how to write an essay cpe

• Guide to the Cambridge C2 Proficiency Writing Exam – Part 1: Essay

• Posted on 19/04/2023
• Categories: Blog

Are you preparing for the Cambridge C2 Proficiency (CPE) writing exam? If so, you may be feeling a little nervous and concerned about what lies ahead . Let us help put that fear and anxiety to bed and get started on how your academic writing can leave a positive impression on the examiner.

By the end of this blog post, you’ll know exactly what you need to do, how to prepare and how you can use your knowledge of other parts of the exam to help you.

Although you’ll find the advanced writing skills you’ve mastered at C1 will stand you in good stead for C2 writing, there are clear differences in the exam format in CPE. As in Cambridge C1, there are two parts in the writing exam, and understanding what you need to do before you’ve even put a pen to paper is incredibly important. So, let’s go!

What’s in Part 1?

First, let’s look at the format of Part 1:

• Task: essay.
• Word count: 240–280 words.
• Register: formal.
• Overview: a summary of two texts and an evaluation of the ideas.
• Suggested structure: introduction, paragraph 1, paragraph 2, conclusion.
• Time: 1 hour 30 minutes for Part 1 and 2.

Before we look at an example task, let’s look at how your paper will be assessed. The examiner will mark your paper using four separate assessment scales:

• Content – this demonstrates your ability to complete the task, including only relevant information.
• Communicative achievement – this shows how well you’ve completed the task, having followed the conventions of the task, used the correct register and maintained the reader’s attention throughout.
• Organisation – the overall structure of your essay, the paragraphs and the sentences.
• Language – your ability to use a wide range of C2 grammar and vocabulary in a fluent and accurate way.

How can I write a fantastic essay?

Let’s look at an example task:

The key things you’re being asked to do here are summarise, evaluate and include your own ideas, using your own words as far as possible. So, in short, you have to paraphrase. As a Cambridge exams expert, you’ll know that this is a skill you already use throughout the exam.

In Reading and Use of English Part 4, the techniques you are using to make the keyword transformations (active to passive, comparative structures, negative inversions, common word patterns, etc) will show you that you already know how you can say the same thing in other words.

Your ability to do word formation in Reading and Use of English Part 3 is useful here, as you look for verbs that you can change into nouns, and vice versa. This enables you to say reword sentences without losing the original meaning.

You are already adept at identifying the correct options in Reading and Use of English Part 5 and Listening Parts 1 and 3, although the words given are different to the information in the text or audio.

So, be aware of the skills you have already practised, and use them to your advantage!

How should I plan and structure my essay?

Before you even consider writing, read both texts thoroughly . Highlight the key points in each text and make notes about how you can express this in your own words. Look for contrasting opinions and think about how you can connect the ideas together. These contrasting ideas will usually form the basis of paragraphs 2 and 3.

Although there are multiple ways you can organise your essay, here is a tried and tested structure:

Paragraph 1: Introduction

Paragraph 2: Idea 1 with support

Paragraph 3: Idea 2 with support

Paragraph 4: Conclusion

Introduction

Use your introduction as a way to present the general theme. Don’t give anything away in terms of your own opinion, but instead give an overview of what you will discuss. Imagine this as a global comment, talking about how society as a whole may feel about the topic.

Start with a strong sentence. Make your intentions clear, then back up your idea with a supporting sentence and elaborate on it. Use linkers to show how this idea has different stances, paraphrased from the key points you highlighted in the texts.

Follow the same structure as Idea 1, but focus on a different element from the two texts. Introduce it clearly, then provide more support to the idea. Keep emotional distance from the topic – save your opinion for the conclusion!

Here is the opportunity for you to introduce your personal opinion. There shouldn’t be anything new included here other than how you personally feel about the topics discussed. Use your conclusion to refer back to the main point and round up how your opinion differs or is similar.

This is just one example of how you can structure your essay. However, we recommend trying different formats. The more you practise, the more feedback you’ll get from your teacher. Once you’ve settled on the structure that suits you, your planning will be a lot quicker and easier.

What can I do to prepare?

