Hi all. I’ve been learning (North) Welsh for 4 months and am currently working through lesson 6 on level 1 of SSIW course.
Can anyone tell me how the levels translate to the national Welsh standard?
For instance what would class as level 2, level 3 , level 4? Level 2 is a little above beginner, level 3 is where someone can make conversation but has to revert back to English. Level 4 is the highest level for non native speakers, with level 5 being native speakers.
Thanks in advance.
I haven’t seen those national levels, but people who learn with us taking advantage of the opportunities to join in the online group sessions, and supplementing their learning with listening to Radio Cymru etc, would usually attain Level 3 - able to use Welsh for most of their everyday requirements and only having to resort to English in specialised situations - even then often able to use the Welsh they know to ‘work around’ any lacking vocabulary.
I would echo Deborah here. (And just a head’s up that the Centre for Learning Welsh is starting to align their levels with the European CEFR framework, to align with the Welsh Government’s new Education Bill.)
I would also challenge the concept that level 5 is “native speakers” - that’s certainly not the case. There are many people who reach that level of proficiency who didn’t learn Welsh at home as small children. Here’s an example a 1-5 skills matrix used by an employer (the Senedd, in this case - I’ve used similar ones in various jobs to assess Welsh skills). I class myself as level 5 for the purposes of work. (I’m not saying that to brag! I want people to know that it is a viable target for them 
)
I found that at the end of the original SSiW course (and I know the format has changed considerably since then, but I don’t think the actual end point has) I was able to hold a general conversation on most subjects - about level 3 (or Canolradd, or B1 on the CEFR scale), as Deborah suggests.
That’s all with “speaking”, of course - levels on other skills might vary. (I know that my writing skills lagged behind at first, but soon caught up once I focussed on improving them.)
Diolch yn fawr iawn, Deborah and Sara for you detailed replies.
To correct myself on my original post, level 5 is being fluent in Welsh and being able to use it almost exclusively, not just native speakers, so that’s a misunderstanding on my part.
To expand a little, I’m considering relocating to North Wales in the near-ish future, but the job role I’m looking to ‘transfer’ to from my current one in England requires level 4 spoken Welsh. Although I’m doing well with my learning, that seems a big ask but I will certainly do my best to get there asap, although it could realistically take a few years.
Ironically, I’ve been trying my Welsh skills on locals in the large town I’m currently staying in on holiday in NW, and no one seems to speak the language! I’ve only met one fluent speaker so far in 4 days. All very surreal .
Have a little look around the forum. There are threads about local events, mostly of the music or “sgwrs a phaned” varieties. Find mentions of the area you’re in and see what’s happening, or if you can’t see anything near you, ask! I bet someone on here will know of something (the advantages of a small country and smaller language community may not be many, but this is one), and once you start meeting people “on the ground” those people can tell you where else to find the language.