You will hear a number of different recordings, and you will have to answer questions on what you hear. There will be time for you to read the instructions and questions, and you will have a chance to check your work. All the recordings will be played once only.
The test is in four parts. Write all your answers in the listening question booklet. At the end of the test, you will be given ten minutes to transfer your answers to an answer sheet.
Now turn to part one on page two of your question booklet. Part One You will hear a telephone conversation between a young man who wants to get a summer job in the USA and an agent. First, you have some time to look at questions one to five.
Now listen carefully and answer questions one to five. Hi, USA Summer Camps, Nicola speaking. How can I help you? Um, I want to get a job in the USA this summer, and I saw an advert on your website, and it said I should call this number if I wanted more information.
Right. So, you're interested in working in a summer camp? That's working with children, is it? Yes. Lots of children go away to summer camp in the USA, and the jobs we're advertising are for what are called counsellors.
That means you're with the children the whole day, twenty-four hours. Right. So, what would I be doing exactly? Everything.
You'd be working with them, playing with them, teaching them, everything. Your ad said there were different sorts of positions, general and specialists. Yes.
For the general counsellors, they're asking for people who have experience of working with children, but it has to be as a leader of some sort. Hmm, I'm not sure. What I'm really interested in is sports.
You might be more interested in being a specialist counsellor then. They focus on one particular area. It doesn't have to be a sport, but mostly it is.
Would tennis be OK for that? Absolutely. You might find yourself coaching other sports as well though. They do a big range usually.
That's what most of the kids are interested in, and of course a lot of it's outdoor stuff. So, they wouldn't be so interested in something like art? Oh yes, they would be. Anything you're enthusiastic about and can help younger kids with.
OK. Well, I'd be really interested in working with kids in both those areas. Now, about times.
The ad said the job was for 12 weeks? Eight actually, but most people stay on in the US for another three or four weeks and go travelling. Yeah, I'd really like to do that. There are lots of places I'd like to see in America.
So, when would I need to be there? June. Then you carry on to August and do your travelling after that, so you're back home in September. That's perfect.
Well, that all sounds great. But about the job, do I just pick it up as I go along? No. You get there a week before the kids arrive, and that time's spent on training, so you'll learn all about the camp and working with American children and dealing with homesickness.
All that kind of thing. Right. Before you hear the rest of the conversation, you have some time to look at questions 6 to 10.
Now listen and answer questions 6 to 10. And I presume I'd be OK as far as my age goes? I'll be 19 by then. That's the minimum age officially, though they do occasionally accept people of 18 if they have special skills that are in demand.
And how much would I actually get paid? You get a total of US$985. You get a couple of hundred dollars more if you're over 21. But that won't apply to you, so you should end up with quite a bit of money to go travelling with when you've finished.
Great. There's tons I want to see. New York, San Francisco, the Grand Canyon.
But you do have to pay for your own insurance before you start out. That costs £138 sterling. That's in case I get ill or anything? Yes.
Or you lose your luggage or have to cancel. Right. And there was something in the ad about a check of some kind, because I'd be working with children? Yes, that's right.
I forgot to mention that and it's very important. You have to be checked by the police here in the UK and that costs £36. That's OK.
Is there anything else I should know as far as money goes? Well, just that if you register with us to work on the summer camp, you can go on a Discover America tour afterwards. A lot of camp counsellors do that and we can offer you a discount on that. And of course, you're bound to make lots of friends, so you'll have people to travel with.
Right. Well, I'm definitely interested in the whole thing. So, what should I do next? Well, I'll give you our website address and you can fill in the application form.
You can fill it in online... That is the end of part one. You now have one minute to check your answers to part one.