3B Unit test 8

Name: ( ) Class: Date: Marks:

Reading (25 marks) Time allowed: 30 minutes

Read the blog entry by a school careers adviser.

Tips to help you sail through an interview

1 The interview is often part of the application process that many people dread the most. It can
give people butterflies and keep them awake at night. In this blog, I’m going to give you some tips
to help you come across well in an interview. Let’s hear about the experience of one of my
students (let’s call him Jason) and then we’ll go on to find out how you can avoid something
5 similar happening to you.
2 Imagine this scenario. Jason sees a job advertisement for a part-time position. It seems ideal.
The job duties are a good fit for his skills and the salary looks pretty good too. It’s Jason’s first
application and he sends in a brilliant CV and cover letter. The company invites him for an
interview. Jason thinks that he’s done all the hard work already and turns up at the interview
10 without much of a second thought. Halfway through the interview, Jason realizes that he’s
struggling. He leaves the interview feeling like he didn’t give a true picture of his strengths. They
have no idea what a great team player he is or that he’s good with numbers! Jason isn’t surprised
when he receives a rejection email a few days after the interview.
3 If only Jason had done more preparation for the interview, I hear you say! Preparation is key
15 to a successful interview, but where do you begin? The company’s website is a great place to start
your research. You will often find a good overview of the company in the ‘About’ section. Look
for the company’s mission statement. A mission statement gives you a short and concise
explanation of why a company exists. It also tells you about its main aims. Knowing about these
sorts of things means that you’re likely to impress at an interview.
20 4 Make sure that you’re ready for the questions that you might be asked. These questions may
be quite broad. For example, an interviewer might begin the interview by saying, ‘Can you tell me
a bit about yourself?’ It’s a good idea to have prepared a short and interesting introduction about
yourself. Like a trailer for a film, this shouldn’t take long and should include all your best qualities
(especially those that are relevant to your application). You should also be ready for more specific
25 questions like ‘When are you available to work?’ Having the answers at your fingertips will show
the interviewer that you’re organized and have attention to detail.
5 Jason passed his next interview with flying colours and got a part-time job at a health food
shop. ‘I learnt a lot from that first interview,’ said Jason. ‘I made sure that I was much more
focused and prepared for my next one. As a result, I felt more relaxed and I feel like my
30 personality came across much better.’
6 Jason may not have succeeded at his first attempt at finding a part-time job. However, he
didn’t lose heart and the experience taught him a valuable lesson. He learnt that preparing for an
interview is a vital part of job hunting.

© Oxford University Press 8.1

 3B Unit test 8

Write your answers in the spaces provided. For multiple-choice questions, choose the best answer and
blacken one circle only.

1 Find one word in paragraph 1 that has a similar meaning to ‘fear’. (1 mark)

______________________________

2 What does ‘It’ in line 1 refer to? (1 mark)

__________________________________________________________________________________________________

3 According to paragraph 1, what is the purpose of the blog? (2 marks)

__________________________________________________________________________________________________

4 In paragraph 2, why does the position seem ‘ideal’ to Jason? (2 marks)

__________________________________________________________________________________________________

5 What TWO strengths does Jason think that he has? (2 marks)

i) ________________________________________________________________________________

ii) ________________________________________________________________________________

6 Complete the sentence below. (2 marks)

Jason is not surprised when he receives a rejection email because ______________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________.

7 Are the following statements from paragraph 3 facts or opinions? Blacken the circle. (3 marks)
Statements Fact Opinion
i) The company’s website is a great place to start your research.  
ii) A mission statement gives you a short and concise explanation  
of why a company exists.
iii) Knowing about these sorts of things means that you’re likely to  
impress at an interview.

© Oxford University Press 8.2

 3B Unit test 8

8 When the writer describes questions as being ‘quite broad’ in paragraph 4, he/she means that they could
be quite ___________. (1 mark)
A difficult
B specific
C annoying A B C D
D general

9 Why do you think the writer compares your self-introduction to a film trailer? (2 marks)

__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________

10 What does ‘those’ in line 24 refer to? (1 mark)

__________________________________________________________________________________________________

11 What do you think the writer means when he/she says that Jason passed the next interview ‘with flying
colours’ (line 27)? (2 marks)

__________________________________________________________________________________________________

12 What did Jason learn from the experience of his first interview? (2 marks)

__________________________________________________________________________________________________

13 Match the paragraph headings to paragraphs 2–5. (4 marks)

Paragraph heading Paragraph number

The next chapter of Jason’s story i) ____________

Get ready for the questions ii) ____________

Jason’s story iii) ____________

Do your research iv) ____________

© Oxford University Press 8.3

 3B Unit test 8

Vocabulary (20 marks) Time allowed: 10 minutes

A You have done some vox pops for a presentation about different careers. Complete your vox pops using
words and phrases from the box. (16 marks)

attention to detail be independent CV job duties

be a team player be organized good with numbers position
be able to work under pressure candidates have strong communication skills qualifications
be fluent in English and Putonghua cover letter interviews salary

