STEP Eiken

The EIKEN Test in Practical English Proficiency (実用英語技能検定, Jitsuyō Eigo Ginō Kentei) — informally, EIKEN (英検, Eiken); often called STEP EIKEN or the STEP Test — is an English language test conducted by a Japanese public-interest incorporated foundation, the Eiken Foundation of Japan (formerly the Society for Testing English Proficiency, Inc. [STEP]), and backed by the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT).

Eiken is a criterion-referenced test. There are seven levels that examinees either pass or fail. The levels (級 kyū) are called grades:

Eiken is a four-skills test, assessing a combination of receptive and productive skills. In addition to reading, listening and speaking test, Grades 1, Pre-1 and 2 include a handwritten composition task.

In Japan, Eiken is conducted three times a year: January/February, June/July, and October/November. There are two stages in the test, the first stage (vocabulary, reading, listening, and writing) and the second stage (speaking). Only those who pass the first stage can progress to the second stage. The second stage is conducted about one month after the first stage. Applicants who pass both stages receive certification.

English teachers in junior high schools and high schools in Japan often encourage their students to take the Eiken. Approximately 18,000 schools serve as test sites. Japanese high schools and universities often grant preferential status to student applicants who have passed a specified Eiken grade, such as waiving the English portion of the school's entrance examination.

In its 2003 strategic initiative "Japanese with English Abilities" and 2011 follow-up “Five Proposals and Specific Measures for Developing Proficiency in English for International Communication” (国際共通語としての英語力向上のための５つの提言と具体的対策), MEXT designated Eiken Grade 3 as a benchmark proficiency level for junior high school graduates, Grades 2 and Pre-2 for high school graduates, and Grade Pre-1 for English teachers.

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