College English Test - 2005 Reform

2005 Reform

The CET was reformed in 2005. Several changes were made, including:

• Re-ordered and re-organized sections; more listening and spoken sections; new "Skimming & Scanning" and "Translation" sections;
• New grading system: scores are graded on a curved scale, so that the highest score possible is 710, while the lowest mark is a score of 290（finish all questions but all wrong);
• Passing grades and qualification certificate elimination;
• A more detailed score report on each section;
• Public service elimination: only university students need to take the test.

The CET is mandatory for university students in China who are not English majors. It is also a prerequisite for a bachelor's degree. Many employers in China prefer applicants with CET certification.

Passing the CET is important for Chinese college students. Graduates may only be able to get a degree or a good job if they can pass the CET with a high score.

College students in China now spend quite a large amount of their study time devoted to learning English. On nearly every campus, one can see students reciting text or vocabulary in the mornings, and generally practicing hard for English exams. Furthermore, a great number of students take extra language training classes on evenings and weekends to improve their skills, or pay for private native-speaking tutors.

While the CET tests reading, writing and listening, it does have a separate test for speaking. The speaking test is held twice a year and only students with a CET Band-4 score higher than 550 or a CET Band-6 higher than 520 are eligible for the test. Most Chinese graduates do well on written tests, but have poor English speaking skills. As they rarely use or practise their speaking outside lessons.