Jason Wong: I’ve been an architect for five years now. There are different (1) ____________________
that you need to be an architect, e.g. a degree in architecture, practical training and further
exams. Being an architect requires lots of different skills. You need to have
(2) ________________________ because one tiny mistake can have a big impact on the
design of the building. An architect needs to (3) ____________________ and able to work
on their own. You’re required to talk to people, so you definitely need to
(4) ________________________________________. It can take a long time to train as an
architect, but once you’re qualified, you can earn a good (5) ____________________.
Susan Tang: I work as an office manager at a busy IT company. As an office manager, you need to
(6) ____________________ and efficient. Our company has clients from the UK and
mainland China, so it’s important to (7) _______________________________________.
You also need to (8) _________ _______________________________ because there’s
always a lot going on and you can’t afford to panic! Luckily, I’m
(9) ___________________________________ because I spend a lot of time preparing our
accounts for the accountant. Another of my (10) ____________________ is to do
(11) ____________________ with students for summer internships. My advice to students
is to write a short and detailed (12) ____________________ including your qualifications
and job skills. Your introductory (13) ____________________ is important too because
this is often the first thing I read.
Ally Lo: I manage a sports centre. When I applied for this (14) ____________________, I knew
that I would be up against lots of really good (15) ____________________ because it’s
the sort of job that lots of people want to do. I was so pleased when I got the job. I really
enjoy this job because every day is different. You definitely need to
(16) ___________________________________ to do this job as it’s the manager’s role to
support and help other staff in the centre whenever it’s necessary.

B Complete the diary entry by adding the correct prefixes and/or suffixes to the root words in brackets.
(4 marks)
Last week, I went for my first job interview. I felt really nervous because I feel (1) ________________
(comfort) talking about myself! I was also (2) ________________ (sure) about what to wear, but my
sister (3) ________________ (help) lent me some of her clothes. She told me to be (4)
________________ (act) and find out as much about the company as possible before the interview. She
explained that it’s a good idea to prepare some questions to ask in advance.
The interview was OK, but (5) ________________ (sad) they sent me a/an (6) ________________
(reject) letter yesterday. At first, I was really disappointed. However, my sister said she would help me
(7) ________________ (view) my CV and improve my interview skills. Her kind words helped me feel
more (8) ________________ (hope) for the future!

© Oxford University Press 8.4

 3B Unit test 8

Grammar (20 marks) Time allowed: 20 minutes

A You are writing a web article about changing careers. Complete the article with the correct form of the
verbs in brackets. (10 marks)

Changing careers: one woman’s story

(1) ______________ you ______________ (decide) what job you want to do yet? This is a question
that many teenagers are asked quite regularly. Many teens feel that there (2) ___________________
(be) a lot of pressure to decide what career they would like to do in the future. They
(3) ___________________ (worry) that they might end up choosing the wrong career, and that in the
future they (4) ___________________ (be) stuck in a job they don’t like. According to careers
adviser Belinda Lam, you shouldn’t feel that your future career is set in stone. ‘More and more people
(5) ___________________ (change) their careers these days. It’s not like the old days, when you got
a job for life.’

Belinda introduced me to Susan Ma, who has successfully changed her career. Susan works as a
personal trainer. She (6) ___________________ (help) her clients reach their fitness and health goals.
She loves her job and finds it very rewarding. ‘At the moment, I (7) ___________________ (work)
with several different clients who want to get fit and lose weight. They (8) ___________________
(make) a lot of progress so far. It (9) ___________________ (be) great to see how they get on in the
next few months.’

Susan (10) ___________________ (not be) a personal trainer for long. This time three years ago, she
(11) ___________________ (work) ten-hour days in a busy office. Despite her good salary, Susan
(12) ___________________ (not be) very happy in her job. When her mother became ill, Susan took
some time off work to look after her. There wasn’t anyone else to help. Sadly, Susan’s father
(13) ___________________ (die) when she was just a teenager and her brother
(14) ___________________ (move) abroad two years earlier.

Susan (15) ___________________ (think) a lot about her career while she
(16) ________________________ (look after) her mum. One day, she (17) ___________________
(exercise) at her local gym when she (18) ___________________ (see) an advert for a course to train
as a personal trainer. She decided to leave her job and start the course right away.

Belinda says that it’s a good idea to have some sort of a plan before you make a big decision like
changing careers. ‘Luckily, Susan (19) ___________________ (save) some money during her office
career, so she could use this to support herself while she was retraining as a personal trainer’.

Susan has plenty of plans for the future. ‘Over the next few weeks, I (20) ______________________
(create) online personal training plans. Watch this space!’ she laughs.

© Oxford University Press 8.5

 3B Unit test 8

B Your aunt has a cafe and she has asked you to help her write some notes to give new trainee baristas
before they start working at the cafe. Complete the notes using the correct form of the verbs in brackets.
(7 marks)

Welcome to Molly’s Cafe!

