SCHOOL OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES

SAMPLE ENGLISH PROFICIENCY EXAM

STUDENT’S FIRST NAME AND LAST NAME:

________________________________________________________

STUDENT NUMBER:

________________________________________________________

DEPARTMENT:

________________________________________________________

TOTAL TIME: 120 mins

NOTE: THE NUMBER AND THE TYPES OF THE QUESTIONS MAY CHANGE.

USE OF VOCABULARY READING WRITING SPEAKING TOTAL

ENGLISH
______ / 15 ______ / 15 ______ / 20 ______ / 20 ______ /100
______ / 30

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PART : USE OF ENGLISH Total: ______ / 30 pts

A. Choose the best option to complete the sentences.

Speaker: Today, I’m going to talk to you about some recent discoveries about friendship.
Firstly, let’s look at some of the benefits of 1_____ a good circle of friends. Whether you’re male
or female, it seems that if you have a wide network of friends you 2____ from less stress and live
longer. In 2010, Julianne Holt-Lunstad, professor of psychology at Brigham Young University,
studied the 3____ between friendship and longevity. She concluded that people with a network of
friends who they really 4____ , have a 50% increased odds of survival.
Student 1: Excuse me, could you 5____ what you mean by ‘a 50% increased odds of survival’?
Speaker: Yes, I mean that people with lots of good friends are 50% 6____ to live for a long time
compared to people who don’t have a good social network.
Student 2: Could you give us some more information about how the study 7____ out?
Speaker: Yes, of course. The researchers combined information from 148 studies on health
outcomes and social relationships, which involved more than 300,000 men and women. Then,
seven and a half years after the first data 8____ collected, they did another study. They found that
people with weak social ties had on average 50% higher odds of death during that period.
Now, let’s look at the results of 9____ study into a different aspect of friendship. We all know that
we feel 10____ towards our friends; we want to them to be safe and happy. Well, a group at the
University of Virginia discovered that our brain responds the same way when a friend is in danger
as when we are in danger ourselves, and …

1. a. having b. had c. to have d. have

2. a. suffering b. will suffer c. suffered d. would suffer
3. a. growth b. popularity c. correlation d. trend
4. a. get on b. trust c. have an argument d. keep in touch
5. a. announce b. catch c. clarify d. point out
6. a. necessarily b. more likely c. probably d. going
7. a. carried b. was carried c. is carrying d. had carried
8. a. is b. was being c. has been d. had been
9. a. a fascinating b. an impossible c. an exhausted d. an infuriating
10. a. caring b. brave c. decisive d. educated

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B. Choose the sentence that has the closest meaning to the given one.

11. Many Africans are putting their health at risk because they are not eating enough fruit and
vegetables.

a. Since many Africans aren’t consuming enough fruit and vegetables, they are putting their
health at risk.
b. Most Africans may die in a short time if they avoid eating enough fruits and vegetables.
c. Because of not consuming enough fruit and vegetables, all the people in Africa are putting
their health in danger.
d. Many people, like those in Africa, can’t find enough fruits and vegetables to eat, which
makes them unhealthy.

12. The certain age of the mosaics in Hagia Sophia is unclear; however, they are known to be older
than 700 years.

a. The mosaics in Hagia Sophia are exactly 700 years old, however, some claim that they are not
so.
b. While the fact that Hagia Sophia is older than 700 years is clear, the certain age of the
mosaics in it is not known exactly.
c. Hagia Sophia is older than 700 years old, consequently; the age of the mosaics in it must be
700 years old.
d. Although it is known that the mosaics in Hagia Sophia are older than 700 years, their exact
age is uncertain.

13. Scientists already know that almost all rainforest plants in the Amazon have some value as
medicine.

a. Amazon is a good source for plants that can be used in medicine, though not known by
scientists.
b. Nearly all rainforest plants in the Amazon are already recognized to be of some value in
medicine by scientists.
c. Using some rainforests in medicine found in the Amazon is already known, but has not yet
been put into use.
d. Rainforest plants in the Amazon have value in producing medicine, cited in scientific
magazines.

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14.It is only motivation that guarantees learning a foreign language.

a. Motivation is one of the requirements for learning another language efficiently.

b. One can learn another language through some incentives, one of which is motivation.
c. Only if one is motivated, can he learn a language other than his own.
d. What one needs while learning another language is to be somewhat motivated by others.

15. I’m sure they would have come to the concert if we had let them know about it in advance.

a. They never received an invitation to the concert, so naturally, they could not attend it.
b. Apparently, they didn’t attend the concert because they were only invited to it at the last
minute.
c. They were sorry not to attend the concert, but the invitation came too late.
d. If they had known beforehand that there was going to be a concert, they would certainly
have attended.

