telc C1 Hochschule Mock Exam: Timing, Points and Self-Scoring
Last updated: 11 November 2026 · Checked against the official exam documents
A mock exam only tells you something if you sit it under real conditions: same order, same times, each recording played once, answers on the Antwortbogen. This guide gives you the full timetable of telc Deutsch C1 Hochschule, the points with pass marks, a step-by-step way to score yourself and what the Simulation tab on Zertifly does.
The timetable of a full mock exam
telc Deutsch C1 Hochschule starts with the written exam. You work on Leseverstehen and Sprachbausteine in one shared 90-minute block and choose the order yourself. telc’s Tipps zur Prüfungsvorbereitung suggest roughly 60–65 minutes for reading and 15–20 minutes for the Sprachbausteine. The oral exam is taken in pairs.
For Leseverstehen the Tipps give these split times: Teil 1 about 15 minutes, Teil 2 about 15, Teil 3 about 30 minutes plus about 5 minutes for the Makroaufgabe. Write down the clock time at the end of each Teil in your mock – that is the only way to see where the minutes go.
| Block | Time | What matters in the mock |
|---|---|---|
| Leseverstehen + Sprachbausteine | 90 min | Free order; ~60–65 min reading, ~15–20 min Sprachbausteine |
| Pause | 20 min | Take a real break, don’t look anything up |
| Hörverstehen | approx. 40 min | Each text once; Teil 3 = notes and gap filling |
| Schriftlicher Ausdruck | 70 min | One of two topics, at least 350 words |
| Mündlicher Ausdruck – Vorbereitung | 20 min | Teil 1A only; one of two topics, notes allowed |
| Mündlicher Ausdruck – Prüfung | approx. 16 min | Per person 1A ~3 min, 1B ~2 min; Teil 2 discussion 6 min |
Points and pass marks
The written exam is scored out of 166 points and passed with 99; the oral exam out of 48, pass mark 29. You have to pass both. Because the written modules are not passed one by one, a strong Hörverstehen can make up for a weak Leseverstehen – but a good oral result cannot cover missing written points.
| Part | Items | Points per item | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| Leseverstehen Teil 1 | 1–6 | 2 | 12 |
| Leseverstehen Teil 2 | 7–12 | 2 | 12 |
| Leseverstehen Teil 3 + Makroaufgabe | 13–24 | 2 | 24 |
| Sprachbausteine | 25–46 | 1 | 22 |
| Hörverstehen Teil 1 | 47–54 | 1 | 8 |
| Hörverstehen Teil 2 | 55–64 | 2 | 20 |
| Hörverstehen Teil 3 | 65–74 | 2 | 20 |
| Schriftlicher Ausdruck | 4 × A–D | 12 / 8 / 4 / 0 | 48 |
| Schriftliche Prüfung | 1–74 + Erörterung | – | 166 → ≥ 99 |
| Mündlicher Ausdruck | 1A · 1B · 2 | – | 48 → ≥ 29 |
| Gesamt | – | – | 214 |
“≥ 99” and “≥ 29” are the pass marks. The total of 214 does not decide on its own; you need to clear both thresholds.
How to run a full mock at home
For one complete run, telc’s free Übungstest 1 is the natural start; the Handbuch and the Tipps are on the same product page. The sets on Zertifly then extend that single official test Teil by Teil.
- Do the written part in one sitting: 90 min Leseverstehen and Sprachbausteine, 20 min break, about 40 min Hörverstehen, 70 min Schriftlicher Ausdruck. Spreading it over several days does not test the stamina the exam demands.
- Count the transfer of your answers to the Antwortbogen inside the 90 minutes; don’t give yourself extra time for it in the mock.
- If you will sit the paper exam, print the texts; if you will sit it digitally, practise on screen. telc runs digital, hybrid and paper formats.
- Play each recording once: no rewinding, no pausing – not even in Teil 3, where you take notes and fill gaps at the same time.
- No dictionary, no translation app, no phone; only a pen, a clock and paper for notes.
- Write the Erörterung the way you will write it in the exam (by hand, or on a computer with spell-check off), then count the words: at least 350.
- Practise the oral part with a partner or with the AI partner: 20 min preparation for Teil 1A, presentation, your partner’s summary and follow-up question, swap roles, then the 6-minute discussion.
How to score yourself
Then add up the written total and compare it with 99. Landing just above the line is no safety margin; your form varies from day to day. Look instead at which Teil costs you the most points per minute – that is where next week’s plan comes from.
- Leseverstehen: 2 points per correct answer, 24 items = 48 points. Sort your mistakes by Teil; Teil 1 (Textrekonstruktion) and the Makroaufgabe reveal different weaknesses from the detail items in Teil 3.
- Sprachbausteine: 1 point per gap, 22 in total. Group your mistakes by type: preposition, connector, separable-verb particle, fixed expression, Konjunktiv I.
- Hörverstehen: 1 point per item in Teil 1 (8), 2 points each in Teil 2 and Teil 3 (20 + 20). Teil 3 is scored by keywords: check whether your note contains the decisive word.
- Schriftlicher Ausdruck: four criteria – Aufgabengerechtheit, Korrektheit, Repertoire, Kommunikative Gestaltung – each A/B/C/D = 12/8/4/0. An off-topic text (“Thema verfehlt”) gets D in all four. If you can, let someone else rate your text.
- Mündlicher Ausdruck: Aufgabengerechtheit (1A 6, 1B 4, Teil 2 6), plus Flüssigkeit, Repertoire, Grammatische Richtigkeit, Aussprache und Intonation for the whole oral, 8 points each; 48 in total, levels A–D.
What the Simulation tab on Zertifly does
Every telc C1 list – Leseverstehen, Sprachbausteine, Hörverstehen and Mündlicher Ausdruck – has a “Simulation” tab next to the practice sets. There you work through the module in the exam format, timed and without breaks, instead of practising single Teile. The simulation is a Pro feature: with a free account you see what it contains and get an upgrade prompt.
The sets themselves: 15 Leseverstehen sets (Teil 1–3 + Makroaufgabe), 15 Sprachbausteine sets with 22 gaps each, 15 Hörverstehen sets (Teil 1–3, each text once). In Mündlicher Ausdruck you practise Teil 1 (1A/1B with an AI partner who summarises and asks follow-up questions) and Teil 2 as a live discussion with an AI partner, scored on the /48 model. Schriftlicher Ausdruck has 15 Erörterung topics in pairs: you choose one as in the exam and get AI feedback out of 48 by the four official criteria.
Free: the first exercise in every list and a few AI evaluations. For the Erörterung, set a 70-minute timer and write your chosen topic in one go.
When and how often to sit a mock
A full mock means about 3 hours 40 minutes of written exam including the break, plus the oral. Sit one at the start to know your baseline and one or two in the last weeks before the exam. In between, train your weakest Teile in a targeted way.
After each mock, sort your mistakes by Teil, pick the two Teile that cost the most points and work only on those the following week. When you choose C1 on the dashboard, you get a personal telc C1 study route.
Official sources
The exam rules and figures in this guide were checked against the official sources below.
Related guide
Sit your next mock on Zertifly
Choose C1 on the dashboard, start with the free first exercise of each list and use the simulation when you want to test a whole module against the clock.