CAE Listening Part 3: interview, multiple choice
CAE Listening Part 3 is a four-minute interview or discussion with six multiple-choice questions, each with four options. It is the longest recording in the C1 Listening paper, and the questions test attitude and opinion as much as detail.
- Questions
- 6 (15–20)
- Recording
- Interview, ≈ 4 min
- Options
- A–D
- Marks
- 1 each
What CAE Listening Part 3 tests
Part 3 is a conversation between two or more speakers lasting about four minutes: usually a radio interview with a guest, sometimes a discussion between two or three people. You have 70 seconds to read the six questions (15–20) before it starts, and you hear the whole recording twice. Each question has four options, A–D, and the questions follow the order of the recording.
Cambridge lists the focus as attitude, opinion (stated and implied), agreement, gist, feeling, speaker purpose, function and detail. The key word is implied. At C1 the guest rarely says "I think X". They tell a story, qualify a claim, reject a common assumption or make a joke, and you have to work out the opinion behind it. Most wrong options are things the speaker mentions but dismisses, things that are partly true, or views held by someone else in the conversation.
Each correct answer earns one mark. Part 3 is worth 6 of the 30 Listening marks, but it often decides a candidate's Listening score, because the longer text and four options make guessing less effective than in Part 1.
Try a CAE Listening Part 3 extract
Read the extract from a radio interview with an architect, then answer the two questions. A full Part 3 interview is about four times longer and has six questions.
You hear part of a radio interview with an architect called Sam Okafor, who designs schools.
Interviewer: Sam, you've said that the worst school buildings are often the newest. That's quite a claim.
Sam: It's deliberately provocative, I'll admit. What I mean is that a lot of recent schools were designed to look impressive in photographs: huge glass atriums, dramatic staircases. They win awards. But nobody asked the teachers what they actually needed, and some of those atriums are so noisy you can't hold a conversation in them, let alone a lesson.
Interviewer: So what do you do differently?
Sam: I spend the first month of any project doing very little drawing. I sit in classrooms, I eat lunch with the staff, I watch where the children go at break time. People sometimes assume that's a way of winning the client over, but honestly, it's where most of my best ideas come from. At one school the pupils always gathered in a particular corridor, and it turned out to be the only place that got the morning sun. So in the new building, every classroom gets morning light.
15 What does Sam say about many recently built schools?
A They were more expensive than they needed to be.
B Their design ignored the needs of the people using them.
C They have been unfairly criticised in the media.
D Their large open spaces are rarely used.
16 Why does Sam spend time in schools before he starts drawing?
A to persuade clients that he takes their views seriously
B to gather ideas that will shape his designs
C to observe how teachers manage noise levels
D to measure how much space each activity requires
Show the answer and explanation
15 B. Nobody asked the teachers what they actually needed. D is close but wrong: the atriums are too noisy to use well, not rarely used. C reverses the facts (they win awards), and cost is never mentioned.
16 B. It's where most of my best ideas come from, supported by the story of the sunny corridor. A is the classic Part 3 trap: Sam mentions it only to reject it (People sometimes assume … but honestly …). C and D use details from the conversation but are not his reason.
How to answer CAE Listening Part 3 questions
- 01
In the 70 seconds, read all six question stems first, then as many options as you can. Underline the key idea in each stem so you know what each question is about.
- 02
Use the interviewer's questions as signposts. Each new question from the interviewer usually introduces the topic of the next exam question, so if you get lost, it tells you where you are.
- 03
Listen for the speaker's opinion, not just the facts. Phrases such as I'll admit, honestly, what I mean is and people assume … but mark the point where the real view appears.
- 04
Eliminate options actively. Each wrong option is usually mentioned and rejected, partly true, or the view of a different speaker. Cross out those you can rule out on the first listening.
- 05
Use the second listening to decide between the two options you could not separate, and to check every answer you marked as uncertain.
- 06
If you miss an answer, let it go and catch the next one. One lost question is better than three.
Mistakes that cost marks
Losing your place. Concentrating so hard on one question that you miss the next two. Move on when the interviewer moves on.
Choosing what the speaker rejects. In the example, option A of question 16 is mentioned only to be dismissed. Rejected ideas are a frequent distractor in Part 3.
Confusing the interviewer's view with the guest's. The interviewer's That's quite a claim expresses doubt; the question asks what Sam says.
Reading options during the recording. Four long options per question take time to read. Read them in the 70 seconds, so that while listening you only need to glance at your underlined words.
Signals of opinion and attitude to listen for
- Conceding before the real point: I'll admit, granted, to be fair, I'm not saying that …, but.
- Rejecting an assumption: people tend to think …, but; it's not that …, it's more that; contrary to what you might expect.
- Clarifying the main point: what I mean is, the point is, what really matters is, the thing is.
- Hedging: I suppose, I'd say, in a way, up to a point. The speaker has a view but is holding back.
- Contrast and surprise: actually, in fact, funnily enough, oddly. What follows is often the answer.
To practise, listen to long-form radio interviews and podcasts. After each answer the guest gives, say in one sentence what their opinion was, then check whether they said it directly or implied it.
Practise Part 3 in full CAE Listening tests
Each CAE Listening test on this site has its own Part 3, timed with the whole paper and marked as soon as you submit, with an explanation for every answer.
- Test 1: an interview with two designers called Mina Cole and Jalen Reed, who create temporary spaces for festivals
- Test 2: an interview with a researcher called Elias Vale, who studies how people choose unfamiliar routes
- Test 3: an interview with Nina Webb and Hugo Flynn, who organise quiet hours in public venues
- Test 4: an interview with a designer called Tom Arlen, who creates inclusive board games
- Test 5: an interview with an audio describer called Daniel, who writes descriptions of exhibitions for visitors who cannot see all the visual detail
- Test 6: an interview with an archivist called Celia, who collects instructions for everyday tasks
CAE Listening Part 3: questions
How many questions are in CAE Listening Part 3?
Six, numbered 15 to 20. Each has four options (A to D) and is worth one mark.
How long is the CAE Listening Part 3 recording?
About four minutes. You have 70 seconds to read the questions before it starts, and the recording is played twice.
Why is C1 Listening Part 3 so difficult?
Because many answers are implied rather than stated, there are four options instead of three, and the wrong options are usually ideas the speakers mention and then reject. Reading the questions well in the 70 seconds helps more than anything else.
How can I practise for CAE Listening Part 3?
Listen to radio interviews and podcasts and summarise each speaker's opinion in one sentence. Then take full timed Listening tests, which play the recording twice with the same reading time as the exam.
Sources
- C1 Advanced Handbook for Teachers (Cambridge University Press & Assessment), pages 54–55, 58
- C1 Advanced exam format (cambridgeenglish.org)
- Developing listening skills for C1 Advanced: a guide for teachers
- C1 Advanced preparation materials: Cambridge's own sample tests
CambridgeMock is independent and not affiliated with Cambridge University Press & Assessment. Facts on this page are checked against the official documents above; the practice items and advice are our own.
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