, …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. Overall/in summary ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

Language for conclusions:

• In light of the above, / Taking all this into consideration/account,…
• As far as I am concerned, / in my opinion, / as I see it, etc.
• … is the most effective way to… due to the fact that…
• Despite the fact that… undoubtedly plays a role in… I firmly believe that… is more effective due to the fact that…

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Author: Tim Warre

Barcelona based English Teacher, blogger and sometime actor and director. View All Posts

One thought on “ C1 Advanced: Writing Part 1 Formal Essay ”

On Fri, Feb 26, 2021 at 9:42 PM Tim’s Free English Lesson Plans wrote:

> Tim Warre posted: ” Image credit: Cambridge Assessment English This is yet > another designed to help students prepare for part one of the C1 Cambridge > Advanced (CAE) writing exam. Some of the content has been rehashed from old > posts but the approach is slightly different.” >

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A for and against essay about online communication.

Look at the essay and do the exercises to improve your writing skills. 

Instructions

Do the preparation exercise first. Then read the text and do the other exercises.

Preparation

Check your understanding: grouping

Check your understanding: reordering, check your writing: gap fill, check your writing: multiple choice, worksheets and downloads.

Do you prefer online or face-to-face communication? Why? Which type of communication do you think is more important in today’s world, and why?

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Are you a learner at C1 English level (advanced) ? This section offers writing practice to help you write clear, well-structured texts about complex subjects. Texts include essays, proposals, articles, reports, reviews and emails.

Each lesson has a preparation task, a model text with writing tips and three tasks to check your understanding and to practise a variety of writing skills. Make a start today.

Choose a writing lesson

A music review

Learn how to write an album review.

• Read more about A music review
• Log in or register to post comments

A proposal for a digital newspaper

Learn how to write a proposal.

• Read more about A proposal for a digital newspaper

A report on a research study

Learn how to write a report on a research study for your company.

• Read more about A report on a research study

A response to a complaint

Learn how to write a response to a complaint.

• Read more about A response to a complaint

An email explaining an incident

Learn how to write an email to explain an incident to your manager.

• Read more about An email explaining an incident

An email request

Learn how to write a formal email to make a request.

• Read more about An email request

An email to a friend

Learn how to write an email to a friend.

• Read more about An email to a friend

An essay about women in science

Learn how to write an essay that suggests reasons for and solutions to a problem.

• Read more about An essay about women in science

An opinion essay

Learn how to write an opinion essay.

• Read more about An opinion essay

Conference bios

Learn how to write a short biography for a conference programme.

• Read more about Conference bios

Describing a table

Learn how to summarise information in a table and write a report on the main features.

• Read more about Describing a table

The changing workplace

Learn how to write about changes in the business workplace.

• Read more about The changing workplace

Learn to write in English with confidence

Our online English classes feature lots of useful writing materials and activities to help you develop your writing skills with confidence in a safe and inclusive learning environment.

Practise writing with your classmates in live group classes, get writing support from a personal tutor in one-to-one lessons or practise writing by yourself at your own pace with a self-study course.

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C1 advanced preparation, resources for teachers and learners.

Here you can find links to all of our free resources to help prepare for C1 Advanced exams, whether you are a teacher or a learner.

On this page:

Exam essentials

Essential reading for teachers and learners wanting to find out about the exam.

Teacher essentials

Resources to help you prepare learners for C1 Advanced.

Learner essentials

Information for candidates and resources that can be used at home or in the classroom for self-study.

Official Cambridge English preparation materials

You can find a wide range of materials in both print and digital formats .

Sample tests (paper-based, digital and computer-based)

Free: paper-based sample test.

Sample paper 1 for C1 Advanced

Sample paper 2 for C1 Advanced

Free: Digital sample tests

During March 2024, we will be moving from our current computer-based exam delivery to Cambridge English Qualifications Digital, which offer you even more benefits.

If you are planning to take your exam during March 2024, please contact your chosen exam centre to discuss their schedules.

Watch this video tutorial for help on how to complete an C1 Advanced digital exam. Please also review this document which covers minor differences between the sample tests and the live exam .

Time: approximately 40 minutes

Instructions to candidates

• Answer all the questions.
• You can change your answers at any time during the test. 