Molly’s Cafe (1) __________ (be) a great place to work! Everyone (2) __________ (be) very
friendly and we are sure you will love it here! Here is some important information to get you
started.
• We all work in shifts. Six hours (3) __________ (be) a normal shift, but occasionally we
might need you to work extra.
• It is very important to clean up as you go. Our equipment (4) __________ (be) expensive
and can go wrong if it is not cleaned regularly.
• Please wear smart casual clothes. Black trousers (5) __________ (be) ideal.
• Each and every customer (6) __________ (be) important to us! Remember that politeness
(7) __________ (go) a long way! Don’t forget to smile too! People always (8) __________
(love) it when you smile at them.
• Big earrings (9) __________ (not be) acceptable. Please take them off before you arrive.
• The toilets (10) __________ (be) everybody’s responsibility. Please check that they are
clean.
• Several of our regular customers (11) __________ (be) disabled. Please check that the
ramp (12) __________ (be) always available so that they can access the cafe.
• Please check your emails for your rota. Every Friday, either the manager or deputy
manager (13) __________ (send) out the rota for the following week.
• Don’t worry if you are not sure what to do! Someone (14) __________ (be) always around
to help you and answer your questions.

C You are helping your cousin write a short item for his college website. Complete the item using
the correct form of the verbs from the box. (3 marks)

be cook get have not be prefer

Being an apprentice
University (1) __________ suitable for everyone. Some people (2) __________ learning and doing
a job at the same time. An apprentice (3) __________ paid a salary and often (4) __________ a
day off a week to study for a relevant qualification.
I work as an apprentice chef at a busy restaurant. Food (5) __________ my passion and I love
learning how to make interesting dishes. Every Thursday, I go to college for the day. It’s been
great to meet up with the other students. A few of us (6) __________ a meal together at one of our
houses every few weeks. It’s great fun!

© Oxford University Press 8.6

 3B Unit test 8

Listening (15 marks) Time allowed: 20 minutes

A You are interested in becoming a lifeguard in the future. You have found a podcast interview with a
lifeguard. Listen to the interview and complete your notes. Do as much as you can the first time and answer
all the questions the second time. You now have 30 seconds to study the note sheet. (8 marks)

Interview with Janet Wong

Job: (1) part-time/full-time pool lifeguard (Underline the correct answer.)

Janet’s background

• She used to be (2) _____________________________ but gave it up when she

was (3) ______________.
• (4) ______________ has become Janet’s latest passion but (5) _____________
_____________________, so she wanted to find a job with (6) ____________
_____________.

To become a pool lifeguard, it is essential that you …

• (7) _____________________________________
• (8) _____________________________________
• (9) _____________________________________

It will help your application Reason

if you …

(10) _________________ You will have to (11) ______________________

____________________ ________________. For example, you need to
know what to do if (12) ____________________
______________________________________.

(13) _________________ It is important to be able to (14) ____________

____________________ ____________________ in all situations. For
example, you might have to (15) _____________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________.

© Oxford University Press 8.7

 3B Unit test 8

B You are Tommy Wu. Your cousin has messaged you to tell you about a vacancy in the bubble tea shop
where he is working. He has left you a voice message telling you more about the job. Listen to the voice
message and complete the note sheet. Do as much as you can the first time and answer all the questions the
second time. You now have 30 seconds to study the note sheet. (7 marks)

Details about the job

Position: (1) _____________________________________

Start date: (2) _____________________________________

As part of the job, you will …

• learn how to (3) _____________________________________

• focus on (4) ________________________________________
• (5) _______________________________________________

Skills
You need to …

• (6) _____________________________________
• (7) _____________________________________
• (8) _____________________________________

Your cousin’s views

The (9) _______________________ The lunch break (10) ____________

and you get a free drink on every shift! ________________.

What you need to do if you are interested

(11) _____________________________________
(12) _____________________________________ with your application.

Some important advice

• (13) _________________________________________________________
• (14) _______________________________ to show that you have the necessary
strengths and skills.

© Oxford University Press 8.8

 3B Unit test 8

Writing (15 marks) Time allowed: 40 minutes

Your friend has shown you a job advertisement on the careers board at your school. You would like to
apply for the position. Read the advertisement carefully and write your letter of application. Remember to
use formal language. Write about 180 words.

Saturday Cinema Assistant

Bright Lights Cinema is looking for a part-time cinema assistant to work on Saturdays. You will
check customers’ tickets, serve refreshments and show customers to their seats.

You must be passionate about the cinema and have strong communication skills. You should also
be fluent in English and Putonghua.

Send your CV and letter of application to Maisy Wan, Bright Lights Cinema, 1011 Seaview Road,
Aberdeen.

Speaking (5 marks) Time allowed: 10 minutes

You and two of your friends are talking about summer holiday jobs.
In your discussion, you may talk about:
● summer holiday jobs that you are planning/would like to do
● any information/details that you know about the job
● what skills and strengths are required to do the job
● any relevant experience that you have had
● anything else that you think is important

You may begin by saying:

Let’s talk about summer holiday jobs. Does anyone have any plans? …

End of paper

© Oxford University Press 8.9