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The results for the 2023 LPEs are expected to be published in March 2024. An email will be sent to test takers by Inspira.
THE SCHEDULE FOR THE 2023 LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY EXAMINATION (LPE) |
LPE - Process and Timeline
Applicants should determine their eligibility and prepare required supporting documentation before the registration period begins. Regarding any questions applicants may have, these should be addressed to the Administrator at the LPE Screening Centres (LPESCs). Please see more detailed information in the table below:
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Timeline (Tentative) |
2023 LPE - Process and Timeline (Click on the arrow to the left to open see more information in each category) |
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April 2023 |
Announcement of the 2022 LPE results in all six official languages. |
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April 2023 |
1. Announcement of participating LPE Screening Centres (LPESCs) and fee-paying entities Those may change from year to year depending on local needs and available resources. The Special Assessment Section (SAS) will collect participation requests from LPESCs and nominations of Financial Focal Points from fee-paying entities by no later than 31 March 2023. The role of the LPESCs is solely to screen applications, ALL exams are online. If you do not see your duty station in the list, please select the nearest duty station to you when you enroll in the 2023 LPE in Inspira. *Applicants from paying entities should check with their Organization about the fee recovery policy before registering for LPE, as some Organizations deduct the LPE fees from applicants’ salaries. |
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May 2023 |
2. Applicants should determine their eligibility, prepare supporting documents and update their Inspira profile
The LPE eligibility criteria document approved by the Office of Human Resources is accessible through the link below. Applicants who are eligible based on "the use of language on a regular basis for work" criteria must attach the verification letter form signed* by their Supervisor and Head of Office to their application in Inspira. Applicants with appointments that expire prior to the date of the LPE examination are asked to attach a letter* from the Executive Officer or the head of administration at offices away from Headquarters and field duty stations expressing the intent to extend the contract beyond the written exam date to their application in Inspira. Note: * We accept electronic signatures for forms and letters. To sign a form/letter electronically, the concerned officials must save the Word form in a PDF file and use the "Fill and Sign" feature of Adobe Acrobat Reader to add their electronic signature. When uploading the signed form/letter in their application in Inspira, the candidate must include the copy of email from the concerned official forwarding the signed form/letter. Applicants should determine their eligibility and prepare required supporting documents ahead of the registration period. Any questions applicants might have should be addressed to the corresponding LPESC‘s Local Administrator. |
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from 5 to 23 June 2023
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3. Applicant registration period It is the applicant's responsibility to submit a completed and accurate application in Inspira by the specified deadline, while ensuring to selecting their duty station as the LPESC. If the specific duty station is not listed, applicants should choose the nearest option. Once an application is successfully submitted in Inspira, the applicant will receive an email confirming their LPE registration. It is the candidate’s responsibility to ensure their email contact information in Inspira is correct, in order to ensure proper communication. For further information regarding UNV and WHO Staff please read the FAQs (Item Nos. 12 and 13) at the bottom of the page. PDF guides for applicants
Special Needs Procedure |
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June – July 2023 |
4. Screening of applications by Local Administrators (applicants should monitor their email messages) The Local Administrator at each LPESC will screen the applications according to the eligibility criteria. Local Administrators might contact applicants anytime during this period to request further information or documentation. If so, it is the applicant's responsibility to upload the requested supporting documents within this screening period and resubmit their application in Inspira. Applicants should check their Inspira status and email regularly for communication regarding the status of their application. |
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by 7 July 2023 |
5. Final chance for applicants to respond to pushed-back applications, if applicable During this period, no new applications can be accepted. This is the final opportunity for applicants with existing applications (that have been pushed back by the Local Administrator) to upload the requested additional supporting documents and resubmit their applications, so screening can be finalized by the Local Administrator. If an applicant fails to provide the additional documents within this period, their applications will be rejected. |
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12 July 2023 |
6. Final screening of pushed-back applications by Local Administrators The Local Administrator will screen all pending applications, either accepting those that meet the eligibility requirements, or rejecting those that do not fulfill the eligibility requirements or lack supporting documents. The last enrollment drop date for candidates is 4 August 2023. |
