What is Nivel Inicial

Nivel Inicial (formerly Certificado Inicial de Espanol) is a certificate documenting the knowledge of the basic communication Spanish language skills. Examination at this level is very simple. As a formal confirmation of full knowledge of the language in many countries are only valid certificates from two consecutive levels.

Nivel Inicial exam consists of five parts:

  • Comprensión de Lecture (reading comprehension) - part lasts 40 minutes. You need to take the multiple-choice test , and mark the answers on the basis of information from previously read text.
  • Expresión escrita (writing) - part lasts 50 minutes. In this section, candidates need to write a few short texts on any subject such as invitation, announcement, etc.
  • Comprensión auditiva (listening) - part lasts 30 minutes. Candidates must select correct answers on the basis of heard conversation. Part of this stage consists of four tasks.
  • Gramática y vocabulario (grammar and vocabulary) - part lasts 40 minutes. Here are three tasks: inserting missing words in the text, fitting relevant sentences describing presented situation, and finding errors in given sentences and selecting correct ones from given options.
  • Expresión oral (conversation) - part lasts 10 minutes. The task of the student is to carry on a conversation lasting about 10 minutes.