30-day Goethe B1 study plan
doch!5 min read
Thirty days isn't enough to learn German up to B1. It is enough to take this specific exam if you're already around B1: to learn the format, iron out the usual mistakes, and stop losing points to the clock. The plan below assumes 60–90 minutes a day, and that you can already understand simple texts and write a few sentences. If that's not the case yet, thirty days won't be enough — better to move your exam date back.
- 30daysfour weeks, one goal each
- 60–90minutesevery day
- 1mock examevery week
Contents
The principles the plan depends on
- By module, not "by German". The exam is graded as four separate modules, and a strong one doesn't make up for a weak one. Prepare for each separately and measure each separately.
- Under exam rules. Read against the clock, listen once wherever the real exam only plays a recording once, write 80 words in 20 minutes. Otherwise you're training the wrong thing.
- Write every day. Schreiben is the only module you can't guess your way through, and the only one where a month of practice visibly moves the needle. One text a day, 20 minutes, checked.
- One mock exam a week. Not to grade yourself, but to see where the time actually goes.
Week 1: diagnosis and format
The goal for the week is to find out where you stand in each module, and to learn the format well enough that you never have to read the instructions on exam day.
- 1
Full mock Lesen, timed
- 2
Full mock Hören, under exam rules
- 3
Mock Schreiben: three tasks in 60 minutes, then check
- 4
Review all three: where points were lost and why
- 5
Lesen Teil 1 and Teil 2, twice each
- 6
Hören Teil 1 and Teil 2, twice each
- 7
Schreiben Aufgabe 1, check; day off from everything else
By the end of the week you should have three numbers — rough scores for Lesen, Hören and Schreiben — and know which module sits below 60. Sprechen isn't part of this plan's daily drills, but it's worth running a mock oral exam with a partner during this same week.
Week 2: Lesen and Hören, part by part
The goal is to make each part of Lesen and Hören automatic: you see the task and already know what to do before you've even read the text.
- 8Lesen Teil 3 ×3Hören Teil 3 ×2Schreiben Aufgabe 2
- 9Lesen Teil 4 ×3Hören Teil 4 ×2Schreiben Aufgabe 3
- 10Lesen Teil 5 ×3Hören Teil 1 ×2Schreiben Aufgabe 1
- 11Lesen Teil 2 ×2, timedHören Teil 2 ×2Schreiben Aufgabe 2
- 12Lesen Teil 1 + Teil 3Hören Teil 4 ×2Schreiben Aufgabe 3
- 13Lesen Full Lesen, timedSchreiben Aufgabe 1
- 14Hören Full HörenSchreiben Review the week
After each part, look at more than just the answer — look at why it's the answer: in Lesen, which word in the text settled the question; in Hören, exactly where it was said. A mistake you don't unpack trains nothing.
Week 3: writing, and your weakest module
The goal is a steady 25+ points on the first two Schreiben tasks, and bringing up whichever module scored below 60 in week 1's diagnosis.
Every day, one timed Schreiben task checked against the four criteria, rotating Aufgabe 1, 2 and 3. Every third day, do all three tasks back to back in 60 minutes — the time isn't split between tasks on the real exam, and you need to feel that.
Spend the second half hour of the day on your weakest module. If that's Hören, replay the part where you lose points, two or three times a day across different sets. If it's Lesen, drill the part where time runs out, against a hard timer.
At the end of the week, collect your recurring writing mistakes. There are usually three: word order in subordinate clauses, case after prepositions, and articles. That three-item list is what you'll check against in the exam's last five minutes.
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Week 4: mock exams and rest
The goal is two full mock exams under close-to-real conditions, without burning out.
- 22
Full written exam: Lesen, Hören, Schreiben back to back, 165 minutes with no break
- 23
Review. Only review, nothing new
- 24–25
Weak parts from the review, an hour each
- 26
Second full written exam
- 27
Review, then rewrite your three-item writing mistake list from scratch
- 28
Light day: one part each of Lesen and Hören, one short piece of writing
- 29
Formulas for the formal letter and the forum post: greetings, sign-offs. No new texts
- 30
Nothing. Sleep, check your documents and the exam centre's address
There's usually a 10–15 point gap between the two mock exams, mostly down to time management. That gap is exactly what a month of format practice buys you.
If one module clearly isn't ready
You can sit the modules separately. If by day 22 Schreiben is consistently under 50, it makes more sense to sit the three modules that are ready now and take Schreiben in a month or two, rather than sit everything and retake one. Passes on individual modules stand, and an overall certificate for modules passed within a year can be requested where the exam centre can arrange it. The conditions depend on where you sit the exam; they are set out in the article on the exam structure.
What to measure against
Through this plan, you want to see three numbers every week: your scores for Lesen, Hören and Schreiben. In doch!, that's a single readiness figure on the home screen, built up from completed exercises across Reading, Listening and Writing, plus feedback on each piece of writing against the four scoring criteria — the same three numbers, just without the answer sheets.
Frequently asked questions
Is 30 days enough starting from zero?
No. This plan assumes you're already around B1: you understand simple texts and can write a few connected sentences. Getting from zero to B1 usually takes six months or more of regular study.
How much time do I need each day?
60–90 minutes. Less than an hour isn't enough for one part plus review; more than two hours a day doesn't add progress, just fatigue.
What about Sprechen?
Find a partner and run through all three parts of the oral exam once a week, using a Modellsatz: planning something together, a presentation, then questions. Learn the presentation's opening lines and the planning phrases by heart.
Can I prepare using only a textbook?
Yes, if it has exam-format tasks with answer keys and timing. The problem with textbooks is Schreiben: there's nobody to check your writing against the criteria, and without that, 20 texts written over a month give you far less than 20 texts that were actually reviewed.