Information for candidates

• There are 30 questions in this test.
• Each question carries one mark.
• You will hear each recording twice.
• For each part of the test there will be time for you to look through the questions and time for you to check your answers.

C1 Advanced Digital Listening Sample Test

Reading and Use of English

Time: 1 hour 30 minutes

• You can change your answers at any time during the test.
• There are 56 questions in this test.
• Each question in Parts 1, 2, 3 and 8 carries one mark.
• Each question in Part 4 carries up to two marks.
• Each question in Parts 5, 6 and 7 carries two marks.

C1 Advanced Digital Reading and Use of English Sample Test

• Answer the Part 1 question, and one question from Part 2.
• There are two parts to this test.
• Each question carries equal marks.

C1 Advanced Digital Writing Sample Test

Answer keys and tapescript:

C1 Advanced Listening Sample 1 answer key

C1 Advanced Listening Sample 1 tapescript

C1 Advanced Reading & Use of English Test Sample 1 Answer key

Free: Computer-based sample tests

During March 2024, we will be moving from our current computer-based exam delivery to Cambridge English Qualifications Digital, which will offer you even more benefits. Information on the switch and what this means for you can be found on our Cambridge English Qualifications Digital page.

Watch this video tutorial  for help on how to complete a C1 Advanced computer-based exam.

The computer-based sample test does not mark your exam, so check your answers as you do the test using the answer keys below. Once the test has finished you will not be able to check them.

Computer-based Reading and Use of English sample test

Computer-based Writing sample test

Computer-based Listening sample test

Use the answer keys below :

Reading and Writing answer key

Listening answer key

There is no answer key for the Writing paper, but there are sample answers and examiner comments on the relevant pages of the C1 Advanced handbook .

How to convert practice test scores

The Cambridge English Scale is used to report results for our qualifications and tests. The scores provide a detailed understanding of the candidate’s level. They are also consistent across the different exams, making it easy to compare results and understand progress from one level to the next.

For guidance on converting practice test scores to Cambridge English Scale scores, download our guide for teachers. 

Converting practice test scores to Cambridge English Scale scores

Digital exam information

Have you thought about taking digital exams? Find out more about the benefits of digital exams .

Watch this short video to see what it’s like to take a digital exam.

Watch the video tutorial  for help on how to complete an C1 Advanced digital exam.

Read our FAQs if you have any more questions about taking digital exams.

Computer-based exam information

Have you thought about taking computer-based exams? Find out more about the benefits of computer-based exams .

Watch this short video to see what it’s like to take a computer-based exam.

Watch the video tutorial below for help on how to complete a C1 Advanced computer-based exam.

Help your students prepare for computer-based exams with our Teaching tips for computer-based Cambridge English qualifications .

Read our FAQs if you have any more questions about taking computer-based exams.

What to expect on exam day

Watch Sofia on the day of her exam, and learn what it’s like to take a Cambridge English Qualification, from B1 Preliminary for Schools to C2 Proficiency.

Explore useful information about the exam day , including exam day tips and FAQs to help you prepare.

Speaking test video with examiner comments

This video will help your students understand what happens during a C1 Advanced speaking test. You can also download examiner comments.

Read the examiner comments for Marta, Giovanna and Anna’s speaking test

Read the examiner comments for Pedro and Isabela’s speaking test

Read the examiner comments for Teresa and Antonio’s speaking test

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Exam Preparation Journey resource packs

The Exam Preparation Journey is a central online hub with teaching tips, classroom activities and more to support teachers preparing students for Cambridge English Qualifications.

Whatever stage you are at – starting out, considering a mock test or exploring your digital options – we offer timely support when you need it. Find advice such as how to create a positive learning environment, structure exam readiness and save time with lots of practical ideas ready to use in class.

Go to the Exam Preparation Journey

Handbook for teachers

The C1 Advanced handbook gives an overview of the exam and its place within Cambridge English examinations. This is followed by a focus on each paper and includes content, advice on preparation, and example papers.

C1 Advanced Handbook for teachers

C1 Advanced: Handbook for Teachers Listening Audio Files (ZIP, 58MB)

These are the listening files related to the Sample Paper from the Teacher's Handbook.

Lesson plans

Our lesson plans include everything you need to deliver a 45-minute lesson in the classroom or online, including activity sheets, homework, and more.

