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B2 vocabulary: education, school and studying

The most useful B2 education vocabulary is about how people learn, not just names of subjects: collocations such as take an exam, get a degree and fall behind, plus word families like educate, education, educational. This page is part of our B2 vocabulary guide and gives you 48 items with original examples, false friends to avoid and exam-style practice.

By Eleanor BennettLast updated:

Why education vocabulary matters in B2 First

Education is one of the topics you are most likely to meet in the exam. You might discuss whether homework is useful in Speaking Part 4, write an essay about learning online, or read an article about a student who left university to start a business. Because the topic is so familiar, examiners expect more than school is important: they want precise words such as compulsory, tuition fees or hands-on learning.

Learn the items below in their groups, and always copy the collocation, not the single word. When you finish, continue with the closely related work and jobs vocabulary, because many questions link studying and careers, and with technology vocabulary for online learning.

Education vocabulary: words and collocations

Use it to…Phrases
Nouns: people, places and qualifications
  • primary / secondary school – My sister has just started secondary school and has a different teacher for every subject.
  • pupil / student – 'pupil' is used for younger children at school; 'student' for older learners and university.
  • lecturer – a teacher at university. Our history lecturer never used slides.
  • degree – She's doing a degree in engineering. (not 'a career')
  • qualification – You need a teaching qualification to work in a state school.
  • tuition fees – the money you pay for courses. Tuition fees have gone up again.
  • scholarship – money to pay for study, often given for good results. He won a scholarship to study abroad.
  • curriculum – all the subjects taught. Coding is now part of the curriculum.
  • term / semester – We have exams at the end of each term.
  • hall of residence – university accommodation for students.
Verbs and verb collocations
  • take / sit an exam – I'm taking my driving theory exam on Friday. (not 'make' or 'do' an exam in careful English)
  • pass / fail an exam – 'pass' means you succeeded, not that you sat it.
  • revise for – study again before an exam. I revised for the test all weekend.
  • attend lectures / classes – Attendance is checked, so you have to attend every seminar.
  • enrol on a course – I've enrolled on an evening course in photography.
  • get / obtain a degree – She got a degree in law, but became a chef.
  • do research into – He's doing research into how teenagers sleep.
  • make progress – You've made real progress with your pronunciation.
  • memorise / learn by heart – We had to learn the poem by heart.
  • cheat – Anyone caught cheating will fail the exam.
Phrasal verbs
  • fall behind (with) – I was ill for two weeks and fell behind with my maths.
  • catch up (with / on) – I'm staying in this weekend to catch up on my reading.
  • drop out (of) – leave a course before the end. He dropped out of college in his first year.
  • hand in – Please hand in your essays by Thursday.
  • look up – find information in a dictionary or online. Look up any words you don't know.
  • go over – check or review. Let's go over the answers together.
  • pick up – learn without formal study. She picked up Portuguese while working in Lisbon.
  • brush up on – improve a skill you have partly forgotten. I need to brush up on my German before the trip.
Adjectives and word families
  • educate → education → educational → educated – The museum trip was both fun and educational.
  • compulsory / optional – PE is compulsory until you're sixteen.
  • academic – She's very academic, but less confident in practical subjects.
  • knowledge → knowledgeable – Our guide was really knowledgeable about the area.
  • practise (v) / practice (n) – British spelling: I practise every day; practice makes progress.
  • demanding – needing a lot of effort. A medical degree is extremely demanding.
  • gifted / talented – The school has a programme for gifted pupils.
  • succeed → success → successful → unsuccessful – useful for word formation.
  • theory → theoretical vs practical / hands-on – I learn best through hands-on experience.
  • mixed-ability class – a class with students at different levels.
Useful phrases for discussing education
  • learn from your mistakes – Good teachers let you learn from your mistakes.
  • put pressure on (students) – Constant tests put a lot of pressure on young people.
  • get good / bad marks (grades) – He got top marks in chemistry.
  • a well-rounded education – one that develops many different skills.
  • lifelong learning – learning throughout your life, not only at school.
  • rote learning – learning by repetition without understanding.
  • a gap year – Many students take a gap year to travel or work before university.
  • study abroad – Studying abroad taught me as much as my course did.
  • teach yourself (to do something) – I taught myself to play the guitar using videos.
  • the pros and cons of homeschooling / online learning – a neutral way to introduce both sides.