16. If you want to get to school on time, you should get up early.

a. He wanted to get to school on time, but he didn’t get up early enough.

b. A person who gets up late risks missing the bus for school.
c. You got up late, so you couldn’t get to school on time.
d. So as not be late for school, you’ve got to get up early.

17. I wouldn’t trust her if I were you because she never keeps promises.

a. If she really respected people, she would keep her promises.

b. Though she never keeps a promise herself, she expects others to do so.
c. I should let you know that she never expects people to keep their own promises.
d. I’ve never known her to keep a promise, so I don’t think you should rely on her.

18. I enjoyed the film even though I had seen it before.

a. I had seen the film before, but I still enjoyed it.

b. As I had seen the film before, I didn’t enjoy it.
c. The film I have just seen was very enjoyable.
d. I saw the film and I enjoyed it a lot.

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19. It has been fifteen days since Jessica got her new job at the airline company.

a. It took Jessica fifteen days to get her new job at the airline company.
b. Jessica will have started her new job at the airline company in fifteen-day time.
c. Jessica got her new job at the airline company fifteen days ago.
d. Jessica hasn’t been at her new job at the airline company for the last fifteen days.

20. When we lived in İzmir, I used to go to a concert every week.

a. During our years in İzmir, I went to a concert regularly once a week.

b. As we lived in İzmir, I could go to a concert every week.
c. After we left İzmir, I started to go to a concert every week.
d. When we lived in İzmir, they held concerts there every week.

C. Choose the best option to complete the sentences.

21. I let my children __________ anything they want, provided that they inform me about it.
a. doing b. to have done c. do d. to do

22. The attorney defended his client _________ that everybody in the court began to cry.
a. as moving as b. so movingly c. the most moving d. moving enough

23. Laws which are related _______ economic conditions are sometimes concerned _________
contracts between employers and employees.
a. with/to b. upon/in c. on/for d. to/with

D. Find the appropriate expression.

24. You are a salesman and want to launch a new skincare product. Your main concern is that the
product may have some side effects on skin. So you want inspection team to test the product.
a. Don’t think that you will test the product.
b. I need your assistance in testing the company.
c. Only do what I say: you should have enough tests for concrete results.
d. I am not okay with tests but side effects.

25. You are in a holiday camping site and need to have a shower immediately because you are
covered with mud. You ask other campers:
a. Is it usual to have mud all over me?
b. Excuse me, could you please show me the exit?
c. Don’t move, I am trying to have a heavy shower.
d. Can you tell me where I can get some water?

E. Questions- Find the expression that may have been said in the blank part of the conversation.

26. Mark: Hey, look! Isn’t that Jack’s car over there?
Valerie: No, it isn’t the same model.
Mark: Are you sure? It looks just like it.

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Valerie: _________________________.
Mark: Really? Nobody told me!
a. It’s like his old car but he bought a new one on Saturday.
b. Just because the colour’s the same doesn’t mean it’s the same make!
c. Actually, I’m not sure. I can’t see clearly enough to be certain.
d. Well, it’s similar, I agree, but his car has got different wheels.

27. John: _________________________.

Madonna: Well, it’s just that she puts lots of make-up on her face. Actually, natural beauty comes
from within.
John: Ah, I can smell jealousy in the air!
Madonna: She has nothing that deserves my jealousy. I don’t have to put things on my face and I still
look pretty. Don’t you think so?
a. She was one of the most attractive businesswomen I have ever seen. Don’t you think so?
b. She’s really pretty, isn’t she? Her skin looks so baby smooth!
c. Is it the cucumbers that made her look better after such a tiring day?
d. After the birth, her skin turned out to be purer than ever.

F. Questions –Identify the irrelevant sentences for each passage.

28. (I) I never know what to do with my hands when I am giving a talk. (II) For instance, when I am
making an oral report in history class, I have trouble with my hands. (III) Sometimes I put them
behind me. (IV) A good speaker does not pause very much while he is speaking. (V) Often I clasp my
hands in front of me to keep them from shaking while I am speaking.
a. I b. II c. III d. IV

29. (I) Ice cream is so common in our lives that we never think about how we came to have it. (II)
Who first made ice cream? (III) It is thought that ice cream, like many other things, originated in
China. (IV) Some other inventions by the Chinese are gunpowder, paper, and silk cloth. (V) It is
believed that a traveller brought the idea from China to Italy several centuries ago.
a. II b. III c. IV d. V