C1 Advanced lesson plans

Teacher guides

Developing listening skills for C1 Advanced: A guide for teachers

Developing reading skills for C1 Advanced: A guide for teachers

Assessing writing for C1 Advanced: A guide for teachers

Teaching tips

C1 Advanced Teaching Tips from Cambridge English examiners.

Mock test toolkit

Running a mock test gives your learners a true exam day experience, helps you understand their progress and decide if they are ready for their exam. Our interactive mock test toolkits are full of tips, strategies and materials to help you ensure your students are confident and fully prepared for their exam.

Mock test toolkit for older learners

Classroom warmers booklet

Classroom warmers activity booklet

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Cómo escribir un Essay para el C1 Advanced (CAE) [Guía 2023]

Luis @ kse academy.

• diciembre 16, 2022

Como seguro que ya sabes, los exámenes de Cambridge tienen varias partes (Reading, Writing, Use of English, Speaking y Listening), y cada uno de estos components se divide en diferentes partes. En este artículo me quiero centrar en el Writing Part 1 del C1 Advanced, es decir, en cómo escribir un Essay para el CAE . Y es que la parte 1 del Writing del C1 siempre será un essay.  🙂

Respuesta de ejemplo de C1 Essay

¡Nueva guía de Writing C1!

• 3 Ejemplos de cada tipo de Writing
• Essay, Review, Formal and Informal Email and Letter, Report y Proposal
• 500+ expresiones útiles listas para utilizar
• 95 páginas de contenido exclusivo
• Descripción completa del examen de Writing del CAE
• Descripción detallada de cada parte
• Criterios de corrección y preguntas frecuentes (FAQ)

Ver muestra o Comprar en Amazon

¿Qué partes tiene el Writing del CAE?

El Writing del C1 Advanced (CAE), como ya vimos en otro artículo, tiene 2 partes , y para cada una de ella tendrás que escribir un texto según las instrucciones del ejercicio. Lo que debes saber es que existe una serie limitada de tipos de textos que te pueden preguntar en cada parte, así que veamos: 

• Writing Part 1: En esta parte siempre tendrás que escribir un ensayo ( essay ), y no tendrás más opciones para elegir. Por eso es realmente importante que prestes atención a este artículo y aprendas a escribir un ensayo para el C1 Advanced lo mejor posible. 
• Formal letter/email
• Informal letter/email
• Review 
• Proposal 

Cada writing que haga deberá tener entre 220 y 260 palabras, aproximadamente, y, al tratarse de diferentes tipos de escrito, deberás tener en cuenta las peculiaridades de cada uno en cuanto a estructura, registro, gramática y vocabulario, etc. 

Así que comencemos con el que nos atañe en este artículo: Essays ! 

¿Qué es un essay ?

Un Essay , en español «ensayo», es un texto de opinión en el que analizamos un tema, una situación o un problema desde diferentes puntos de vista o considerando varios puntos o soluciones al problema. En los diferentes párrafos, tratamos cada uno de ellos y expresamos diferentes hechos, consideraciones y opiniones. 

Ahora que ya sabemos lo que es un ensayo, pasemos a ver cómo escribir uno y sus características. 

Cómo escribir un Essay para el CAE Writing

A continuación te explico las características principales de un Essay de nivel C1 para que las tengas bien presentes a la hora de escribir: 