According to the Cambridge English website, ‘A C2 Proficiency qualification shows the world that you have mastered English to an exceptional level. It proves you can communicate with the fluency and sophistication of a highly competent English speaker.’

This means that being a proficient writer in your own language is not enough. So, what can you do to really convince the examiner that you truly are smarter than the average Joe ?

Prepare! Prepare! Prepare!

✔ Read academic texts regularly.

✔ Pay attention to model essay answers and highlight things that stand out.

✔ Always try to upgrade your vocabulary. Challenge yourself to think of synonyms.

✔ Write frequently and study the feedback your teacher gives you.

✔ Study C2 grammar and include it in your writing.

What do I need to avoid?

Don’t overuse the same linkers. Practise using different ones and not only in essays. You can write something much shorter and ask your teacher to check for correct usage.

• Don’t constantly repeat the same sentence length and punctuation. Long sentences may seem the most sophisticated, but you should consider adding shorter ones from time to time. This adds variety and a dramatic effect. Try it!
• Don’t be discouraged by your mistakes – learn from them! If you struggle with a grammar point, master it. If you spell something incorrectly, write it again and again.
• Don’t limit your English studying time. Do as much as possible in English – watch TV, read, listen to podcasts, or meet with English speaking friends. English time should not only be reserved for the classroom.

What websites can help me?

The Official Cambridge English page, where you can find a link to sample papers.

BBC Learning English has a range of activities geared towards advanced level learners.

Flo-joe has very useful writing practice exercises that allow you to see other students’ writing.

Writing apps and tools like Grammarly can improve your writing style with their feedback and suggestions.

Don’t forget about our fantastic C2 blogs too!

Passing Cambridge C2 Proficiency: Part 3 Reading and Use of English

Passing C2 Proficiency: A Guide to Reading Part 5

Passing C2 Proficiency: A Guide to Reading Part 6

Guide to the Cambridge C2 Proficiency Listening Test

Guide to the Cambridge C2 Proficiency Speaking Test

Looking for further support?

If you’re interested in preparing for the C2 Proficiency exam but don’t know where to start, get in touch with us here at Oxford House today! We offer specific courses that are designed especially to help you get ready for the exam. Let our fully qualified teachers use their exam experience to guide you through your learning journey. Sign up now and receive your free mock test!

Glossary for Language Learners

Find the following words in the article and then write down any new ones you didn’t know.

lie ahead (pv): be in the future.

stand you in good stead (id): be of great use to you.

adept at (adj): have a good ability to do something.

thoroughly (adv): completely.

tried and tested (adj): used many times before and proved to be successful.

back up (pv): give support to.

round up (pv): summarise.

settle on (pv): choose after careful consideration

average Joe (n): normal person.

discouraged (adj): having lost your enthusiasm or confidence.

pv = phrasal verb

adj = adjective

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• Posted on 05/04/2023

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How to Do the Cambridge CPE Part 1 Essay Piece of Writing

If you are new to, or even if you are not, the Cambridge Proficiency English exam, doing the part 1 essay of the Writing exam is difficult. Not only is it very different to writing an essay in any other of the Cambridge exams, but you have probably never done anything similar to it before at either school or university.

In this article I will explain what you have to do when doing it and give you some advice to make doing it easier for you. You also see towards the end, two examples of the types of essays which you can write for this part of the exam. But let's start by looking at the task.

Below is an example of a task you will find on the exam paper for part 1 of the CPE writing exam. It includes instructions of what you have to do and two texts which you have to read.

Read the two texts below:

Write an essay summarising and evaluating the key points from both texts. Use your own words throughout as far as possible, and include your own ideas in your answers.

Write your answer in 240-280 words.

Only at home for many of us, can we really relax. It is the place we go to recover from the stresses and strains of our everyday life: the chaos and endless noise of city life, the pressures of work or study, and the unbearable journey to and from work through endless traffic. It is home which gives us the opportunity to reflect on all that has happened that day. It is where we can contemplate at leisure all that has happened to us and others either when alone in the peace and quiet of our own room or through a discussion with those that we live with over a cup of tea or coffee.

