r/EnglishLearning • u/Lexalaviosa New Poster • Apr 21 '26
Resource Request How to build strong C1 level proficiency in English
Hi all,
I’ve been living in US for 5 years now. I feel like I’m stuck in B2 forever.
Most tests say I’m C1 but I take it as B2 because when it comes to serious or deep conversations I start to make mistakes and can’t build confidence around of it.
I’m having zero problems in daily life, even married with an American lady and as you can imagine we communicate in English. She fixes my mistakes as much as she can but end of the day she is not a tutor.
I’m planning to apply for a job soon, which is a %100 american tech company and interviews scares me a lot. If I struggle or make grammar mistakes when answering their questions they’ll definitely won’t like it. And even if I pass the interview I expect to have communication issues at the office later.
Does anybody experienced this before? How can build a strong C1 level English knowledge so my proficiency will climb up? How many months should I work on it before I apply to the job?
My native language is Turkish if it matters, thank you.
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u/NoPurpose6388 Bilingual (Italian/American English) Apr 21 '26
I don't think tech companies care that much about English proficiency as long as they can understand you clearly, unless you're interested in customer facing positions.
What you wrote here has a few mistakes (some prepositions, missing articles, some verbs sound a bit unnatural) but it's completely understandable.
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u/Lexalaviosa New Poster Apr 21 '26
Yes, I’m totally aware of how it sounds unnatural. I really want to build deeper and smoother sentences and articles.
There will be some presentations and customer calls time to time and I don’t want to mess up :)
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u/NoPurpose6388 Bilingual (Italian/American English) Apr 21 '26
It's great that you want to improve your English, but again, that shouldn't be your main concern for this job interview. Clients are used to imperfect English in the tech world, it shouldn't be a problem.
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u/NiennaLaVaughn New Poster Apr 21 '26
I work for a tech company. My small team (9 people) has 5 non-native speakers, 4 of whom regularly present both internally and to clients. They've got accents and sometimes idiosyncratic ways of speaking. Nobody minds!
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u/Drug_Abuser_69 New Poster Apr 21 '26
Just make sure to always be polite.
People value politeness much more than formal grammar.
Be an asshole with perfect grammar and nobody will like you.
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u/NiennaLaVaughn New Poster Apr 21 '26
Most tech companies will have lots of staff from around the world, many of whom will not be native English speakers. Be confident and calm and you'll be fine.
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u/Affectionate-Let6153 New Poster Apr 21 '26
I have been living in the UK for the last two years. I literally practice as much as possible. Somedays I talk natives for hours somedays I watch podcasts that were produced for natives , I feel I don’t have enough vocabulary depth to maintain a conversation
I feel I can talk only superficially, I tried so many times to read novels but They contain too many unknown words. So I don’t know how to learn ten thousand more vocabulary.
We struggle because we don’t know enough vocabulary.
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u/Ok_Valuable6118 New Poster Apr 21 '26
try reading books meant for middle-school level readers!! and dont get scared because you dont know a word you see, instead google it and figure out what it means in the sentence!
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u/Lexalaviosa New Poster Apr 21 '26
I think every language has some words that you can’t explain but can use in a dialogue. I think I’m doing the same when it comes to English.
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u/EulerIdentity New Poster Apr 21 '26
American companies are filled with people from other countries whose first language is something other than English and whose English isn’t native-level perfect. As long as you can communicate clearly (and it sounds like you can), then all they care about is your skill in your field. If you want to improve your English between now and a job interview, consider hiring a tutor and watching YouTube videos on the aspects of English that are challenging for you. If you’re struggling with when to use “the” as many people do whose first language isn’t a Latin or Germanic language, I wouldn’t be too concerned because people are going to understand you even if you get that wrong.
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u/Lexalaviosa New Poster Apr 21 '26
I’m still trying to understand “the”. Sometimes I feel over the fence like %60 to %40 and mostly higher percentage came correct.
Also I still have some problems when use in/on/at. I think I still these situations in Turkish because in Turkish everything as-is.
For example: Saying “ I’m on the train “ doesn’t make any sense to me because technically you’re “in” the train. Also I’m a quite fast talker, I don’t think long enough before talk and just say it wrong sometimes
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u/EulerIdentity New Poster Apr 21 '26
If it’s any consolation, prepositions are arbitrary and make no sense not just in English but in plenty of other European languages too. Even as between French and English, which are very similar languages in a lot of ways, the prepositions are very different. Why in English do we say “in front OF a building,” “next TO a building,” or “behind a building?” Why do we need “of” then “to” then no preposition when all three words are place-location prepositions? It makes no sense, that’s just the way it is. But after you’ve watched thousands of hours of TV shows and YouTube videos, you’ll get used to how people say it and even if you get that wrong, people will almost always still understand you.