• Propósito: Con un ensayo, lo que hacemos es evaluar un tema, una situación o un problema que es de cierto interés o controversia (Ej.: el uso de móviles en adolescentes ). A menudo, la actividad de Writing se plantea como una actividad que tiene lugar después de un debate en clase. En un examen, tendrás que imaginar el debate por ti mismo.
• Tono y registro: Al tratarse de un texto que versa sobre un tema serio o controvertido, el Essay siempre es un escrito que se da en un contexto formal, por lo que debemos utilizar un tono objetivo. Además, el registro lingüístico siempre debe ser formal, evitando palabras comunes como things, stuff, get, etc.; contracciones ( can’t, don’t, won’t, etc.); o expresiones que puedan sonar informales. 
• Estructura: Como todos los Writings, un ensayo tiene una estructura bastante definida, aunque no 100% fija e inamovible. Para empezar, podemos elegir darle un título o no, pero, personalmente, a mí me parece más adecuado escribir un Essay con título. ¿Has visto alguna vez un texto publicado sin título? Seguramente no.  En cuanto al cuerpo del texto, debe estar dividido en los siguientes párrafos: introducción, punto 1, punto 2 y conclusión. Es decir, en general, un Essay para el C1 de Cambridge debe tener 4-5 párrafos.
• Opinión: Aquí es donde más libertad tenemos a la hora de escribir un ensayo para el C1. Existen muchas formas de expresar nuestra opinión en un Essay , por lo que debes elegir la que mejor se ajuste al planteamiento de tu Writing. Lo que yo suelo recomendar es, sin embargo, que te mantengas imparcial durante todo el texto y expresar tu opinión únicamente al final, en el último párrafo, a modo de conclusión. Como siempre, lo más importante es que justifiques todo lo que dices en el escrito y que tu conclusión responda a la pregunta principal de la tarea.
• Coherencia y progresión: La coherencia es fundamental en todos los Writings, pero especialmente en el ensayo. Al tratarse de un texto justificativo y argumentativo, no se pueden escribir oraciones y párrafos inconexos; las ideas deben seguir un orden lógico y bien conectado, utilizando conectores apropiados al nivel C1, en este caso. Además, el lector debe percibir una progresión lógica de los párrafos, sin perder el hilo de lo que estás tratando de argumentar. Si no, cuando llegue al último párrafo no va a saber de qué estás hablando y nuestro Writing habrá fracasado catastróficamente. 

Ejemplo de CAE Writing Essay

Ahora que ya estamos familiarizados con las características principales de un essay para el Advanced (CAE) Writing de Cambridge, vamos a ver un ejemplo de essay a nivel C1, tanto las instrucciones de ejemplo como una posible respuesta.

Instrucciones de un Essay C1

En la siguiente imagen puedes ver un ejemplo obtenido de la página web de Cambridge.

De estas instrucciones, debemos extraer siempre lo esencial: 

• Temática: facilities which should receive money from local authorities
• sports centres
• public gardens
• «Museums aren’t popular with everybody!»
• «Sports centres mean healthier people.»
• «A town needs green spaces – parks are great for everybody.»
• Tratar únicamente 2 de los 3 puntos que nos han dado. 
• Responder y justificar la pregunta principal (“ which facility it is more important for local authorities to give money to ”)
• Justificar nuestra respuesta (“ giving reasons in support of your answer ”)
• Usar tus propias palabras (“ user your own words as far as possible ”)

Según el modelo de tarea planteado arriba, podemos plantear el escrito de la siguiente forma: 

• Introducción
• Punto 1 (museums)
• Punto 2 (sports centres)

Aunque no está set in stone , lo normal es que nos salgan 4 párrafos. Así que ahora vamos a ver un ejemplo Essay para el Writing del CAE: 

A simple vista, podemos ver que este Essay para C1 tiene un título introductorio y 4 párrafos ( introduction, museums, sports, conclusion ). Además, si leemos detenidamente el texto, podremos apreciar los siguientes aspectos: 

• Título: El título resume perfectamente al lector la temática que vamos a tratar en el texto. A veces, puede ser buena idea un título en forma de pregunta como “ Which facilities should receive funding from local authorities? ”, aunque yo prefiero siempre títulos más concisos. 
• Introduction : introduce el tema de forma general y menciona las dos opciones que vamos a tratar en los siguientes párrafos. 
• Museums : Habla de los beneficios de los museos y de invertir dinero en ellos. 
• Sports centres : Habla de los beneficios de los centros deportivos y de las consecuencias de invertir dinero en ellos. 
• Conclusion : De forma muy clara, se valora que los museos deben ser los que reciban la inversión por ciertos motivos que quedan bien justificados. 
• Conectores: Se utilizan conectores que definen claramente la coherencia y progresión del texto: on the one/other hand, in addition, ultimately, however, while, etc. 
• No utilizamos contracciones ni palabras comodín.
• When it comes to
• comes to mind
• valuable cultural resource
• heritage 
• generating income
• engage in physical activity
• positive outlet for energy
• La gramática es avanzada también (Ej.: Not only can…, but they also… )

En definitiva, se trata de un buen ejemplo de Essay para el CAE Writing. Hay que tener en cuenta, sin embargo, que este writing está escrito para simular un nivel C1, quizás sin adentrarnos en un nivel C2, necesariamente.