Be ourselves

Although for some life at home is a place of contentment and liberty, for others it can not only be quite a restrictive environment, but also a rather dull one. As a consequence, they need to go outside its confinements to parks or bars or even shopping centres in order to socialise with people they want to and be themselves. But that being said, home is still a place where one can express one's personality. From the choice and colour of fixtures and fittings, to the books in the bookcases and the paintings or posters on the walls, we learn a lot about the person who lives there. So if one visits a friend's home for the first time, it might well reveal aspects of their personality which had previously gone unnoticed before.

Identify the 4 main points

Having read the texts, what you need to then do is identify the two main points (the main assertions) from each text. You are going to write about these four points in the essay you produce.

This is more difficult than it may seem. I have generally found that students identify three of them relatively easily, but often struggle on identifying one of them. To be honest, I have done the same myself. As I mentioned before you need to identify the two main assertions that each is making, not the information which is only there to support the assertions (which you can also write about in your essay).

This hopefully will become clearer when I show you what the two main points are for each of the texts which you have just read. I will also both underline and bold them in the actual texts.

Text 1 Main Points

•  Home is the only place where one can relax.
•  Home gives us the opportunity to reflect and think about our lives.

Only at home for many of us, can we really relax . It is the place we go to recover from the stresses and strains of our everyday life: the chaos and endless noise of city life, the pressures of work or study, and the unbearable journey to and from work through endless traffic. It is home which gives us the opportunity to reflect on all that has happened that day. It is where we can contemplate at leisure all that has happened to us and others either when alone in the peace and quiet of our own room or through a discussion with those that we live with over a cup of tea or coffee.

Text 2 Main Points

•  For some people it is outside home where they feel free and themselves (stated in the first two sentences).
•  Home is a place where we can express who we are by what we do with it.

Although for some life at home is a place of contentment and liberty, for others it can not only be quite a restrictive environment, but also a rather dull one . As a consequence, they need to go outside its confinements to parks or bars or even shopping centres in order to socialise with people they want to and be themselves . But that being said, home is still a place where one can express one's personality . From the choice and colour of fixtures and fittings, to the books in the bookcases and the paintings or posters on the walls, we learn a lot about the person who lives there. So if one visits a friend's home for the first time, it might well reveal aspects of their personality which had previously gone unnoticed before.

They will look for the 4 points

The person who is marking your essay when you sit the exam will be looking that you have correctly identified and written about these 4 main points. Although you will be marked down if you don't correctly identify all of them, it doesn't mean that you will fail this part of the exam (get less than 12 out of 20) if you misidentify one or two of them (for example, say the second point from text 2 is "we can identify who a person is from visiting their home"). The reason why is that they are also assessing other aspects of your writing (your range and level of your grammar and vocabulary, the structure and flow of the piece of writing, how easy it is to read and your logic and reasoning) which are equally if not more important. So don't worry too much about identify all four correctly.

Reword the points

You should try to use synonyms where possible of the words used in the main points in the text. For example, instead of "happened" you could use "occured", or instead of "dull" you could use "tedious". It is not always possible to do, but try to do it as much as you can.

Be critical or one or two points

Writing an essay in the real world (at school and university) is to show your teacher, lecturer or professor that you not only understand the topic you are writing about (you have the knowledge), but that you can make a good argument (i.e. is something good, is something bad or is something both good and bad). Everything that you choose to write about is to support the main argument you have (e.g. Social media is bad for our mental health). You shouldn't write about things or make assertions which contradict what your main argument is.

The reason I am telling you this, is that you will often find with the texts that they contain opposing or contradictory ideas about the same topic. When you write about these in your essay you need to be critical of one or two of the points from the text. Which ones depend on what your main argument is going to be in the essay you are writing.

From the text above, if your main argument is that home is a good place then you would be critical of the point which says "for some people it is outside home where they feel free and be themselves". Whereas if your main argument is that home is a bad place then you could be critical of any of the three of other points. But when you are critical of any point you have to justify why it is wrong.

