Cambridge English: Business Certificates
Business English Certificates (BEC)
The Business English Certificates are a suite of three examinations - BEC Preliminary, BEC Vantage, BEC Higher - designed to test English language ability used in the context of business. They are suitable for adults (aged 16 and over) who are either preparing for a career in business or already in work.
Revised BEC
In line with UCLES EFL's policy of reviewing its tests at regular intervals, a review of BEC was begun in 1999. The result of this review and the subsequent exam revision is Revised BEC, introduced in March 2002.
Examination levels
The BEC suite is linked to the Council of Europe's Common European Framework for Modern Languages, and to the UK Qualifications and Curriculum Authority's National Standards for Literacy, within the National Qualifications Framework (NQF).
| National Qualifications Framework Level | Council of Europe Level | Business English Ceritificates |
| 3 | C2 (ALTE Level 5) | |
| 2 | C1 (ALTE Level 4) | BEC Higher |
| 1 | B2 (ALTE Level 3) | BEC Vantage |
| Entry 3 | B1 (ALTE Level 2) | BEC Preliminary |
| Entry 2 | A2 (ALTE Level 1) |
|
How to enter
To register for the exam, you must contact an examination centre for BEC at least ten weeks before the exam; entries cannot be made directly to UCLES EFL.
More than 350 centres in over 50 countries run BEC exams, and most accept entries from candidates who are not studying at that centre. You can search for BEC centres through this site.