BEC Vantage speaking test Part 1 questions and sample answers
(about 3 minutes)
The examiner will take turns to ask you and your speaking partner questions. You will be expected to give information about yourself and also express your personal opinions on certain topics.
Examples of
BEC Vantage speaking test questions and sample answers
What are you studying at the moment?
I’m studying a Master’s Degree in Business Administration. It’s a two year course and I’m in the second year at the moment.
What made you decide to study (name of subject)?
Well, it’s directly related to my career and I thought it would be good to have an MBA for the future, especially if I want to pursue a career in top management. I also thoroughly enjoyed the first business degree I did which had an emphasis on international business and finance.
Can you tell us something about your studies?
Yes, of course, when I first went to university I did an international business degree with a specialization in finance. Then I went to work for a few years and last year I decided to pursue an MBA as part of my career plan. So now I’m in the final year and it’s been very challenging, but extremely interesting and I think it will be very helpful in my future career plans.
What do you find interesting about (name of subject)?
Overall, business is what makes the world go round, isn’t it? I mean, if we didn’t do business things would just stop. So when you consider all the different aspects involved such as finance, marketing, logistics, management and organizational aspects – it’s really a very wide and diverse area to study and the knowledge and skills learned are directly applicable to work in the real world.
Are there some aspects of the subject that you find difficult?
Sure, there are some concepts that can take a while to get your head round, but overall nothing that has proved to be too troublesome so far. One of the challenges I found in the early part of my studies was to see the connection or possible influences between what I thought were quite separate areas of business. For example, I would not consider the impact of financial policy on manufacturing procedures and things like that, but really everything is intertwined and something which happens in one particular area can quite easily have an impact, either positively or negatively, on another area of operations.
What do you hope to do next?
Well, once I finish my MBA I’d like to obtain an executive position in an international company and maybe have the opportunity to work abroad for a few years to broaden my business experience.
Would you like to run your own business in the future?
Really, I’m not sure, I think I’m a good manager and quite analytical but I’m not the kind of person who would create a completely new and innovative product. But maybe in the future I might consider working as a consultant and develop my own firm – so yes, it could be quite interesting but it’s not really part of my career plan at the moment.
How helpful will your studies be to your career?
I believe they will be extremely helpful as they are directly related to what I want to do with my career. Most of what I have learned and studied is about how business operates today and therefore it is essential knowledge to have, and the skills I’ve developed are also directly transferable to the workplace – it’s not like studying psychology and then getting a job doing something completely different. I will be able to use and implement the knowledge and skills I’ve learned so far.
What do you like about being a student?
It’s stimulating – that’s what I like most of all. There is always something more to learn or another depth to a particular topic – and sometimes the more you know – the more you want to know. Like work, it’s challenging and I’ve also met some great people on my course – so that’s a bonus too.
Are there any disadvantages about being a student?
Well, it can be stressful at times and I know that some full time students maybe wish they had more money to spend – but overall, I don’t think there are any real disadvantages apart from the cost of studying, especially if you have to borrow the money. That’s the biggest complaint I’ve heard.
