Tips for the Oral Exam (Mündlicher Ausdruck)

How the Oral Exam Works

You take the oral exam in pairs, with another candidate, in front of two examiners. It lasts about 15 minutes and has three parts. Before it starts you get about 20 minutes to prepare Teil 2 and Teil 3. You may make notes and use them as reminders, but don't write out sentences to read aloud.

Part	What you do	Time	Points
Teil 1	Get to know each other	about 3 minutes	15
Teil 2	Talk about a topic	about 6 minutes	30
Teil 3	Plan something together	about 6 minutes	30

The oral exam is worth 75 points, and you pass with 45 (60 %). It is scored separately from the written exam, so a strong written result can't make up for a weak oral one.

In every part the examiners rate four criteria:

Ausdrucksfähigkeit: how well and how varied you express yourself
Aufgabenbewältigung: whether you do what the task asks and keep the conversation going
Formale Richtigkeit: grammar and sentence structure
Aussprache und Intonation: pronunciation and intonation

Teil 1: Getting to Know Each Other

You and your partner introduce yourselves and ask each other questions, using the points on your sheet (name, where you come from, where you live, family, work, hobbies, languages). This part is short and friendly, and it is the best moment to calm your nerves.

Ask as much as you answer. It is a conversation, not two short presentations.
React to what your partner says before you ask the next question.
Agree on du or Sie at the start. Most pairs use du.

Useful phrases:

Woher kommst du? (Where are you from?)
Wie lange lernst du schon Deutsch? (How long have you been learning German?)
Was machst du beruflich? (What do you do for a living?)
Was machst du gern in deiner Freizeit? (What do you like to do in your free time?)
Und du? Wie ist das bei dir? (And you? How is that for you?)
Das ist ja interessant! Erzähl mal mehr. (That's interesting! Tell me more.)

Teil 2: Talking About a Topic

You and your partner have each read a different short text on the same topic, usually one person's opinion. First you tell your partner about your text, then you give your own opinion and experience, and you discuss the topic together.

Report briefly: who wrote the text and what their main point is. Two or three sentences are enough.
Give your own opinion with a reason, and an example from your life if you have one.
Respond to your partner's text: agree, disagree, ask what they think.

Useful phrases (Redemittel):

In meinem Text geht es um … (My text is about …)
Die Autorin meint, dass … (The author thinks that …)
Meiner Meinung nach … (In my opinion …)
Ich habe damit folgende Erfahrung gemacht: … (I've had this experience with it: …)
Da bin ich anderer Meinung, weil … (I see that differently, because …)
Da hast du recht, aber … (You're right there, but …)
Wie siehst du das? (How do you see it?)

Teil 3: Planning Something Together

You plan something together, such as a party, a trip or a visit, using a list of points to settle (when, where, what to bring, who does what). There is no right answer: the examiners listen to how you make suggestions, react and come to an agreement.

Cover every point on the sheet. Keep an eye on the list as you go.
Make suggestions and react to your partner's. Saying no is fine if you give a reason and suggest something else.
Agree on a plan at the end and sum it up in one or two sentences.

Useful phrases:

Wie wäre es, wenn wir …? (How about if we …?)
Ich schlage vor, dass … (I suggest that …)
Gute Idee, und … (Good idea, and …)
Das finde ich nicht so gut, weil … Wie wäre es stattdessen mit …? (I don't think that's so good, because … How about … instead?)
Wer kümmert sich um …? (Who takes care of …?)
Dann machen wir es so: … (Then let's do it like this: …)

Common Mistakes

Monologues. Long speeches with no question for your partner cost points in Aufgabenbewältigung. Hand the turn back often.
Ignoring your partner. Listen, react, and build on what they say.
Verb position. The verb comes second in a main clause and at the end after weil, dass and wenn.
Memorised texts. Examiners notice, and memorised answers rarely fit the actual question. Learn phrases, not speeches.
Silence. If you don't know a word, describe it: Wie sagt man … ? Das ist so ein Ding, mit dem man …

Practise with the AI Partner

The best preparation is speaking out loud. In our speaking practice, an AI partner plays the other candidate in Teil 1, 2 and 3, and you get a telc-style score with corrections. Start speaking practice