State Language Proficiency Exam: The Commission Explained How the Exam Work Is Assessed
The National Commission on State Language Standards explained how the exam work is assessed.
According to the resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine dated 14.04.2021 No. 409 and the decision of the National Commission on State Language Standards dated 13.05.2021 No. 20 (registered with the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine under No. 897/36519, as amended on 30.04.2024), exam results are determined no later than 15 calendar days from the date of taking the exam.
The exam for persons required to know the state language and use it during the performance of official duties consists of three parts with the following weighting in the overall result: written test tasks – 40%, open-type written expression – 30%, oral part – 30%.
Assessment takes place in two stages. The exam system automatically checks the test tasks. Open-type tasks – writing a text on a given topic and a monologue – are evaluated by examiners from authorized institutions according to uniform criteria established by the above-mentioned decision.
What affects your score for writing the text (0 to 37 points) and what you need to consider.
Start with the main point and don’t miss it
The most important criterion is the completeness of understanding the audio text and its reproduction in writing (up to 8 points). If you did not reproduce what you heard or did so superficially, you risk losing a significant portion of points. Also, be sure to express your own opinion on the topic and provide examples from experience (up to 4 points). If 0 points are given for both these criteria, the work is not further checked.
Structure the text
A work without a conclusion is an unfinished work. Even one or two sentences summarizing what was said give up to 2 points. Watch the sequence of presentation (up to 3 points): develop your idea logically, not chaotically. A typical mistake is "jumping" between topics or repeating the same thing in different words.
Take care of language presentation
Vocabulary is the most important language criterion (up to 4 points). Avoid monotony: if the same word is repeated in every sentence, it is noticeable. Vary syntactic structures (up to 2 points) – simple short sentences in a row lower the score just as much as confusing or overloaded constructions with mistakes.
Also pay attention to spelling (up to 3 points), punctuation (up to 2 points), lexical correctness (up to 2 points), and correct use of grammatical forms (up to 3 points). Typical mistakes here include incorrect declension, use of colloquial words or calques, confusion of paronyms (for example, "особистий" and "особовий" [personal and personnel], "громадський" and "громадянський" [public and civil]).
Watch the length
The length of the work is also taken into account (up to 2 points): a text that is too short does not allow the topic to be revealed, while an overly extended one indicates an inability to structure the thought.
What affects your score for the monologue
You can get from 0 to 18 points for the monologue. Here is what to pay attention to.
Fully reveal the topic
The most important criterion is revealing the topic according to the communicative task and the volume of speech (up to 4 points). You need to answer exactly the question asked. A typical mistake is talking "around" the topic with general phrases without answering the specific question.
Express your own position
Up to 1 point is awarded for expressing your own opinion on the monologue topic. It is not much, but the absence of a position is immediately noticeable. Avoid neutral constructions like "there are different opinions" instead of a clearly formulated position.
Build your statements logically
The sequence of presentation is assessed up to 2 points: from introduction through arguments to conclusion. A typical mistake is returning to what has already been said or sharp transitions between unrelated thoughts.
Take care of language presentation
Pay attention to vocabulary (avoiding repetitions and using precise lexical units), syntactic skill (variety of constructions: do not limit yourself to simple sentences), and correct use of grammatical forms.
Speak clearly
Pronunciation, speech tempo, and normative stress are assessed up to 2 points. Typical mistakes include incorrect stress in words like "оди́надцять" instead of "одина́дцять", "показни́к" instead of "пока́зник", as well as too slow or broken tempo, quiet speech.
Self-expression
1 point is awarded for self-expression – the ability to speak naturally, with intonation, and not just read a memorized text.
The overall result is expressed as a percentage from 0% to 100%. The level indicated in the state certificate of the UMD series is defined as follows: from 30% to 39% – initial level of the first degree; from 40% to 49% – initial level of the second degree; from 50% to 59% – intermediate level of the first degree; from 60% to 69% – intermediate level of the second degree; from 70% to 89% – free proficiency level of the first degree; from 90% to 100% – free proficiency level of the second degree.
If less than 30% is scored, the issuance of the state certificate is refused.
For appointment to positions defined by the Law of Ukraine "On Ensuring the Functioning of the Ukrainian Language as the State Language," a free proficiency level of the first or second degree is required.
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