False friends and confusing pairs in education vocabulary

  • Trap: I'm studying the career of medicine. (Spanish carrera, Italian carriera)

    Fix: In English a career is your working life. For a university course, say degree or course: I'm doing a degree in medicine.

  • Trap: I assisted all my classes. (Spanish asistir, Italian assistere)

    Fix: Use attend for being present: I attended all my classes. Assist means help.

  • Trap: I passed the exam yesterday but I don't know the result yet. (Greek and Italian speakers often mix these up)

    Fix: Take/sit = do the exam. Pass = succeed. I took the exam yesterday; I hope I passed.

  • Trap: Our professor at school gave us a lot of homework.

    Fix: At school we say teacher. Professor is a senior university title in British English.

  • Trap: I went to the gymnasium until I was eighteen. (German Gymnasium, Greek gymnasio, Polish gimnazjum)

    Fix: In English a gym is a place for exercise. Say secondary school (or grammar school in a UK context).

  • Trap: She learned me how to swim.

    Fix: Teach someone; learn something yourself. She taught me how to swim.

  • Trap: I read a nice lecture about Roman history. (Spanish lectura, Italian lettura)

    Fix: A lecture is a talk at university. For something you read, say text, reading or article.

  • Trap: I need to do a formation in marketing. (Spanish formación, Italian formazione)

    Fix: Say training or a course: I need some training in marketing.

Use it in the exam: Speaking Part 4

In Speaking Part 4 the examiner asks you opinion questions connected to the Part 3 topic. Education questions are very common. A strong answer gives a clear opinion, one or two reasons and an example, and uses topic collocations naturally rather than listing them. Read the sample answer below and notice the highlighted vocabulary from this page. For many more questions, see our Part 4 question bank.

Sample Part 4 answer: education

Examiner: Some people say that exams are not a good way to measure what students have learned. What do you think?

I partly agree. Exams are useful because they show whether you've actually understood the material, and they make you revise, which helps you remember it. But I think they can put a lot of pressure on students, and some people who are very knowledgeable just don't perform well under time limits. When I was at secondary school, a friend of mine was brilliant at hands-on projects, but she always got bad marks in written tests. So, in my view, a mix of exams and coursework would be fairer, because it rewards different kinds of ability.

Why it works

  • Opens with a clear, balanced position ('I partly agree').
  • Uses topic collocations from this page: revise, put pressure on, knowledgeable, hands-on, got bad marks.
  • Supports the opinion with a short personal example.
  • Finishes with a conclusion and a reason ('because it rewards different kinds of ability').

Education questions for speaking practice

Answer each question aloud for 30 to 45 seconds. Try to use at least two items from the tables above in every answer.

Education

  • Do you think school prepares young people well for working life? Why (not)?
  • Should every young person go to university? Why (not)?
  • Is it better to learn a skill by yourself online or with a teacher in a class?
  • Should students have to wear a school uniform?
  • How important is homework for young learners?
  • What are the advantages of taking a gap year before university?
  • Do you think teachers should be paid more? Why?
  • Is it ever too late to learn something new?

B2 education vocabulary: FAQ

What is the difference between 'career' and 'degree'?

A degree is a university qualification (a degree in biology). A career is the series of jobs you do during your working life (a career in medicine). Many Spanish and Italian speakers confuse them.

Do you 'make' or 'take' an exam in English?

You take or sit an exam. 'Do an exam' is also heard informally, but 'make an exam' is wrong. If you pass, you succeed; if you fail, you don't.

Is it 'practice' or 'practise'?

In British English, practice is the noun and practise is the verb: I practise every evening; practice is important. American English uses practice for both.

How do I use education vocabulary in the Speaking test?

Give opinions with reasons and a short example, and include two or three precise collocations, such as fall behind, put pressure on or hands-on learning. Don't list words; use them naturally.

Which education words are useful for word formation?

Families such as educate/education/educational, knowledge/knowledgeable, succeed/success/successful, qualify/qualification/qualified and attend/attendance come up often. Practise them in our word formation trainer.