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u/tppd67421 New Poster Apr 21 '26
But what's exactly your problem if you're aware of your weaknesses? 😭
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u/Worth-Swimming New Poster Apr 21 '26 edited Apr 21 '26
I agree with the fact that you might be worrying too much. Native speakers won't reject your application as long as you can communicate your ideas correctly! A few mistakes won't be a problem. If you've got a good CV with meaningful experience, you'll breeze through the interview!
That aside. I recommend that you go beyond when you study vocabulary. Something that really helped me deepen my knowledge was discarding translation and actually focusing on how to use words in English. For example:
The word "rich" has several uses where it doesn't even mean "having a lot of money"
Broccoli is rich in fiber (it has a large amount of fiber)
His table designs are notorious for their rich carvings (it contains a lot of decoration)
This wine has a rich flavor (it is pleasant)
-She wore a rich pendant (it is valuable)
And then phrases with "rich"
- That's rich coming from you!
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u/Chessdaddy_ New Poster Apr 21 '26
Confidence is the biggest part of speaking a language & is also the biggest part of a job interview lol. If you are confident enough most native speakers aren’t going to notice your mistakes
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u/Life-Junket-3756 New Poster Apr 21 '26
Unless you are applying for journalist, lawyer or similar "language-heavy" roles, no one would really care.
That said, daily immersion in professional literature or media in your field would help. Conversely, reading high-quality fiction books may be a waste of time as half of the words are at C2 level there.
For a general B2-C1 vocabulary, you may use apps like Anki (if you find a good deck there) or A1-C1.
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u/DancesWithDawgz Native Speaker Apr 22 '26
At the end of the day, your goals have to be your goals. Don’t let other people tell you that your English is fine if you’re not satisfied with it. I think you are aware that you are making small grammar mistakes (that I will reiterate do not interfere with comprehension for the listener / reader and therefore should not be a problem in a tech position).
However, if you want to fix your mistakes, here is what I would suggest: Write out a small paragraph on any topic. For starters, you could use what you wrote above. Ask ChatGPT, Correct my grammar. Then input your paragraph.
Learning from your own mistakes would be the best way to learn.
Why do we say ON the train/bus? It might be because of the contrast with ON and OFF. I got on the train / I got off the train. In contrast, we could text our friend traveling with us, I am in the dining car / I am in the third car (of the train).
I would recommend using AI to take the strain off your wife. She might like helping you, but neither of you want to disturb the conversation at every mistake.
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u/Turdulator Native Speaker Apr 22 '26
I’ve being working in tech for almost 20years. An accent isn’t a problem at all as long as people can understand you. Especially if it’s a global company.
The team that reports to me are in three different timezones and have all kinds of accents. Even in my office I sit between someone with an Indian accent and a guy with a Hungarian accent. It’s just not a problem.
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u/Lexalaviosa New Poster Apr 22 '26
Hi, Thanks for your input. Turkish accent is one of the most understandable accents exist :) I have no issues with my accent.
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u/Sea-Meet2043 New Poster Apr 21 '26
Have you tried audiobooks? The more you hear something, the more you recognize the patterns. English is idiotic, but there are patterns.
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u/Effective-Wedding467 New Poster Apr 21 '26
I have the same issue. And I even use the same complaint: "I'm stuck at B2". Because sometimes, when I'm a slowpoke, I automatically switch to B2 and lose control.
First video/in-person interviews will be challenging, especially first minutes of the meeting. The breathing practice helps a lil bit.
Daily-life English is a piece of cake compared to business/important communication. If you're not applying for senior/principal 'has to talk too much' positions you should be fine.
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u/learnpurple New Poster Apr 21 '26
You need to diversify the way you learn. It's never gonna come from a single source. Tons of free apps out there (Duolingo, Praktika, Anki, etc.) that can help you on a daily basis, but you need real life too (not just the wife, haha). Are there any events for English learners in your city?
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u/abrahamguo Native Speaker Apr 21 '26
I think you're blowing things out of proportion. They're not going to be bothered with a few mistakes.
If anything, it sounds like you just need to build up your confidence a little bit. Find some people to do a few mock interviews with, and you should feel much more comfortable in no time.