ESL University Listening

The exercises on this ESL university listening page will give you the option to practice listening to university vocabulary being spoken by a native English speaker. This will mean that when you meet an English speaker you will be better prepared to understand them.

For each of the tasks on this page there is a recorded passage that you need to listen to. After you have listened to it you will be able to answer the questions or do the required task. You can listen several times to each recording if you need to. There is also a recording of the university vocabulary being spoken by a native English speaker on the ESL university vocabulary page; you can listen to this to make sure you know how to say each of the words.

This ESL university listening page has the four following tasks for you to do:

• Identify spoken word order.
• Identify spoken definition.
• Listening comprehension.
• Dictation passage.

ESL University Listening Exercises

Exercise 1 – Identification of Spoken Word Order

For the first ESL university listening exercise you need to listen to the following recording and then decide which option (A-D) in each question has the words in the same order as in the recording. When you have finished you can use the get score button to see the correct answers.

ESL University Identification of Spoken Word Order

Listen to the recording of the five groups of five words each given above and decide which option (A-D) in the five questions in this test has the correct order.

1) Which is the correct order for group of words one?

    A) Scholarship, Register, Sorority, Matriculation, Fail
    B) Register, Sorority, Matriculation, Fail, Scholarship
    C) Scholarship, Fail, Register, Matriculation, Sorority
    D) Matriculation, Fail, Sorority, Register, Scholarship

2) Which is the correct order for group of words two?

    A) Matriculate, Postgraduate, College, Grant, Undergraduate
    B) Postgraduate, College, Grant, Undergraduate, Matriculate
    C) Matriculate, Undergraduate, Postgraduate, Grant, College
    D) Grant, Undergraduate, College, Postgraduate, Matriculate

3) Which is the correct order for group of words three?

    A) Freshers’ week, Room and board, Law school, PhD, Faculty
    B) Room and board, Law school, PhD, Faculty, Freshers’ week
    C) Freshers’ week, Faculty, Room and board, PhD, Law school
    D) PhD, Faculty, Law school, Room and board, Freshers’ week

4) Which is the correct order for group of words four?

    A) Department, Grade Point Average, Homecoming, Room and board, Assignment
    B) Grade Point Average, Homecoming, Room and board, Assignment, Department
    C) Department, Assignment, Grade Point Average, Room and board, Homecoming
    D) Room and board, Assignment, Homecoming, Grade Point Average, Department

5) Which is the correct order for group of words five?

    A) Textbook, Minor, Bursary, Lecturer, Student loan
    B) Minor, Bursary, Lecturer, Student loan, Textbook
    C) Textbook, Student loan, Minor, Lecturer, Bursary
    D) Lecturer, Student loan, Bursary, Minor, Textbook

Score =

Correct answers:

Exercise 2 – Identification of Spoken Definition

For the second ESL university listening exercise you need to listen to the following recording and this time decide which of the words (options A-D) in each question matches the spoken definition from the recording. Then you can see the correct answers by clicking the get score button.

ESL University Listening Identification of Vocabulary Meaning

Listen to the recording of the meanings of the five vocabulary words given above and decide which word out of the options (A-D) in each question matches the meaning.

1) What is the meaning of the first definition in the recording?

    A) Syllabus
    B) Curriculum
    C) Spring break
    D) Freshers’ week

2) What is the meaning of the second definition in the recording?

    A) Sandwich course
    B) Major
    C) Audit
    D) Session

3) What is the meaning of the third definition in the recording?

    A) Undergraduate
    B) Certificate
    C) Tutor
    D) First degree

4) What is the meaning of the fourth definition in the recording?

    A) Registrar
    B) Semester
    C) Enroll
    D) Education

5) What is the meaning of the fifth definition in the recording?

    A) Term
    B) Financial aid
    C) Sophomore
    D) Department

Score =

Correct answers:

Exercise 3 – Listening Comprehension

In the third ESL university listening exercise you need to listen to the following recording of a passage being spoken by a native English speaker and then answer the following questions. Then when you have an answer for each of the questions you can check if they are correct or not by using the get score button.

At the end of this page there is a link to follow that will show the full text of the passage so you can check your understanding.

ESL University Listening Comprehension

Listen to the recording of the passage about university above and answer the following five questions.

1) What is one of the purposes of freshers’ week?

    A) To help freshers find the best accommodation.
    B) To make freshers feel at home.
    C) To introduce freshers to the campus facilities.
    D) To inform freshers about the grading system.

2) Who holds most of the events during freshers’ week?

    A) The student societies.
    B) The student union.
    C) The lecturers.
    D) The administration staff.

3) How many student societies does a fresher usually join during freshers’ week?

    A) Up to a dozen.
    B) Only one or two societies.
    C) At least two societies.
    D) None.

4) What activities can a fresher do besides attending freshers’ week?

    A) Visit their parents.
    B) Enjoy the local sights.
    C) Work full time.
    D) Work part time.

5) What commitments should a fresher not miss during freshers’ week?

    A) Hangout with seniors.
    B) Going to the cinema with new friends.
    C) Meeting with members of student societies.
    D) Scheduled meeting with lecturers and administration.

Score =

Correct answers:

Exercise 4 – Dictation

In the fourth ESL university listening exercise you need to listen to the recording of the following passage and then write it down exactly. The recording has the passage being spoken at a slow speed first and then again, only this time with pauses after every few words and the punctuation being said as well. If you need to you can listen to the recording a few times.

There is another link at the end of the page that will show the full text of this passage. You can then check and see how well you did by comparing what you wrote with what the passage really contained.

Listening Comprehension Passage
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Dictation Passage
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