What Is CILS?

The CILS (Certificazione di Italiano come Lingua Straniera) is issued by the Università per Stranieri di Siena, founded in 1917 and the oldest institution specialising in Italian language education worldwide. CILS is aligned with the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) from A1 to C2.

For international students planning to study in Italy, CILS B2 or higher is the standard gateway to Italian-taught degree programmes. It is accepted by all Italian public universities, the Ministry of Education, and Italian embassies worldwide for visa applications.

CILS B2 Structure (University Admission Level)

~30 min

Ascolto (Listening)

Radio broadcasts, interviews, dialogues — true/false, multiple choice, gap-fill

~50 min

Lettura (Reading)

Academic and journalistic texts — comprehension, inference, main idea, vocabulary in context

~30 min

Analisi delle strutture

Grammar & vocabulary: cloze tests, sentence transformation, connector choice

~60 min

Produzione scritta

Formal writing: argumentative essay or formal letter (250–300 words)

~15 min

Produzione orale

Oral presentation + discussion with examiner based on a stimulus document

Key Grammar Topics for CILS B2/C1

  • Congiuntivo (Subjunctive): The most tested grammar feature at B2+. Master both present (congiuntivo presente) and imperfect (congiuntivo imperfetto) forms, especially after verbs of opinion, hope, doubt, and impersonal expressions
  • Condizionale: Present and past conditional for expressing wishes, hypotheses, and polite requests
  • Concordanza dei tempi (Sequence of tenses): Matching main verb tense to subordinate clause tense — especially past tense + congiuntivo imperfetto
  • Connettori logici: tuttavia, nonostante, sebbene, purché, affinché, dunque — these are essential for the writing and grammar sections
  • Passive voice and Si passivante: Formal Italian uses passive constructions frequently; recognise both essere+participio and si+verb forms

Produzione Scritta Strategy (B2 Essay)

CILS B2 writing tasks require a structured argumentative essay of 250–300 words. Examiners look for:

  • Struttura: Clear introduction (thesis statement), 2–3 body paragraphs with arguments, brief conclusion
  • Registro formale: Avoid colloquialisms. Use si ritiene che, è opportuno sottolineare che, in conclusione
  • Connettori: Use adversative (tuttavia, d'altra parte), causal (poiché, dato che), and conclusive (pertanto, dunque) connectors
  • Congiuntivo: Every essay should contain at least 2–3 correct subjunctive uses to demonstrate B2+ grammar range

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Our CILS tutors are certified Italian language instructors (DITALS) who prepare you specifically for the Siena exam format.

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