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from 24 July to 14 August 2023 |
7. Endorsement of registration fee by fee-paying entities Staff members belonging to paying-entities whose applications met the non-financial eligibility criteria will be reviewed by their respective Financial Focal Points for endorsement consideration. Only applicants whose applications are endorsed (i.e., their parent Organization agrees to pay the LPE registration fee), will be convoked to take the exam. Financial focal points might contact applicants during this period to request for further information. Applicants should check their Inspira status and email regularly. |
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After 25 August 2023 |
8. Checking final convocation/rejection status in Inspira
The final application status will be available by this date. Only convoked candidates will be allowed to take the examination. Convocation letters will be sent out to applicants by email through Inspira. |
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Before September 2023 |
9. Exam Preparation
Please note that the exam which consists of four sections: 1) Receptive activities: Listening; 2) Receptive activities: Reading; 3) Written production and interaction; and 4) Spoken production and interaction; is planned to be administered ONLINE in 2023. As candidates will be required to type their response in the composition part of the examination using a computer keyboard, it is highly recommended that candidates who are not used to typing in the target language start practicing typing in that language as early as possible. (To change your computer's keyboard layout to type your answers in the relevant language in the written production section of the exam, follow this link for Windows 10, and follow this link for Mac) LPE PRACTICE EXAMS ENGLISH
FRENCH
LPE Practice Exams in English, French, Russian, and Spanish are available year-round in PDF form on our Supporting Multilingualism page, under “Language Assessment". The test format of these practice tests will also apply to the Chinese and Arabic exams. You can also try the same practice exams in the online testing environment here, by creating a new account and enrolling yourself in them. ONLINE LPE PREPARATION COURSES OFFERED BY THE CDOTS - LANGUAGE & COMMUNICATIONS TRAINING UNIT
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October 2023
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10. Administration of online exam
Wednesday, 4 October 2023
Wednesday, 11 October 2023
Wednesday, 18 October 2023
Wednesday, 25 October 2023
Times:
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March - April 2024 (Tentative) |
11. Announcement of results of the 2023 LPE
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Throughout |
Applicants should regularly check their emails and LPE website for updates. It is the candidate’s responsibility to ensure their email contact information in Inspira is correct, to ensure proper communication. |
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Frequently Asked |
View the latest FAQs on the LPE. |
LPE EXAM FORMAT
The 2023 Language Proficiency Exam (LPE) will be based on UN Level III of the United Nations Language Framework (UNLF). It is strongly recommended that candidates familiarize themselves with Level III of the UNLF, in particular:
• the overall descriptors for UN Level III (pages 5, 8) and the learning objectives, communicative situations and text types (pages 22-26) in the UNLF Core Curriculum. These are common to all six official United Nations languages and the basis for the LPE in all six languages.
• the UN Level III pages in the specific language curriculum (Ar, Ch, En, Fr, Ru, Sp) of the language in which you will be taking the exam.
Exam Format
- The exam consists of four sections: 1) Receptive activities: Listening; 2) Receptive activities: Reading; 3) Written production and interaction; and 4) Spoken production and interaction.
- The oral part of the old LPE will be replaced by the spoken production and interaction part of the online exam, and no live interviewers will be involved.
- Each section is worth 25 points. Candidates have to achieve a minimum of 15 points in each section, and a minimum of 65 points in total to be awarded the United Nations Language Proficiency Examination Certificate.
- All sections will be completed on the United Nations Online Examinations & Tests System.
- The four sections will be divided into two ‘quizzes’ on the platform and candidates will be able to take a break between parts.
- Part 1: Listening and Reading (100 minutes)
- Part 2: Written Production (90 minutes)
- Part 3: Spoken Production (30 minutes)
Further to Section 3.6 of the Administrative Instruction ST/AI/2021/1, candidates have to achieve a minimum of 15 points in each section of the exam and a minimum of 65 points in total to be awarded the UN Language Proficiency Examination certificate. Part 1 listening and reading sections and Part 2 writing section of the exam are eliminatory; i.e., candidates who do not reach a minimum of 15 points (out of the possible 25 points) in the listening or reading section of the exam will not have their writing and speaking sections evaluated, and candidates who do not reach a minimum of 15 points (out of the 25 possible points) in the written section of the exam will not have their spoken section evaluated.
LPE contact information
For inquiries from individuals at UNHQ: email unlpeny@un.org
For inquiries from individuals based at other duty stations, please refer to list of participating LPESCs.