Two types of essays which you can write

There are two types of essay which you can write for this part of the Cambridge Proficiency exam: Discursive or Comparative . The discursive essay is one which you are probably used to writing at both school and university. The comparative essay is going to be new to most of you and in a way is more like you are writing a type of review of the two texts.

I am not going to go into detail about the differences in them and how to write them in this article (I will do that in separate articles on both types of essays in the future). The only thing I would like you to do now is read an example of the two different types. Whilst reading them, think about how they differ in structure and what they do and how the four main points are incorporated in them.

Each of them is an essay on the four points from the texts you read above.

Please bear in mind that you are not expected to produce something of this quality to pass the Proficiency Writing exam, because you aren't. The examiners know that you are not a native speaker and expect you will make mistakes. These are just two perfect examples (which took a lot longer than 45 minutes to write) of what you should be doing.

Discursive Essay

There is a common saying in Britain that "an Englishman's home is his castle". A place of refuge from the strains and stresses of everyday life. The only place where one can be truly oneself and do whatever one desires. However, is this really true?

It is undeniably true that having a home does afford a person a degree of control and independence which is sadly lacking in most other areas of modern life. The ability to tailor one's own surroundings (whether it be how the furniture is arranged or the colour scheme of a room) is something which is not possible to do outside one's abode. And furthermore, the ability to choose who and when people are permitted to visit, provides (if needed) a much needed respite from the trials and tribulations which we have to face on a daily basis. A safe harbour in stormy waters where one is free to reflect on one's life without interference from the outside world.

However, it would be folly to accept that this idealised view of the home is available to all. For unless you live on your own and own the property, you are not only limited to what you can do with it, but you also have to share it with others who may not provide you with the space or the sense of control we sometimes need. For those who find themselves in this situation, the only solution available for finding peace and quiet may often be to seek it elsewhere.

Although it is true that a man's (or woman's for that matter) home can be their castle, it is not true for all. The advantages that a home provides a person depends on the circumstances they find themselves living in.

Comparative Essay

Ever since Homer's epic poem Odyssey, a common plot line in numerous novels, plays and operas has been people trying to find their way back home; willingly enduring countless perils and hardships to achieve that aim. This would seem to indicate that the place we call home occupies a very special place in our hearts. And the two texts discuss why the place we reside in carries so much importance to us.

The first text starts with the claim that for many of us home is our place of refuge from the strains and stresses of everyday life, the only place where we can really disconnect. The text consequently goes on to support this by arguing that it allows us the freedom and ability to reflect on one's life without interference from the outside world. And although both of these arguments make perfect sense, I feel it really depends on the individual circumstances we find in our home life whether they happen.

This is perfectly illustrated in the second text where it is asserted that for some people it is not at home, but outside of it, where they can truly find the peace and quiet that they long for. It then contradictorily states that home provides us with a degree of control and independence over our surroundings (through how we arrange or even decorate them) which we don't have elsewhere. And yet being true for some, this again really depends on the circumstances we live in.

It is undeniably true that the place that we call home is important to us all. Not only does it potentially provide us with a degree of control over how we live our lives, but it also has other significance for us. It is the place in which we spend a lot of time with those who are most significant to us. And if we have lived there for a prolonged period of time, it is also the source of many memories. Whether we regard home as heaven or hell, very much depends on the experiences in which we have had or continue to have there.

I hope this long article has helped you understand better what you need to do for this piece of writing in the Cambridge CPE Writing exam. It is not easy, but with practice and perseverance it will become easier to do. It has done with all the students I have taught.

Cambridge C2 Proficiency (CPE): How to Write a Letter

• Mandatory task: no
• Word count: 280-320
• Main characteristics: opinion, narration, factual information
• Register: depends on the task
• Structure: greeting & opening paragraph, main paragraphs, closing paragraph & salutation

Introduction

A letter is written in response to the situation outlined in the question. Letters in the C2 Proficiency Writing paper will require a response which is consistently appropriate for the specified target reader, and candidates can expect to be asked to write letters to, for example, the editor of a newspaper or magazine, to the director of an international company, or to a school or college principal. A letter to a newspaper or magazine may well include a narrative element which details personal experience; other letters may be more concerned with giving factual information. Source: Cambridge English Assessment: C2 Proficiency Handbook for teachers

A letter in Cambridge C2 Proficiency is not a mandatory task as it is one of the options in Part 2 of the writing test together with articles , reviews and reports . The only type of text that you have to write is an essay .