¿Me penalizan si escribo menos de 220 o más de 260 palabras?

Esta es la pregunta más típica en esta parte del examen y la respuesta es la siguiente: sí y no. Me explico. Los correctores no cuentan las palabras y te penalizan en función del número de palabras sola y exclusivamente. Corre el rumor entre los alumnos y profesores de que por cada 10 palabras te quitan puntos, pero eso no es cierto. Ahora bien, piensa que si te has pasado en 50 o 100 palabras, o más, probablemente estés metiendo información poco relevante a la tarea, y eso sí que es penalizable. Del mismo modo que si escribes menos de 220 probablemente te falte información importante o no la estés cubriendo con el detalle que se te pide.

Por ello, yo siempre recomiendo pasarse como mucho unas 20 palabras. De ese modo no perderás puntos si la tarea cubre los puntos que se te piden. 🙂

Guía para el C1 Advanced Writing con ejemplos y expresiones útiles

Aunque voy a publicar más artículos explicando cómo hacer cada tipo de tarea para el C1 Advanced, lo mejor que puedes hacer para tener información y práctica de sobra es adquirir la guía oficial de KSE Academy para el Writing del CAE. En esta guía encontrarás lo siguiente:

También puedes 👉🏻 Ver muestra o Comprar en Amazon

Espero que este artículo sobre el C1 Writing Essay te haya resultado muy útil. En ese caso, no olvides compartirlo con tus amigos y familiares.

Nos vemos en el próximo post. Hasta entonces, don’t forget to keep smiling ! 🙂

4 comentarios en “Cómo escribir un Essay para el C1 Advanced (CAE) [Guía 2023]”

Excellent material! I will be going deeply. I am from Ecuador and I need to do the B2 examination maybe in June to apply for a job as a public teacher here, now I am finishing my degree as a licensed. I will also trt to do a masters. Best, Ma. del Carmen Luzuriaga

Thank you for your comment, Maria del Carmen. Wish you all the best! 🙂

¿Sería bueno utilizar también phrasal verbs en nuestra essay?

Hola, Cristina. En principio, no hay problema por utilizar phrasal verbs, siempre que se ajusten a la temática y suenen naturales en el contexto y el tono que estés utilizando. Es decir, a priori, no hay problema, pero puede que algún que otro phrasal verb, según el contexto, puede sonar más informal de la cuenta. Pero depende. Si tienes algún ejemplo específico, no dudes en comentarlo por aquí. 🙂

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Essay sobre environmental issues

Essay sobre technology and daily life

• Archivado en DESTACADOS , Opinion essay

Hola, seguidores de la Web del Inglés! Seguimos ampliando nuestra «tablita» de writings que nos hacen llegar los usuarios para su posterior corrección. Aquí puedes ver la tabla con todos nuestros writings y si tú también quieres que te corrijamos tus writings, te animo a hacer uso de nuestro servicio de corrección de writings. Dicho esto, empezamos! Hoy tenemos un essay sobre technology and daily life, que al igual que os dije con el essay de environmental issues , está muy de moda y es habitual encontrarlo en los exámenes oficiales de inglés, tanto de intermedio como de avanzado. Nos los envía mi querida alumna M.Jesús, así que MUCHAS GRACIAS por la aportación!

Éstas son las instrucciones :

It is a common belief that technology has supposed a great deal of advance in terms of communication, relationships and working life but it has also brought some disadvantages. Let ´s us focus on two of those aspects , that is, relationships and working life.

Concerning relationships, rarely is the person who does not have a computer or a smartphone , which means the possibility of making a quick contact with the same other person ?? and at the same time, offering the opportunity to be constantly updated if you want to .

By contrast, technology also brings leads to impersonal relationships due to the fact that seldom d o people talk face to face to each other since they usually do IT by w W hatsapp , which by the way can create some misunderstandings if they are suspicious peop le. Ésta idea no la entiendo, por qué?

In relation to working life, it goes without saying how much technologies have improved it the fact of letting us wor k from home or with people on the other side of the world without the necessity  to fly there.

