The highest award: Großes Deutsches Sprachdiplom (GDS).

Beginning 01.01.2012 the Goethe-Zertifikat C2: Großes Deutsches Sprachdiplom will replace three exams currently in use: the Goethe-Zertifikat: Zentrale Oberstufenprüfung (ZOP), the Kleines Deutsches Sprachdiplom (KDS) and the Großes Deutsches Sprachdiplom (GDS).

The Goethe-Zertifikat C2: Großes Deutsches Sprachdiplom requires extremely advanced language skills and documents the sixth and highest level – C2 – on the six-level competency scale described in the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages.

By passing this exam you demonstrate you can, for example,

• understand everything in German that you read and hear effortlessly
• summarize information presented to you from a variety of sources, written and spoken, and, in doing so, synthesize correlating arguments as well as explanations
• organically express yourself in a fluent and precise manner and articulate the finer nuances of complex arguments.

Further information and exercises for the
Goethe-Zertifikat C2: Großes Deutsches Sprachdiplom (GDS)

Exam guidelines (PDF, 314 KB)
Terms and conditions for exam administration (PDF, 302 KB)
Supplement to the terms and conditions for exam participants with
   special needs (PDF, 228 KB)
Information for examination candidates with special needs (PDF, 61 KB)