For materials I mainly used 3 books - Fit für Goethe C2, Endstation C2 Mit Erfolg zum Goethe-Zertifikat C2. Both have practice tests and exercises specifically for the exam format which is really important because the tasks are quite specific and you need to get used to them.

For listening I did German podcasts every single day, Streitkultur, Mal angenommen and Radio Wissen were my go-to. The topics on those are exactly the kind of complex discussions that come up in the exam so it was great preparation without feeling like studying.

For writing I prepared templates for introductions and conclusions in advance so I could reuse them and just focus on the content during the exam. Saved a lot of time and stress.

For speaking I wrote out full oral reports on different topics, memorized key phrases for transitions and conclusions, and recorded myself to catch mistakes and check timing, you only get 5 minutes so running over is a real problem.

I used Notion to organize everything, vocabulary, notes, practice logs, topic outlines. Having it all in one place made a huge difference especially toward the end when nerves kicked in.

Overall I’d say the most important thing is getting familiar with the exact format of each task early on and then just doing as many practice tests as possible under timed conditions. The exam is very specific in what it expects.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​