30. (I) Most ants are hard workers. (II) They often work from six o’clock in the morning until ten
o’clock at night. (III) Ants may live to be a year old, and some have been known to live six or seven
years. (IV) The tasks are divided among the ants so that each one has a certain amount of work to do.
(V) We do not know how they decide what work each one should do.
a. I b. II c. III d. V

PART : VOCABULARY Total: ______ / 15 pts

A. Circle the best answer to complete the sentences

1. Wind is a new ____ of energy that can generate electricity for people’s homes.

a. alternative b. source c. approach d. affect

2. The doctor asked Louise if she wanted to ____ in a clinical trial of the new drug.

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a. participate b. demonstrate c. process d. method

3. The ____ reason most people buy a product is they like the way it looks.

a. primary b. percent c. summary d. image

4. The researchers are ____ a survey to find out how much time teens spend online.

a. conducting b. selecting c. responding d. commenting

5. Josie and Mia have ____ interests. They both like Japanese food and swimming.

a. convincing b. emphatic c. similar d. challenge

6. After the earthquake, people did not feel ____ in their homes.

a. secure b. specific c. challenge d. transfer

7. My essay is based on this ____ by Shakespeare: “We know what we are, but know not

what we may be.”

a. paragraph b. version c. quotation d. equivalent

8. Diet and exercise play a ____ role in maintaining a healthy lifestyle.

a. constant b. specified c. fundamental d. odd

9. Pollution in the ocean has ____ to the loss of Florida’s coral reefs.

a. distributed b. declined c. contributed d. projected

10. The company has ____ hours. Employees can start anytime between 8 and 10 in the morning.

a. internal b. minimum c. flexible d. maximum

11. Paul lost his driver’s license for ____ the speed limit.

a. exceeds b. exceeding c. exceeded d. exceed

12. We should all try to ____ the amount of waste we produce in our daily lives.

a. minimize b. minimizes c. minimizing d. minimal

13. My favorite tennis player was ____ in the first round of the Australian Open.

a. eliminate b. eliminated c. elimination d. eliminating

14. The professor ____ told the class he would not accept any late papers.

a. emphasis b. emphasize c. emphatically d. emphasizes

15. Hassan’s grandfather eats well and exercises regularly. He has very few ____ problems.

a. medicine b. medical c. medically d. medicinely

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PART : READING Total: ______ / 15 pts

A. Read each text carefully and answer the questions.

READING 1

Anorexia Nervosa

1. Susan is a fifteen year-old bright student, and suffering from self-imposed starvation. She has
anorexia nervosa. Anorexia means 'without appetite' and nervosa means 'of nervous origin'.
One morning six months ago Susan looked at herself in the mirror and decided she needed to
lose some weight. Then 1.65 meters tall and weighing 50 kilos, she presently weighs 37 kilos
and is in the hospital where she is undergoing psychiatric treatment and being fed
intravenously.
2. What happened to Susan? Why has she ruthlessly starved herself nearly to death? Susan is a
typical anorexic - an adolescent girl who refuses to eat for the purpose of rebelling against
the pressures imposed upon her by the adult environment. Family members - sometimes the
mother, sometimes the father, sometimes both - require her to achieve more than they have
in their lives. In her mind, school unites with her family to push her forward. Submissive for
years, what does she finally do? She refuses food, says no to the two forces that are pushing
her. Instead of growing into a mature woman, she holds back her physical growth by self-
imposed starvation. In fact, she regresses to childhood, to the stage when she lacked curves.
No one expected much from her then, and she was dependent upon adults who gave her
love and approval without demanding anything from her in return.
3. Anorexia nervosa, formerly not recognized as a disease, has become common among
adolescent girls. Today the cure is prolonged treatment by a psychiatrist who initiates
discussion among family members and the patient to determine the causes and ways to
eliminate them in the future.

1. In paragraph 2 - line 2, 'refuse' means _________ something.

a. to reject

b. to realize

c. to recognize

d. to force

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2. The source of anorexia nervosa is _________.

a. lack of appetite

b. adolescence

c. psychological problems

d. physical lacks

3. It can be inferred from the text that those who have anorexia nervosa _________.

a. generally have ambitious parents

b. were fat in their childhood

c. want to look more attractive

d. can be cured by a short treatment

4. According to the text, _________.

a. the origin of anorexia nervosa lies in a happy childhood

b. anorexia nervosa is a reaction against neglectful parents

c. anorexic adolescents prefer life at school to family life

d. anorexic adolescents do not want to take on the responsibilities of adulthood

5. The main idea of paragraph 2 is that _________.

a. an anorexic is most likely to be an adolescent

b. an anorexic is in rebellion against the pressures in her environment

c. Susan regressed to childhood because she thought she looked prettier then

d. Susan's parents wanted her to succeed in doing the things they couldn't do

READING 2

Cities of the Future

1. The word ‘megacity’ was first used as far back as the early 1960s by French geographer Jean
Gottman to describe the north-eastern USA. The term is used more widely now to mean an
area with more than 10,000,000 people living closely together. A megacity can be a single

