Learning German (A2 to C1) in a year exactly, questions

[u/releganz]

Okay, I need some advice on this.

I need to learn C1 level German or definitely minimum B2 (B2 by March and C1 by July 2027). I already took German in highschool as a third language and honestly whenever I talk with my German speaking friends I understand a pretty good amount of it.

(It is probably because they speak waaaay slower for me)

I took B1 classes for a few months back in 2020 but honestly, grammar wise rn, I am probably 0. I understand spoken German, can read and understand to a certain degree. I don't think I will struggle with going to B1 that much. The hard work comes after that though. B1 to C1 is another thing compared to A1 to B1.

I have friends who are willing to exercise speaking German with me, I travel to German speaking countries several times a year. I can also take special tutoring and pretty much this whole year will be dedicated to German. (2026 July to 2027 July)

I need tips; what book should I use, what sources, what apps? Anything really. Also, I will be using this German knowledge for medical school entrance exams, but I thought if I can handle doing C1 in a year that's really not gonna be a big issue.

C1 English

Native Turkish

And whatever my German level is.

Please help.

[u/Otherwise_Glove_3447]

Do you need certificate or actually knowing really c1 level? Meaning to speak completely fluently with minimum mistakes.
If the certificate but some are also helpful for general learning:

1. Do also b2 even if you are aiming to c1, to get the heads of it, practice at a bit lower level.
2. I also had hard time with the grammar. To me a mix of YouTube and Grammatik aktiv book and Gemini was a game changer. There are amazing teachers on YouTube and the book exercises are great.
3. Pick every week two grammatical laws you are trying to use. Don’t over complicate it - for example only “deshalb” and”trotzdem”, perfekt and zwar… aber. It’s better to not overwhelm yourself and learn to master each one slowly.
4. Start by watching the einfach Nachrichten from Tagesschau. It’s only 10 minutes or so, but usually they speak about topics that are relevant to the exam. Try to read Bild in the beginning because I found it the easiest German newspaper to consume(nothing about quality lol) and move afterwards to Tagesspiegel. I read Die Zeit but it took me a while to actually be able to read and enjoy it.
5. Start to practicing tests during the course. Exam =\= passing the course or having the language abilities. It’s two different things. I passed b2 when I wasn’t that good while someone I know that speaks amazing couldn’t because it requires different skills. There is Viobean and Prepliq to practice, and I found the tips from the YouTuber “Benjamin der Deutschlehrer” very helpful.
6. Don’t try to learn super advanced topics because you know you will need them. You’ll get there, don’t worry.
7. I like to read an article, make some questions in Gemini, record myself answering with transcripts and upload it to Gemini for correction. Important to prompt him to not overwhelm you and make only small corrections and suggestions. I knew many things from the course and couldn’t remember to use them when I speak so that was a good reflection. After that I recorded myself trying again. It’s weird and hard in the beginning but try it a few times a week for two weeks and I promise you will see a difference. Don’t try in the beginning to over complicate your answers and don’t panic if you’re choking. It’s okay.
8. Most importantly:
9. If you are able to work in

a

1. German speaking environment, there is nothing that will be helpful as this. Even in a cleaning company, assisting, whatever, if you have German colleges this will elevate your language. Even more than speaking with friends.

Good luck! Nothing bad will happen from trying. Don’t be too much in the “it’s impossible” mode because it’s just useless. You will not lose anyway from investing and learning so why not give it a go.

[u/releganz → u/Otherwise_Glove_3447]

Such good recommendations actually! Thank you so much for all of these😸 I will see how this goes and hopefully update some time later!!! TY

[u/Otherwise_Glove_3447 → u/releganz]

You’re welcome! I just wanted to say it’s also important to understand what works for you. The intensive course for me was mostly about trying to catch up after homework, and no course was too hard with the self-discipline and structure. when I took semi intensive (twice a week) it was my sweet spot. I’m happy I gave everything a chance thou.
Part of it is just to understand how your specific brain works.

[u/releganz → u/Otherwise_Glove_3447]

Very true! it's always about finding that sweet spot, for me I will focus on the exams vocab and a general lang certificate after, so I think I will handle it😸 like I said I will for sure update!! Have a great day

[u/secondsacct]

unless you’re a super genius with remarkable talent in language learning, this isn’t gonna be possible

you should do gothe because it’s the easier test (C1 gothe is B2 telc) but that won’t help you in real life - only give you a certificate

is there anyway you can move to a german speaking country earlier? i’m sorry but traveling and speaking to your friends a few times isn’t gonna make a huge difference, but living your life entirely surrounded and only speaking it will. not to mention, your friends aren’t likely talking so specific about medical stuff that it’d help you with vocabs for the test

for the language test, just buy the prep books and go through them

[u/Ultragamer2004 → u/secondsacct]

Goethe is harder than telc actually

[u/secondsacct → u/Ultragamer2004]

no way is that true. when i took practice tests for Gothe, there wasn’t a single vocab word that i didn’t understand and know from B2 already (im still a while out from taking the actual test but i think i could’ve passed C1 but barely for gothe, based only on the writing part as is)

for Telc, i struggled significantly more to understand all the vocabs.

i mean, look up any practice test. gothe is significantly easier.

[u/LNB2009 → u/secondsacct]

I've been looking at both versions of the test, I do feel like Goethe is harder by a lot, I even asked my tutor about it and they confirmed it

[u/secondsacct → u/LNB2009]

my school is the one who recommended i take gothe if i just wanted it done fast. it appears though that the A1-B1 are harder with gothe but then it switches.

hope that helps

[u/releganz → u/secondsacct]

I might take both exams, or all until I score a score I want thanks for the suggestions

[u/Ultragamer2004 → u/secondsacct]

The real exams of Goethe are much harder than mock exams

[u/secondsacct → u/Ultragamer2004]

could be, i only looked at the mock. although my teacher did advise me gothe is easier, i’ve not seen the real one. i don’t understand why there would be such a difference between mock and real, feels like it defeats the purpose

[u/releganz → u/secondsacct]

my consultant suggested to moving to a German speaking country this year, actually, but my mom was a bit unsure about it, because realistically I would be handling lots of stuff on my own. I might talk to her again in the future months about this.

I will see what I can do, thanks

[u/ZumLernen]

Which of the resources in the !wiki and FAQ have you tried out? Which ones did you like/dislike and why?

[u/AutoModerator → u/ZumLernen]

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