The FreeCodeCamp community has just published our new B1 English for Developers for intermediate learners of English as a second language. You can now take the exam to get a free verified certification, which you can add to your resume, CV, or LinkedIn profile.
How does the B1 English for Developers certification work?
This Intermediate Level English for Developers course will help you strengthen the basic skills developed for A2 English while introducing more complex grammar and expanding on work-related topics.
The entire curriculum will follow the B1 level of the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR). And, as always, we’ve focused on vocabulary that’s especially useful for developers.
You’ll learn how to describe places and things, share past experiences, and use present perfect and future tenses with confidence. Practical communication strategies are also included, such as managing the conversation, expressing opinions, and agreeing or disagreeing in an agreement or discussion.
You’ll also practice vocabulary and phrases essential to developers, such as explaining code, participating in meetings, and discussing tech trends. Advanced topics include conditionals, comparative structures, and discourse management, so you can prepare for more complex interactions.
Included in this entire B1 level syllabus 73 different dialogues Recorded by native English speakers. Each section follows a unique theme, contains multiple dialogues, and is filled with hundreds of interactive tasks that will help you develop your English skills.
These tasks will introduce new vocabulary, teach grammar, or review concepts that you need to know in order to understand what the characters in the dialogues are saying. Each task will have a question to help you practice the material.
The syllabus also has blank questions that will help you practice writing in English.
Once you complete the certification, you will be able to take the B1 English for Developers exam. The test consists of 54 grammar questions, 24 listening questions, and 9 reading questions. All questions are based on what is covered in the certification course.
You can take the exam using our new open source exam environment. The FreeCodeCamp community designed this test environment tool with two goals in mind: making it harder for people to cheat while respecting their privacy.
Once you download the app on your laptop or desktop, you can take the exam.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it all really free?
yes FreeCodeCamp has always been free, and we’ve offered free verified certifications for over a decade now. These exams are just the latest addition to our community of free learning resources.
Can I study certification courses in languages other than English?
Our goal is to make every course available on FreeCodeCamp in all supported languages. Check your account settings to see if the course you are studying is already offered in your preferred language.
Curriculum What language skills does the curriculum cover?
Language courses currently cover listening, reading and writing. We have plans to speak later.
Are language courses and exams audio-recorded by native speakers?
yes All audios in the language course were recorded by native speakers of the language.
I am deaf or hard of hearing. Can I still study language courses?
Yes! All audio lessons have closed captions and transcripts available for reading.
I am blind or have limited vision, and use a screen reader. Can I still study language courses?
Yes! Free CodeCamp courses are designed to be accessible, and you can study language courses using a screen reader. If you run into accessibility issues, you can report them to our GitHub repository so the community can fix them.
What are the letters and numbers other than the certification name? (Example: A1, A2, B1)
These labels refer to CEFR levels, an international framework used to describe language proficiency. A1 and A2 represent beginner level, B1 and B2 represent intermediate level, and C1 and C2 represent advanced level.
At each level you are expected to identify your skills and knowledge at this stage of your language learning journey.
What prevents people from cheating in exams?
Our goal is to strike a balance between preventing fraud and respecting people’s right to privacy.
We have implemented a number of reliable, yet non-invasive, measures to help prevent people from cheating on FreecodeCamp exams.
For each exam, we have a massive bank of questions and possible answers to those questions. Each time a person tries to take the test, they will only see a small, random sample of these questions.
We only allow people to take the test once at a time. This reduces their ability to “brute force” the exam.
We have security in place to validate test submissions and prevent man-in-the-middle attacks or manipulation of the test environment.
We manually review each passing exam for evidence of cheating. Our test environment generates tons of metrics for us to draw on.
We take cheating, and any form of academic dishonesty, seriously. We will act decisively.
That said, no test results will be thrown out without human review, and no one’s account will be banned without warning based on any questionable test results.
Are these exams “open book” or “closed book”?
All Freecode Camp exams are “closed book”, meaning you should only rely on your own brain and not outside resources.
Of course, in the real world you will be able to see things. And in the real world, we encourage you to do just that.
But that is not what these tests are assessing. These tests are instead designed to test your memory of details and your understanding of concepts.
So while taking these exams, do not use external aids in the form of books, notes, AI tools, or other people. Using any of these would be considered academic dishonesty.
Do you record my webcam, microphone, or do I need to upload a photo of my personal ID?
No. We consider adding these as additional testing precautions. But we lack privacy-friendly methods of detecting most forms of academic dishonesty.
If the environment is open source, doesn’t that make it less secure?
“Given enough eyeballs, all bugs are shallow.” – The Law of Lens, developed by Eric S. Raymond in his book Cathedral and market
Open source software projects are often more secure than their closed source equivalents. This is because there are too many people testing the code. And many people can potentially help identify bugs and other deficiencies, then fix them.
We believe open source is the way to go for this testing ecosystem.
How can I contribute to the test environment codebase?
It is completely open source, and we welcome your code contributions. Please read our general Collaborator on boarding documents.
Then check GitHub repo.
You can help by raising issues to report bugs or request features.
You can also open browse help wanted Efforts to uncover issues and requests to address them.
Are the questions from the exam itself open source?
For obvious exam security reasons, the exam question banks themselves are not publicly accessible. 🙂
These are created and maintained by instructional designers on the FreeCodeCamp staff.
What happens if I have internet connectivity issues mid-exam?
If you have internet connectivity issues mid-exam, the next time you try to submit an answer, you will be told that there are connectivity issues. The system will keep prompting you to retry the submission until the connection is successful.
What if my computer crashes mid-exam?
If your computer crashes mid-exam, you will be able to reopen the exam environment. Then, if you still have time left for your test attempt, you’ll be able to pick up where you left off.
Can I take exams in languages other than English?
Not yet We are working to add multilingual support in the future.
I have completed my exam. Why can’t I see my results yet?
All test attempts are reviewed by FreeCodeCamp staff before the results are released. We do this to ensure the integrity of the exam process and prevent fraud. Once your effort is evaluated, you will be notified of your results the next time you log in to freecodecamp.org.
I use a keyboard instead of a mouse. Can I navigate exams using only a keyboard?
This is a high priority for us. We hope to add keyboard navigation to the exam environment app soon.
Is it time for exams?
Yes, it’s exam time. We err on the side of allowing enough time to take the test, to account for those who are non-native English speakers, or who have ADHD and other learning differences that can make timed tests more difficult.
If you have a condition that would normally qualify you for additional time on standardized tests, please email support@freecodecamp.org. We will review your request and see if we can find a reasonable solution.
What happens if I fail the exam? Can I take it again?
yes You get one test attempt each week. After that, if you don’t pass, there’s a one week (168 hours exactly) “cool down” period where you can’t take any free CodeCamp exams. This is to encourage you to learn and push yourself.
There is no limit to the number of times you can take the exam. So if you fail, study more, practice your skills as much as you can, then try again next week.
Will the exam be available to take on my phone?
At the moment, no. You will need to use a laptop or desktop to download the exam environment and take the exam. We hope to eventually offer these certification exams on iPhone and Android.
I have a disability or health condition that is not covered here. How do I apply for accommodation?
If you need specific accommodations for the exam (for example, extra time, breaks, or alternative formats), please email support@freecodecamp.org. We will review your request and see if we can find a reasonable solution.
anything else?
Good luck working through Free CodeCamp’s language coursework and exam preparation.
Happy learning!