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area, or several areas together that make one huge area known as a ‘megalopolis’. As of
March 2013, there were 28 megacities in the world.
2. When cities started to become too busy, people who could afford it moved out into the
suburbs on the edge of the city. When the suburbs started attracting too many people, they
moved further out into villages and the countryside. It was important to be close enough to
the city to travel in every day for work, though. That’s why the countryside became more
popular – London, for example, lost 15% of its population between 1950 and 1970, and
Detroit in the USA lost 47%.
3. However, movement away from cities does not mean the end of the city. Cities continue to
spread, and in time these may grow into megacities with millions of people. According to one
list, the majority of the world’s greatest megacities are to be found in Asia. The largest of
these is the Tokyo-Yokohama area, home to 37,000,000 people, followed by the Indian
capital Delhi, Seoul-Incheon in South Korea, Shanghai in China and Mumbai, also in India.
4. In the ancient world, Rome, with its 1,000,000 people, was a megacity for its time. And
although London was one of the world’s first modern cities to have a million or more people,
it is not currently high up on the list of megacities. In fact, the only western megacities are
now New York City, Los Angeles, Moscow and Paris. The fastest-growing cities in the last ten
years have all been in the developing world and this trend looks likely to continue. It is
expected that by the year 2030, 60% of the world’s population will be living in megacities.
5. Megacities everywhere have several things in common, which are mainly the problems they
all experience. Among these are high traffic levels resulting in pollution, housing problems
and various social problems such as unemployment. Often, the only housing that many
people can afford is badly planned or of poor quality. However, all these problems are partly
created by governments who don’t prepare for increased population before the people
arrive.
6. As megacities are likely to become more common, it seems that governments should try to
plan for rising urban populations before it actually happens. But perhaps this is easier said
than done.

6. The word ‘megacity’ was used for the first time ____.
a. to describe the world’s most crowded cities.

b. by an American to describe a place in Europe.

c. to describe places with fewer than 10,000,000 people.

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d. by a European to describe a place in the United States.

7. Areas on the edge of the city became popular because ____.

a. people there had less money.

b. villages became too expensive.

c. cities were getting too full.

d. the countryside was almost empty.

8. The writer says that ____.

a. Tokyo has been the world’s biggest megacity for some time.

b. the world’s biggest megacities are mostly in one continent.

c. London will soon be on the list of the world’s megacities.

d. the world’s smaller cities are growing too quickly.

9. By the year 2030, it is expected that ____.

a. London will be the most popular megacity around the world.

b. more than half of the world’s population will be living in megacities.

c. 60% of people all around the world will be living in rural areas.

d. New York City, Los Angeles, Moscow and Paris will be the fastest-growing cities.

10. According to the writer, what is more difficult to be said than done ?

a. to have some plans for increasing urban populations

b. to have several things in common with megacities

c. to have some housing and social problems

d. to have a million or more people

READING 3

On Another Planet

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1 While living on the moon is apparently possible, without air, food or water it would involve a lot of
effort. Other planets might have air or water, or we could even make them there, but we’d have to
get there first. Unfortunately, humans can’t just live anywhere. Life on Earth has spent the last 4.5
billion years adapting to survive on this particular planet, so if we took the plants, animals and people
to another planet, it’s not surprising that we’d have some problems!

2 To start with, our bodies are used to the Earth’s atmosphere – the gases that surround it. We
wouldn’t be able to breathe the gases that exist on some of the other planets. We’re also affected by
the Earth’s gravity – the force that pulls us towards the centre and stops us from floating away into
space. The strength of gravity is different on other planets; if the gravity was too strong, we wouldn’t
be able to move, and if it was too weak, we would lose all the strength in our bodies. Then there’s
the temperature. Humans need their body temperature to be around 37°C to stay alive. A few
degrees lower or higher, and we die of hypothermia (being too cold) or hyperthermia (being too hot).
We also need to breathe oxygen, but if the air contains too little or too much, that can also kill us!

3 So, neither the moon nor Mars is really a suitable destination for us. The moon has no atmosphere
and the atmosphere on Mars can only be described as deadly, as it’s made up of approximately 96%
poisonous carbon dioxide. On top of that, Mars has only one-third of the gravity of Earth, and
temperatures range from a cool 20°C down to a freezing -140°C. As for the moon, it has six times
less gravity. Also, temperatures there go from a ridiculously hot 130°C to a ridiculously cold -170°C.