But as almost everything in life, it this matter/ issue has two sides and the dark one in this case it is people to presume you are able available for them 24 hours a day 365 days a year, especially if you are a freelance worker .

In the light of these pros and cons, we can affirm technologies have brought resulted in benefits when they are used in a relax ing and carefull y way.

• … on two of those aspects , that is, relationships and working life. = he añadido aquí los dos aspectos que vas a tratar, me parece buena idea introducirlos ya, así el lector ya sabe cuáles son antes de leerlos en sus respectivos párrafos.
• … the possibility of making a quick contact with the same other person ?? and at the same time = no entiendo aquí etá idea, the same other person?? = si me lo dejas en comentarios, veo cómo podemos ponerlo 🙂
• Has utilizado el verbo bring tres veces a lo largo de tu essay. Recuerda que es importante utilizar sinónimos, pues eso aporta riqueza semántica. Bring = lead to = result in, por ejemplo.
• they usually do IT by w W hatsapp = it es necesario, no se puede omitir bajo ningun concepto el objeto, si no queremos repetir, ponemos it.  Por otro lado, las aplicaciones informáticas se escriben con mayúscula.
• can create some misunderstandings if they are suspicious peop le…. = no entiendo esta idea. Habría que explicar qué es lo que quierse decir.
• have improved it the fact of letting us wor k from home = no sé por qué has puesto aquí it. Lo que yo te he puesto es «the fact of».
• En lugar de it, que queda un poco abstracto, mejor decir «this issue» o «this matter».
• and the dark one in this case it is people = el sujeto de is aquí es  «the dark one», por tanto, no tenemos que repetir el sujeto con it.
• Me gusta más a freelance worker, lo veo más formal para un essay.
• Relax es un verbo, tú necesitas un adjetivo, relaxing.
• Diferencia entre adjetivo y adverbio. Aquí está la explicació.

Está bastante bien, pero hay que seguir mejorando los errores de gramática. Ánimo 🙂

Y si te ha gustado y quieres compartirlo con tus amigos, no olvides hacer click en algunos de los iconos de abajo  g  + share ,  M e gusta  o en  Tweet  para que todos tus amigos puedan verlo también. “Share your knowledge. It’s a way to achieve immortality” , Dalai Lama.

• Advanced (CAE) , corrección de writing , essay

2 comentarios

• Anna el 27 enero, 2017 a las 18:08

Tengo una duda podrías sugerir una respuesta para el punto 2. «The same other person» imagino que quería decir con «la misma otra persona». Tal vez tendría de decir con «otras personas» = with other people. Y con el punto 5. Es raro lo que quiere expresar, tal vez se refiere a que «por otro lado… puede crear malentendidos si la otra parte es desconfiada.». «It would create some misunderstandigns whether the other part is suspicious»

Muchas gracias por el esfuerzo para mejorar los writings.

• patty el 27 enero, 2017 a las 21:12 Autor

Gracias, Anna, por tus aportaciones. Un saludo Patricia

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How to practice & improve CAE vocabulary (Tips & List PDF) | C1 Advanced

Having a good knowledge of diverse English vocabulary is very important for doing well in the C1 Advanced  exam. Therefore,  more of your time should be spent on improving your vocabulary.

In the exam, you will find exercises on commonly known topics, however, the CAE vocabulary will be more advanced (less general, more specialized or scientific) than it was in the FCE exam.

In addition to common topics, you will also find exercises on topics which are not typical (e.g. “development of artificial intelligence, restoration of the bear species, the beauty of painting” ). This means you need to read and improve your English vocabulary on a wide variety of topics .

C1 Advanced (CAE): Vocabulary Tips

Tip 1: read, read and read again.

Reading is an extremely important part of solidly building and improving your CAE vocabulary. Not only will you learn new words by reading, but your mind will also be constantly working, trying to identify the meaning of words based on context .

Therefore, read as much as you can and use various sources of information.Reading newspapers, magazines, academic texts, blogs in English and other print material will introduce you to new words.

What if you don’t like reading?

Don’t worry, you can always listen to audiobooks and podcasts on different subjects.

There are many places with interesting videos where professionals present materials on many different topics, for example:

• BBC Podcasts

If you don’t understand everything, use the transcript and a dictionary .