Letter writing is very straightforward

Most candidates don’t mind writing a letter in C2 Proficiency because we all communicate regularly via email and through other means so we are familiar with the typical layout and structure that letters require.

I often see very good results with my own students and in the internal exams we run at the school I work for or in the official exam, this is a very popular choice that seems to pay off for most.

So, we are going to work through an example together and see what it is that you need to be careful with from analysing a task all the way to writing your name at the end of the text.

What a typical letter task looks like

Task for a letter in C2 Proficiency always look fairly similar and are based around the idea that you want to respond to something that you have read about without giving you the source material itself. That means that you have to build you letter based on your opinion on the topic in the task. It is almost like an essay with more stylistic freedom, but before I get ahead of myself let’s have a look at an example task.

As you can see, there is not a whole lot of information. Instead, there is just an excerpt from a newspaper article and you should write a letter outlining your opinion on said statement.

To make our lives easier and to get out as much as possible of a task like this, we should always try to find the answers to the following three questions:

• What is the topic of the text?
• What exactly do I have to include in my text?
• Who is going to read the text?

The topic of our letter is alternative medicine and the question if it is a waste of money or not. Unfortunately, there isn’t any more specific information availabl e so we will have to think about the different arguments and structure of the letter ourselves, but more on that in a moment. Finally, we are writing to a newspaper so there will be a wide variety of people reading what we have to say so that tells us that we should probably use a formal to neutral style of language , meaning that there shouldn’t be any colloquial expressions and we should try to avoid informal phrasal verbs.

How to organise your letter

Choosing a paragraph structure for your letter is one of the biggest steps towards success in C2 Proficiency. It gives you something to hold on to and in the next section we are going to fill it with life.

So, thinking about a letter we know that there is always a greeting and opening paragraph at the beginning as well as a closing paragraph and salutation at the end. In between, we add a few main paragraphs where we discuss the topic question, which leads us to this:

Greeting & opening paragraph

Main paragraphs, closing paragraph & salutation.

If you keep this basic structure in mind, you are already on the right track. As mentioned before, the number of main paragraphs can vary depending on your ideas for each individual task but I want to give you a rough shape that we can then fill out and refine.

Always plan your letter before you start writing

Those of you who have read any of my other articles on writing, be it for A2 , B1 , B2 , C1 or Proficiency , know that I’m a big fan of making a plan in order to set yourself up for a smooth ride. Not only does a good plan serve a storing space for your ideas so you won’t forget them once you start writing, but it also saves you tons of time as you will never have to rearrange paragraphs or rethink what you want to say. It’s all there and guides you through the process.

To create your plan, simply use the paragraph structure from earlier and organise your opinions and ideas within that framework. Let’s see what I came up with for our example task:

• Greeting & opening paragraph : why I’m writing, I fully agree
• Main paragraph 1 : acknowledge other side – for minor illnesses alternative medicine does no harm, gives people something to believe in, placebo effect also works
• Main paragraph 2 : contrast – placebo effect doesn’t justify the cost; charlatans take advantage of people
• Main paragraph 3 : some alternative treatments can be harmful; people put their last hope in these methods
• Closing paragraph & salutation : ineffectiveness doesn’t justify use of alternative methods and people lose money

Making a plan like the one above is really simple, takes just a few minutes and makes your life so much easier. You should try it. It really helps.

The different parts of a letter

We are prepared and ready so the last thing we need to do is write the letter. Trust your plan and everything will be fine.

I am going to show you step by step how I would go about it so you get a better idea of what you should do to score higher marks in C2 Proficiency.

Every letter starts with a greeting and an opening paragraph where we state why we are writing or we react to a letter we’ve received. In C2 Proficiency, it is always the former, but, as we have to give our opinion on the topic in the task , we can do that straight away and let the reader know in the opening paragraph.

