Course detail

Intermediate Level English (Exam)

FAST-BYA101Acad. year: 2026/2027

The intermediate-level English exam (CEFR level B1, or "Threshold") assesses intermediate proficiency, focusing particularly on communication skills, spontaneous interaction, correct pronunciation, and the ability to construct complex sentences when conveying information on a specific topic. It also tests students’ knowledge of specialised civil engineering vocabulary from eleven different topic areas as well as intermediate-level grammar, requiring the student to be able to:

understand the general meaning of information regarding familiar topics and situations—such as those encountered at work, school, or during leisure time—provided the information is expressed clearly and understandably;
use English to communicate successfully in most situations encountered while traveling abroad;
describe experiences, events, ambitions, expectations, and plans, and briefly explain or justify opinions and statements;
successfully complete intermediate-level grammar exercises;
recall a wide range of technical vocabulary used in many branches of civil Engineering.

In everyday communication, students should be able to use past, present, and present perfect tenses, as well as future forms to express plans. They should be able to formulate questions, provide personal information, and understand standard English regarding familiar topics. They should be able to make comparisons using adjectives, handle first and second conditional sentences, and use countable and uncountable nouns as well as certain modal verbs. They should be able to describe long-term and short-term situations in their lives; use modal verbs to express permission and obligation regarding rules and behavior; use the passive voice to describe processes; use future forms to predict and plan future actions; and use conditional sentences to express future situations and general theoretical possibilities.

Two intermediate level support courses are offered for this exam: VYA008 English Intermediate 1 (general English) and VYA009 English intermediate 2 (technical English), where students acquire the knowledge and skills they need to pass the exam.

Language of instruction

Czech

Number of ECTS credits

Mode of study

Not applicable.

Guarantor

Mgr. Daniel Rodriguez

Department

Institute of Social Sciences (SPV)

Entry knowledge

Entry level B1 according to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR). Students should be able to use the past and present tenses to talk about their lives, ask questions, give personal information, and understand clear English related to familiar subjects. They should have the ability to compare things using adjectives, use countable/uncountable nouns and some modal verbs, and manage simple functional transactions in shops, restaurants and while travelling. They should be capable of using the present perfect to express experience and describe long-lasting or temporary situations in their life; modals to express permission and obligation in connection with rules and behaviour; passives to describe processes, origins and materials; future forms to predict and plan actions in the future; and conditionals to express future situations and general theoretical possibilities.

Rules for evaluation and completion of the course

The exam is oral (25 minutes) and may be shorter if it becomes evident that the students have not yet reached the required level of proficiency. It consists of a question-and-answer session covering general topics, a discussion of a task with a partner, an individual picture description, and questions regarding grammar and vocabulary. A score of 50% is required to pass the exam.

Aims

Subject-specific knowledge:

The exam specifically tests students' knowledge of grammar in the following areas:

present simple and continuous tenses; future tenses: simple, "going to," and present continuous; present perfect and past simple tenses; present perfect and past continuous tenses; past perfect tense; comparison of adjectives; articles; prepositions; modal verbs; adjectives ending in -ed/-ing; first and second conditional sentences; sequence of tenses; reported speech; gerunds and infinitives.

The exam specifically tests students' knowledge of vocabulary in the following areas:

studies at BUT and civil engineering specializations; employment in the construction industry, tools, and construction machinery; construction project management, hard and soft skills; building construction; construction materials; architecture; urban engineering; environmental engineering; geodesy; structural engineering and transport infrastructure; water management

Professional skills:

By passing the exam, the student demonstrates the ability to communicate in English at the B1 (intermediate) level according to the CEFR. The student demonstrates the ability to use intermediate-level English grammar and a command of vocabulary covering a wide range of topics typical of the construction industry.

Competencies:

By passing the exam, the student demonstrates the ability to communicate effectively in English—whether for travel abroad, interaction with colleagues, or studies in civil engineering—at the B1 (intermediate) level according to the CEFR.

Study aids

Not applicable.

Prerequisites and corequisites

Not applicable.

Basic literature

IBBOTSON, Mark. Cambridge English for Engineering. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2008. Cambridge professional English. ISBN 9780521715188. (EN)
LATHAM-KOENIG, Christina; OXENDEN, Clive; CHOMACKI, Kate a LAMBERT, Jerry. English File: Intermediate. 5th ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2025. ISBN 978-0-19-414420-9. (EN)
MARKNER-JÄGER, Brigitte. Technical English - Civil Engineering and Construction. Haan: Europa Lehrmittel Verlag, 2013. ISBN‎ 978-3808541364. (EN)
RODRIGUEZOVÁ, Veronika a STRNADOVÁ, Lucie. VYA009 Intermediate English 2, FAST BUT Ústav společenských věd, Brno, 2026. (Availability: Faculty moodle) (EN)

Type of course unit

Individual preparation for an ending of the course

52 hours, optionally

Teacher / Lecturer

Mgr. Daniel Rodriguez

VUT

Faculties and university institutes

Parts

Intermediate Level English (Exam)

Type of course unit