4 NASA’s Kepler satellite was launched in 2009. Its mission is to find out how many Earth-like
planets are in the galaxy. So far, it has found several that are going around other stars. They are
smaller than Earth and they are all circling stars that are smaller and cooler than our sun. At least two
of the planets look rocky, like Earth. Even if they are habitable, however, they would take hundreds
of years to reach.

5 Of course, if we were determined to leave Earth, we could reach other nearby planets and try to
build an Earth-like environment there. At the moment, it would take nine months to get to Mars,
which is 48,000,000 miles away. The weight of the spacecraft would make things difficult, as it would
have to carry enough fuel, food and water. One solution might be to build the craft in space, or use
the water and other gases on Mars to make the fuel for the return trip.

6 Personally, I think it’s just too much effort. So, for now, I’m happy to call planet Earth ‘home’, but
who knows what the future may hold. As they say, ‘watch this space’!

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11. In paragraph 1, what does the writer suggest about living on the moon or other planets?
a. Humans could live on the moon without the need for air, food or water.
b. There may be planets that would support human life, but they’re very far away.
c. It should be fairly simple to get used to life on other planets.
d. We would have some problems related to the other planets.

12. What has NASA’s Kepler satellite discovered so far?

a. Some planets that are the same size and temperature as Earth and that are going around
suns like ours.
b. Some rocky, Earth-like planets that humans might be able to live on but that are very far
away.
c. The exact number of Earth-like planets in the galaxy.
d. All stars in the galaxy are much more smaller than Earth.

13. Which of the following is the possible solution for building the craft in space?
a. to build an Earth-like environment on another planet.
b. to bring some water to Mars.
c . to use some special gases on Mars.
e. to make the fuel for the return trip.

14. What does the author suggest about living on another planet?
a. With a huge amount of effort, it might be possible to build an Earth-like environment on
another planet.
b. In the future, humans will probably live on a small planet that’s circling a much smaller and
cooler sun than our sun.
c. Most people think it isn’t worth the trouble of trying to start life, as we know it, on another
planet.
d. Earth should not be seen as ‘home’ in the near future.

15. What is the text mainly about?

a. Some reasons why we should live on another planets in the future.
b. Solutions of the problems that we would face on Mars.
c. The possibility of living on other planets.
d. The effects of the Earth’s atmosphere.

PART : WRITING Total: ______ / 20 pts

Choose ONE of the topics below and write a well-organized essay about it (between 250-350
words). You should have a clear thesis statement in your introduction paragraph and you should
write at least two body paragraphs giving your supporting ideas about your issue.

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1. Compare two kinds of music (such as classical, pop etc.) A few points of comparison might

be artists, instruments, audiences, and popularity. ( point-by-point method )

2. Children are learning to use computers at a very early age. What are some negative effects

that computers can have on the development of children?

3. Classify types of movies (such as comedy, adventure etc.).

PART: SPEAKING Total: ______ / 20 pts

In this section; First, the student is asked to introduce himself/herself: The student says his/her
name, age, department, etc. in one minute.
Then, the student is asked to choose two discussion cards from several topic cards and decide which
one she/he would like to talk about.
After choosing the topic card the student wants to talk about, she/he will have one minute to think
about what she/he is going to say and to make some notes if she/he wishes.
After one minute, the student is asked to read his/her task out loud. Then, she/he begins speaking on
the topic for three minutes.

SAMPLE STUDENT TASK CARDS

What are the benefits of social media?

What are the problems with social media?

Can social media help someone find a job?

Think about a goal you have achieved in your life?

How did you achieve it?

What are your goals for your studies/career? How do you plan to achieve them?

SAMPLE ENGLISH PROFICIENCY EXAM ANSWER KEY

PART: USE OF ENGLISH

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A: B: C: D: E: F:

1. A 11. A 21. C 24. C 26. A 28. D

2. B 12. D 22. B 25. D 27. B 29. C
3. C 13. B 23. D 30. C
4. B 14. C
5. C 15. D
6. B 16. D
7. B 17. D
8. D 18. A
9. A 19. C
10. A 20. A

PART : VOCABULARY

A:
1. B
2. A
3. A
4. A
5. C
6. A
7. C
8. C
9. C
10. C
11. B
12. A
13. B
14. C
15. B

SECTION : READING

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Reading 1: Reading 2: Reading 3:

1. A 6. D 11. B
2. C 7. C 12. B
3. A 8. B 13. D
4. D 9. B 14. A
5. B 10. A 15. C

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