Going back to our example task from earlier about alternative medicine, a beginning might look like this:

Dear Sir/Madam, I am writing in response to the article on alternative medicine published on August 1st and would like to share my opinion with you and the other readers. I would definitely agree that alternative medicine, for the most part, is a waste of money and time and that it would be wiser to use the full range of scientifically tested and proven methods to combat one’s health issues.

You can see that I didn’t have to do anything out of the ordinary to get started . I state the purpose of the letter (“I am writing in response to …”) and give my opinion (“I would definitely agree …”) without simply copying the wording from the task but rather paraphrasing and using my own words. That’s all you need to do and just like that we can move on to the next part.

Letters in Cambridge C2 Proficiency are a little bit like very opinionated essays with a lot more bias on our part. However, it is always a great idea to show good organisational skills by acknowledging the other side of the debate as well. That’s why I like starting with a paragraph outlining what someone disagreeing with me might say before I present my side of the argument.

Having said that, I do understand that for some, alternative approaches to minor ailments are preferable as they usually come with no side effects and have been used for generations. What worked for our grandparents has to work for us nowadays as well, doesn’t it? People like the idea of believing in something and being in control of their healing process and alternative medicine gives them exactly that. If it is the herb itself or just the placebo effect that’s at work, is secondary as long as it eases the suffering.

In the paragraph above I describe why some people prefer alternative medicine to established Western medicine. I introduce the paragraph with a contrasting expression (“Having said that, …”) to highlight that what comes next doesn’t reflect my opinion as stated in the opening paragraph. Cohesion and coherence are the name of the game in C2 Proficiency writing so make sure that all your ideas are well connected and logically organised.

In addition, I try to include a variety of vocabulary (alternative approaches, minor ailments, side effects, healing process, placebo effect, eases the suffering) related to the topic to engage the reader and keep their attention.

Following this first main paragraph, I tend to add two more paragraphs in which I support my own ideas on the topic. For me, it looks better if there are two paragraphs supporting my argument against only one for the other side. Of course, feel free to structure your letter as you want, but I think the way I do it makes sense.

However, the placebo effect doesn’t justify the often hefty price tag attached to these kinds of treatments and there are plenty of charlatans, like faith healers and snake oil salesman, who try to prey on the vulnerable with their promises of fast and lasting improvements through overpriced treatment sessions or products. Many put their last hope and money into these quacks, herbs and potions only to have them shattered leaving them with an empty bank account on top of their broken bodies and minds. None of this helps people and should rather be considered criminal behaviour.

In these two paragraphs I focus on two aspects: the price of many alternative treatments and the, in my opinion, criminal energy many self-proclaimed healers and therapists squeeze money out of people who are often desperate and clinging to the last shred of hope they have left. The sections contrast the first main paragraph very well and show what I think about the topic.

Remember, a letter like this is all about your opinion so you can use strong arguments and the language to drive your point home .

To round off your letter you should always write a last paragraph which summarises your stance on the issue in the task.

To cut a long story short, I think that everyone can do with their money as they please, but the ones that are to blame are those defrauding people who just want to live a life free of pain and worries. Governments should introduce more oversight to ensure that money isn’t flushed down the toilet anymore but instead used to truly help people. I look forward to following subsequent articles on related issues. Yours faithfully, Teacher Phill

I restate my opinion very clearly here and even paraphrase the quote from the task (“… that money isn’t flushed down the toilet anymore …”). Lastly, I express that I would like to read more on the topic and end the letter with a typical salutation.

That is all you have to do to write a great letter in C2 Proficiency. With a little bit of planning the paragraph structure you want to use and the content of each of those sections you can set yourself up for a successful writing session where you can focus on using the best language possible, engaging the reader and writing in a cohesive and coherent way.

If you are interested in practising with yours truly, I offer writing feedback as well as online classes and I would love to hear from you so I can help you on your journey to pass Cambridge C2 Proficiency.

Lots of love,

Teacher Phill 🙂

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