Test your CAE vocabulary! - C1 Advanced

Tip 2: learn roots.

What are roots of words?

By finding the origin of a word and its original meaning, it is much easier to remember them in the long run, and also to quickly understand new ones . Once you learn a root, you’ll begin to understand more words that use the same root.

Rest assured that this is actually one of the most effective ways that you learn .

Tip 3: Research the meanings of words

In the English-English dictionary , you will usually find examples of sentences showing how to use the word in everyday situations. Giving context will help you remember the word better.

Dictionaries also provide the origin of words , the so-called “root” . This information will help you help you understand the meaning of other words with the same root.

Meanwhile, the thesaurus is a great tool that allows you to see how you can replace a word you know with other words that have the same meaning. This can be especially useful when writing your CAE essay. You will avoid repetitions that may lower your score.

 Thanks to technology, we can always have access to a dictionary or thesaurus. Download the online versions to your computer or phone and use them when you have doubts about the meaning of a word.

Tip 4: Create associations

• Associations can help you remember specific words and phrases. For example, the word “gargantuan” means very big. Try to create a sequence with this word, such as tiny, small, medium, large, giant and gargantuan. Making associations can help you remember the words you learn more easily.
• It is also worth grouping words with similar sounds and memorising several words at once. You can try to group words together by topic, common core, meaning, or origin . For example, the adjectives underpaid , full-time , and stressful can be grouped together because they are all work-related.

Tip 5: Play word games

If learning English is just a burden for you, it will be boring and you will not achieve good results. Therefore, it is important to stay motivated and enjoy learning a new language. Find ways to add fun to your studies. For example, you can play word games with friends to improve your vocabulary and have fun.

There are many board games that are a great supplement to learning, but the most popular of them is Scrabble . To learn even more words, you can play with the English-English dictionary.

If you don’t like board games, you can always choose online games , countless of which can be found on the Internet.

Tip 6: Choose a variety of materials

Additionally, each author has his own individual writing style and builds sentences in a specific way, so you will be able to see different patterns.

Below are some websites and resources for reading materials you can use:

• Advanced C1 reading
• Hancock McDonald
• National Geographic

Tip 7: Focus on specific CAE vocabulary topics

As already mentioned, it is quite difficult to predict what topics will be used in the C1 Advanced (CAE) exam. To do well in the CAE exam, you need to learn English vocabulary on various topics .

However, there is a certain group of topics that you can expect on the exam…

We suggest focusing especially on the topics listed below :

Tip 8: Skip irrelevant topics

There is a certain group of topics you won’t find used in the exam and you don’t have to learn the vocabulary for:

The CAE exam must be universal because it is taken by both children and adults in different countries, so controversial topics are avoided.

Tip 9: I mprove general vocabulary

In addition to expanding your knowledge of specific topics, you should also improve your general vocabulary , one that is not limited to one specific type of topic but can be used in almost any type of topic:

Tip 10: Use Flashcards

On one side of the flashcard, write a new word; on the other, write the definition in English or draw a picture associated with this word.

Remember to make your flashcards legible and understandable. It may be helpful to write them in a bold colour. Flashcards are an easy and effective way to memorize new English vocabulary.

Review your flashcards as often as possible: on the bus, during a break at work or at university, during a meal, etc. Thanks to this, you will easily acquire a large amount of vocabulary.

Tip 11: Keep a journal of new CAE vocabulary

Every time you hear or see a word you’re not familiar with, note it down . Such a list will consolidate the newly learned words and encourage you to expand the list.

Always try to have a pen and notebook with you. Unless you prefer, keep a journal on your phone or computer .  This will allow you to review or add new information whenever you learn a new word. But in fact, no matter what you choose, what matters is that you are systematic in keeping a journal.

Don’t only focus on the word itself , but you should also try to search for synonyms and phrases in which it’s used. When you write down new words, try to create a sentence for each of them. You will remember words better if you learn them in the right context.

C1 Advanced (CAE): Vocabulary List

Below you will find a sample vocabulary list divided into individual topics at the C1 level for the CAE exam.

You can also download a PDF at the very bottom of the article.

Test your CAE vocabulary! | C1 Advanced

C1 advanced (cae): vocabulary list – download pdf.

Download PDF

Would you pass C1 Advanced (CAE)?